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- When visiting, keep in mind that KP has implemented a variety of safety guidelines. Guest numbers are limited, so it’s recommended that you book your visit ahead of time online. Guests will also have to self-assess their health, keep a physical distance of two metres from others, and wear face masks while indoors.
www.visitkingston.ca/kingston-penitentiary-whats-new-in-2021/
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If you haven’t had a chance to get inside Kingston Penitentiary yet, you better get on it — tours of Canada’s oldest and most notorious maximum-security prison are back and tickets are on sale now!
- Kingston Penitentiary: Explore Canada’s Historic Prison in ...
Step inside the walls of Canada’s oldest penitentiary and...
- Touring the Kingston Pen: What to Expect – Visit Kingston
Kingston Pen Tours run until October 31. Visit Kingston Pen...
- Kingston Penitentiary: Explore Canada’s Historic Prison in ...
- The Penitentiary Opens in 1835
- Child Prisoners
- Charles Dickens' Visit
- Famous Escapes
- Infamous Inmates
- Prison Riots
- Guards and Operation Correct Zero
When the first five convicts arrived from Toronto in 1835 to serve their time, the new prison, then named the Provincial Penitentiary of the Province of Upper Canada, was not yet open for business, and so the inmates had to be held at the county jail for five days. Five months later, there were 62 inmates, including women. By 1850, there were 410 i...
There were children within KP's walls in the early years, incarcerated even at eight years old. Antoine Beauche was given a three-year sentence at KP in 1845 when he was eight. "This eight year old child received... 47 corporal punishments [the lash] in nine months, and all for offences of the most childish character," according to an 1849 commissi...
If such stories conjure up memories of a Charles Dickens novel, know that the great English writer visited KP in 1842. Dickens made a mention of it in his book American Notes, inexplicably writing, "There is an admirable gaol here, well and wisely governed, and excellently regulated in every respect."
Escapes from KP were few and far between. Two of the most famous escapes involved going over the wall with a ladder. In 1923, the man who has been called Canada's most notorious criminal, bank robber Red Ryan, led four inmates over the wall after first setting fire to a shed as a distraction. Ryan went back to robbing banks, was captured three mont...
KP has long been the place most of Canada's notorious inmates served time. Until recently, that list included Paul Bernardo, Michael Briere, Selva Kumar Subbiah, Russell Williams, Mohammad Shafia and his son, Hamed, and Michael Rafferty. This may result in part from KP being the maximum security prison where inmates who cannot be safely integrated ...
There were at least three big riots at KP. When a riot broke out in 1932, Communist Party of Canada general secretary Tim Buck was in a KP cell serving time for sedition. While guards were ordered to fire shots through the peep-hole of cells where and when they detected a commotion, they also fired seven shots into Buck's cell, which the government...
KP was a "dumping ground for bad guards," with some guards terrorizing fellow staff and inmates, according to a 1989 report commissioned by KP's warden. In 1999, at new warden Monty Bourke's request, the RCMP began an investigation code-named "Correct zero" that would use inmates as paid informants. Eight guards were fired, although one firing was ...
Kingston Pen Tours run until October 31. Visit Kingston Pen Tour for more information and to book your visit. Enjoy a 1.5-hour journey through the inner workings of Canada’s oldest maximum security prison. Learn about criminology and Canadian history.
Guests are encouraged to self-assess their health and encouraged to not visit our attractions if there is any possibility that they may have contracted or have come into contact with COVID-19.
Sep 29, 2024 · Step inside the walls of Canada’s oldest penitentiary and explore the living and working areas, some dating back to the 1830s. Hear the personalized accounts from former staff and learn about the history and the daily routines, including stories of escapes, riots and everything in between on this 1.5-hour guided tour.
Wonderful tour with family at Kingston Penitentiary with our fabulous guide Calvin. Loved his energy and sense of humour, and answered a LOT of questions - he was well informed. The tour was well set up with their covid distancing and we felt extremely safe throughout our time there.
Standard Tour. Type: Guided | Duration: 1.5 hours. Step inside the walls of Canada’s oldest penitentiary and explore the living and working areas, some dating back to the 1830s.
