Sheriff's Residence & Jail Museum
History museum in an old jail
About
This county history museum fills the old sheriff's home and jail on the courthouse square in downtown Noblesville. The Hamilton County Historical Society runs it. The sheriff's family lived in the front of the building, with the jail attached behind, and you can see both. The house has a parlor, kitchen, foyer and bedroom set up as period rooms. The jail has three floors of cells, from the men's blocks to the Victorian cells on the third floor, which mostly held women.
The sheriff's wife was on staff, cooked for the inmates as well as her own family, and acted as matron for any women or children in the cells. The children carried the meal trays.
The society also keeps genealogy and local records, including old photos and school yearbooks.
History
Work on the building began in 1875, alongside the new courthouse, and it served as residence and jail from 1876 to 1977. It has a three-story square tower, and 33 sheriffs and their families lived there. Two inmates broke out in September 1940 and were never caught. D.C. Stephenson, the Indiana Ku Klux Klan leader, was tried in the courthouse in 1925 and was most likely held on the third floor. The building turned 150 in 2026.
When to go
It's open Fridays and Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the society schedules groups on other days. A Salute to Veterans, with 22 military uniforms, runs through November 14, 2026, and the museum also opens 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Veterans Day, November 11. The society also runs the Santa House on the square each year, but its 2026 schedule isn't posted.
Good to know
The society says the exhibits and cells are fine for children, and that graphic graffiti in the juvenile cell block is blocked from view. Only the first floor is accessible, by a ramp at the side door. The upper floors are stairs only. Street parking around the square is free with a weekday time limit. The Levinson garage a block south has four free hours.
Price
Free. The museum runs on donations and has no admission fee.
Prices checked November 2026 on the website of Hamilton County Historical Society. They can change, so check before you go.
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