SEARCY -- These days, the one-room hoosegow displayed at White County Pioneer Village here would be condemned as unfit for human habitation.
Even when it was built in 1911, the windowless Pangburn Community Jail drew protests from tender souls. The local Ladies Aid Society "was aghast, calling the building 'an inhumane contraption.'" That's according to information posted on the windowless 12-by-16-foot structure.
As the sign reports, Mayor John Austin Pangburn drew the jail's design in 10 minutes on a piece of brown wrapping paper: "It took only imagination to realize the building would be miserably cold in the winter months," and beastly hot in the summer.
The mayor's only response to complaints supposedly was, "Be confounded sure not to break the law."
The old jail was eventually moved to this Searcy outdoor history complex, which is maintained and operated by White County Historical Society volunteers. It is the most eye-catching of the dozen structures on the site.
Justin Gehring, who gives tours each Saturday in the summer, tells visitors that the jail, with its two-by-four timbers covered by galvanized tin, seems to have worked well as a deterrent.
During its 67 years in use, he says, not a single prisoner ever dared commit any crime that got him sent back. That's why a sign on the facade reads "No Return Calaboose."
Other structures on the Pioneer Village grounds served more benign purposes in their original locations. The Little Red Schoolhouse and Community Church functioned as a classroom on weekdays and operated as a house of worship on Sundays.
Four different denominations held services on a rotating basis, Gehring says. The building's two front doors are explained by the fact that one congregation believed men and women should enter separately, then sit on opposite sides of the aisle.
Among other properties on the grounds are a two-story house, a barn, a post office, a smokehouse, a blacksmith shop, an outhouse and a train station still under restoration. There's also an assortment of vintage John Deere farm equipment.
Pioneer Village stages three open-house programs each year. Next on the schedule is Fall Fest, set for Nov. 7-8. There'll be demonstrations of 19th-century crafts, music, farm animals, children's games, quilting and a Master Gardener plant sale.
Instead of guiding visitors, Gehring will be manning the site's blacksmith's shop. He promises that nobody will be locked in the jail.
White County Pioneer Village, 1200 Higginson St., Searcy, offers guided tours of its historic buildings 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on summer Saturdays. There is no admission charge, but donations for upkeep are welcome. The grounds can be visited most days 9 a.m.-5 p.m., but the buildings are open only on Saturday.
Call (501) 278-5010 or (501) 580-6633. Or visit whitecountypioneervillage.org.
Weekend on 08/06/2015