Many thanks to all of you who replied to my question about where to locate records of the inmates who were incarcerated at the "Alabama Penitentiary" at Wetumpka. Since several of you wrote asking questions about this old prison, here are some of the answers I received (not all of which were posted to the list) from other list members: "Most of the older prison records are at the Alabama Department of Archives and History in Montgomery. If you'll just type in the above in your search engine you should get the Department site. I found the complete trial, prison, and pardon record for a gr grandfather of mine who was convicted of murder in Coosa Co., Alabama in 1897 and served his time at the Penitentiary there in Wetumpka. I remember when part of the prison there was still standing but it is all gone now. I went to the archives for my research but that was before the advent of the internet. It seems that one can get the information now through the internet." "I would imagine all those records are at the Alabama Dept. of Archives and History in Montgomery. http://www.archives.state.al.us/index.html Parts of this old prison are still standing, but no efforts were ever made to restore this Confederate Prison. Most of the old structure collapsed many years ago during a storm. Now most of it is just a pile of broken handmade bricks." "The old prison sits at the present day intersection of US Hwy 231 and AL Hwy 14 in Wetumpka. The ruins can be seen on the NW corner (between Hwy 231 and the Apartments along the Coosa River) inside the fence of the County Maintenance facility. Since the property now sits on a major intersection, the county is only interested in selling this property for as much as they can get, not for historical reasons, which eliminates any historical preservation group from being able to afford it to preserve as a park. The old prison was "U" shaped with a courtyard, and was 2 stories tall and full of beautiful ornate iron works on both floors. It looked like something from New Orleans. The main portion of the building collapsed about 6 years ago in a rain storm. There are still a few walls of handmade bricks still standing, but mostly everything is in a pile of rubble and hasn't been touched. It was the first state prison in AL and served as a POW prison for the Confederate Gov't during the Civil War." *************** I'm now planning to contact the AL Archives to see if I can locate the records on the inmate I'm researching who was in the prison in 1860 (genealogists have to be incredibly optimistic people!). I will let you all know what I find out regarding the records, etc. Thanks again for your assistance! Donna Sarchet Plainview, TX