Old Idaho Penitentiary

Oh no, it's Friday the 13th 😮 Why not try your luck with a Twilight Tour of the Old Idaho Penitentiary?

Twilight Tours start at 7:00 pm and run until 11:00 pm, with the last admission at 10:00 pm.

Admission is $16 per person or 2 for $25. (Enter Code TWI25 on our website for 2 for $25 pricing.)

Idaho State Historical Society Members receive free admission! Not a Member? Learn more and become a Member at https://history.idaho.gov/membership/

This event is recommended to guests 13 and older due to mature content and site safety precautions. Self-Guided admission is available, along with Guided Tours every half hour between 7:30 and 10:00. Purchase 7:00 pm tickets for Self-Guided admission, or buy admission at the door.

Twilight Tours THIS FRIDAY!

Take an evening guided tour with one of your amazing experts, or explore the site's historic cell houses and fantastic exhibits at your own pace.

When: Friday, June 13 and 27, 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm (last admission 10:00 pm).
Price: Admission is $16 per person (or 2 for $25). Enter Code TWI25 for 2 for $25 pricing.

Idaho State Historical Society Members receive free admission to Twilight Tours! Not a Member? Learn more and become a Member at https://history.idaho.gov/membership/

This event is recommended to guests 13 and older due to mature content and site safety precautions. Self-Guided admission is available, along with Guided Tours every half hour between 7:30 and 10:00. Purchase 7:00 pm tickets for Self-Guided admission, or buy admission at the door. Online registration is at: https://history.idaho.gov/event/twilight-tours-2025/

Doors open for Self-Guided Tours at 7:00 pm (guests can arrive any time between 7:00 pm and 10:00 pm last admission). 7:30, 8:00, 8:30, 9:00, 9:30 and 10:00 Guided Tours (limited to only 25 participants each, first come, first served). Tickets for Guided Tours at the door may be limited.

Howdy from Outpost Days in Owyhee County with the Owyhee County Museum! The Old Idaho Penitentiary is at Outpost Days with stories of prison residents with ties to Owyhee County, a pop-up gift store, and more! Visit us today (June 7, 2025) if you are in the area!

"Women's World," from The Clock:

The 217 women that served time in the Women’s Ward did not have much to keep them busy. Music became a staple to help pass the hours, from singing around a piano or listening to their favorite tunes on the radio. The "Women’s World" feature in the penitentiary’s newspaper The Clock often included playlists of their current favorites, including these from 1965 and 1961:

Friday the 13th is next week! What are your plans?

Twilight Tours are on at the Old Idaho Penitentiary, Friday, June 13 and 27, 7:00 pm – 11:00 pm (last admission 10:00 pm).

Admission is $16 per person (or 2 for $25). Enter Code TWI25 for 2 for $25 pricing. Idaho State Historical Society Members receive free admission to Twilight Tours! Not a Member? Learn more and become a Member at https://history.idaho.gov/membership/.

This event is recommended to guests 13 and older due to mature content and site safety precautions. Self-Guided admission is available, along with Guided Tours every half hour between 7:30 and 10:00. Purchase 7:00 pm tickets for Self-Guided admission, or buy admission at the door. Online registration is at: https://history.idaho.gov/event/twilight-tours-2025/

Doors open for Self-Guided Tours at 7:00 pm (guests can arrive any time between 7:00 pm and 10:00 pm last admission). 7:30, 8:00, 8:30, 9:00, 9:30 and 10:00 Guided Tours (limited to only 25 participants each, first come, first served). Tickets for Guided Tours at the door may be limited.

From the July 1959 edition of the penitentiary's resident-run newspaper, The Clock:

"Our roses are blooming. Against a background of soft green lawn and weathered stone, they create a picture of bountiful splendor. The fragrance emitting from the different varieties mingle and rise to give forth to our home a breath of spring."

The Old Idaho Penitentiary's historic rose gardens are in full bloom, and our summer hours are in effect (10:00 am to 5:00 pm, last admission 4:00 pm daily)!

Add to your experience by purchasing a dual pass to the Old Idaho Penitentiary and the Idaho Botanical Garden, available most days at either location.

Experience the Old Idaho Penitentiary and the J. Curtis Earl Memorial Exhibit this Memorial Day weekend. The Earl Exhibit boasts a collection of historic military history artifacts from the Bronze Age through the Vietnam War-era, along with wartime stories from the Idaho State Penitentiary. This exhibit is included with site admission.

The Old Idaho Penitentiary is open today, Memorial Day, for the first day of our summer hours, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm daily (last admission 4:00pm).

The Old Idaho Penitentiary is a Blue Star Museum! Active Duty military personnel receive free regular admission through Labor Day.

TOMORROW (Saturday, May 24) is Dennis the Cat Day!

It's Dennis the Cat’s 73rd birthday!!! 🎉 And we're celebrating at the Old Idaho Penitentiary 🐈‍⬛

Dennis is the prison’s popular historic mascot (a stunning black and white tuxedo cat) that lived among the incarcerated men and women for sixteen years. For the fifth year, the Old Idaho Penitentiary is hosting its annual Dennis the Cat Day, featuring:
🎉 history presentations
🥨 food trucks
🐶 local pet supply vendors
🏆 family scavenger hunt
🎨 face painting
🐈‍⬛ party games (including “Pin the Tail on Dennis”)
🎂 birthday cake and MORE!

📅 May 24, 2025, 12 pm-5 pm (last admission 4 pm)
➡️ $12 per person (+ a donation of at least one pet food item to attend the history presentations)
➡️ Kids under 6 are FREE!

Spend the day checking out the history presentations featuring stories of working animals and prison pets throughout the site’s history, including Champ the Bullfrog, Zipper the head Kitchen Cat, Wrinkles the Bloodhound, George the Mouse, and the famed warden’s horse, Old Selam. And don't forget to grab some special edition Dennis the Cat merchandise in the Old Idaho Penitentiary’s Souvenir Confinement store!

Donations benefit Simply Cats Adoption Center and the Idaho Humane Society.

Dennis the Cat Day is this Saturday, May 24! We are sharing some stories of historic Old Idaho Penitentiary animals all week - be sure to attend this Saturday to hear more!

Each spring, the Old Idaho Penitentiary blooms with life after harsh, snowy winters. Animals start making regular appearances, and one used to spark fear in the hearts of the prisoners long ago. They called it the "Branimal" (or in other words, a yellow-bellied marmot).

These marmots are a type of ground squirrel that make their homes by burrowing into rocks. The penitentiary's sandstone construction makes it prime real estate for "branimals" to move into. In 1972, the prisoners wrote about how some men would walk the yard in groups for fear of encountering the strange little critter alone.

Check out this April 20, 1972 article from The Clock, the penitentiary's resident-run newspaper.

Interested in hearing more stories of penitentiary pets and working animals throughout the history of the Old Idaho Penitentiary? Be sure to join us for Dennis the Cat Day! Tickets are available online now or at the door on May 24. More information at: https://history.idaho.gov/event/dennis25/

Note: The Old Idaho Penitentiary will be open late, at 1:00 pm, on Thursday, May 22 for site maintenance.

The site is open all other days from 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm (last admission 4:00 pm) for excursions through 101 years of Idaho and prison history.

The Old Idaho Penitentiary is proud to be a Blue Star Museum!

From this Saturday (Armed Forces Day) though Labor Day, active-duty military personnel and up to five family members qualify for free regular admission to the site.

Thank you from the Old Idaho Penitentiary to all of our military personnel for your service.

We are sharing some of the Old Idaho Penitentiary's animal and pet stories as we prepare for Dennis the Cat Day, coming up on Saturday, May 24!

In 1954, Kenneth Hastings ( #8330), escaped the penitentiary while serving a life sentence for first-degree murder. Prison officials sent out a team of bloodhounds to track him down, and one of them, Mr. Rube, saved the day. Mr. Rube and his owner recently moved to Idaho from Georgia where they had tracked down hundreds of escapees. Due to his keen sense of smell and experience, Mr. Rube successfully found Kenneth. Pleased with his work, Warden Lou Clapp rewarded Mr. Rube with a silver platter of turkey sandwiches.

Interested in hearing more stories of penitentiary pets and working animals throughout the history of the Old Idaho Penitentiary? Be sure to join us for Dennis the Cat Day! Tickets are available online now or at the door on May 24. More information at: https://history.idaho.gov/event/dennis25/