Shawshank prison: where is it?

2024 Author: Harold Hamphrey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:06

As you know, the world of the film industry is not always props and scenery. Film directors often strive for maximum realism, and instead of fake prop diamonds, they put stones on actors that cost millions, and school or palace scenes are filmed in real schools and palaces.

So, in some episodes of "Star Wars" the role of the residence of Amidala was played by the royal palace of the Bourbon dynasty, and in the "Hunger Games" President Snow was settled in a real architectural monument called "Swan House". The cult film The Shawshank Redemption was no exception.

The Shawshank Redemption - Summary

To begin with, let's refresh the memory of the events that took place in the movie masterpiece based on the novel by Stephen King. To date, this tape is recognized as one of the most powerful and famous film stories about the prison escape. The main character is the banker Andy Dufresne, who, as a result of some circumstances, ended up in Shawshank Prison.

The prison meets the hero very inhospitably. Here Andy has to face the horrors of prisonconclusions - cruelty and moral humiliation. Thanks to a sophisticated mind, the hero of Tim Robbins manages to get out of difficult situations with honor. Throughout his time in Shawshank, he plots a cunning escape plan that eventually succeeds.

It is noteworthy that in the cinema there are many films about escaping from prison. Regardless of whether they came out earlier or later than the described picture, they are inevitably compared with the story of Andy Dufresne. And they always seem a little less sophisticated and interesting. Perhaps this is due to a certain degree of authenticity that is present in the film? After all, The Shawshank Redemption was filmed in a real place of confinement! So what is Shawshank?

Is there really a prison?

Few people know that the prototype of an institution called Shawshank is a prison in Mansfield, Ohio. It was she who “starred” in the film about Andy Dufresne and his daring escape. After its "role", the real prison became famous, and a kind of pilgrimage of tourists began to visit it.

It is noteworthy that even before the filming of the film masterpiece, television men and directors often visited the Mansfield prison. Several TV shows, films and video clips were filmed in the building, but it became recognizable only after it was called Shawshank in the film by Frank Darabont.

Prison - history and sad facts

The exact date of construction of the building that houses the Ohio State Penitentiary is currentlyunknown. Historians disagree, and give different dates - from 1886 to 1910. The building is attributed to the German castle architecture. The names of the architects are immortalized on the first stone of the prison - they were some Scofield and Schnitzer.

After the construction of the building was completed, the prison began to accept prisoners. The penitentiary functioned until 1990. During the period of its work, the prison buried about 200 people, including guards and guards. Prisoners often died from infections, tuberculosis, influenza.

The most tragic event that happened at Mansfield Prison was the 1948 escape. This escape has nothing to do with the events of the Shawshank movie. The prison in that fateful year lost one of the guards - he was killed in his own house by two escaped criminals. Along the way, the attackers de alt with his family - his wife and 20-year-old daughter. The bodies of all three were found in the corn fields a little later. As for the criminals themselves, they were executed in the electric chair two days after the escape.

By the end of the 70s, the lists of prisoners at Mansfield Prison numbered more than 2 thousand people. But a lawsuit was filed against the correctional institution, which contained an accusation of inhuman conditions of detention of convicts. However, after the trial, the place of detention lasted for about 10 years. In 1990, the Mansfield prison ceased operations and ceased to exist. But not a building - it isbegan to attract fans to tickle their nerves like a magnet, especially after the filming of the cult Shawshank Redemption.

Restoration

Few people know that for the filming of the film it took a lot of money to restore the building. The prison was too in a deplorable state.

Today, the complex of buildings of the Mansfield institution has undergone major modifications. Looking at it, one can hardly believe that once it was a terrible Shawshank - a prison. Photos found on the net confirm this.

From the old institution, only facades remained. The fence, other prison buildings, production facilities and outbuildings have been demolished. This happened because only the facades of the main building are of real historical value.

In the film, all these buildings can still be seen. The red brick buildings in the prison area now also exist only in the film.

Filmography

Shawshank is a prison with a decent cinematic track record. Prior to filming the iconic prisoner escape movie, Mansfield was the setting for several movies and TV shows about the paranormal. List of feature films filmed at the Ohio State Penitentiary:

• "Tango and Cash";
• "President's plane";
• "Harry and W alter are going to New York".

Mansfield today

Since 1995, immediately after the filming of the film about the escape of Andy Dufresne, it has been createdspecial society for the protection of the prison. Apparently, the initiators and founders of the creation of the society are local activists. However, after the founding of the organization, the prison acquired the status of a museum. For tourist walks, the prison guard society collects a fee, which later goes to support the building.

Shawshank is a prison with a huge number of ghosts. This also fuels interest in the building. Since 2014, it has been customary to arrange excursions around the gloomy castle on an ongoing basis. Curious tourists are willing to pay for thrilling experiences, and the prison is in need of funds for restoration.

Similar to the Manfield prison, there are several other abandoned places of detention in the world, which attract filmmakers with their surroundings. But Shawshank is the most memorable among them.