Over time, tourists and neighbors have asked me about the history of the old Noank Jail: “was it really a jail?”

The answer is, yes, part of the present residence actually was used as a jail.

Prior to 1900, the original structure merely consisted of a small square building approximately 21 feet by 21 feet, which is now the area occupied by our living room and stairway. Town records indicate this small building was initially constructed in 1850. It was located over near the Noank Railway Station off of Front Street next to what are now the Amtrak high-speed rail tracks.

At that specific location, it was used by a local constable named Sawyer primarily as a temporary lock-up for folks who had been drinking too much and/or misbehaving.

Some residents may have objected to the fact that railroad passengers would observe the jailhouse and perceive Noank as an unsavory, undesirable village. In 1913, Groton town records indicated that Noank no longer needed a jail so the building was sold and, like many small homes back then, was physically moved as a complete building unit over to its present Main Street location onto a small, narrow lot.

A previous structure at that site had burned to the ground during a disastrous fire in that area circa 1900, but part of the original foundation remained. Thereafter, the building served as a barber shop, a “speakeasy,” an insurance office/residence and later as a private residence before we bought it over 45 years ago.

The “jail” had received a rear kitchen/dining addition later on, followed by a small side garage, which we initially converted to an office and later a bedroom, followed by a rear porch that we added more recently.

One of our neighbors has described a visit in our jail house to resemble “walking through a railroad car.” When asked why we built the porch in the rear of the house, rather than in front, our usual response is “to avoid zoning issues and summer tourists looking for directions.”

Being somewhat of a prankster, I noted the many historical signs on many of our neighbors’ homes, denoting the various famous local figures who owned those houses back in the 1800s, and decided that our “jail” might as well be famous, too. With the help of historian Peter Littlefield, we verified the above background of the jail and then had an appropriate Noank Historical Society plaque installed facing the street, thinking it would make for a nice counterpoint joke for our neighbors.

Little did we realize how much attention it would draw from the tourists ... thank God for the rear porch.

Little did we realize, either, how badly my little joke would backfire. It turned out that the nice lady manager of the CLT group, hired by the town to revalue residential properties for tax purposes, drove by our “jail” house in 2006. My heart sank when I was advised that she thought our little jail house was “cute.”

Try to imagine how much the nice lady manager decided our new valuation would be, or let’s just say that I considered replacing the “Jail” sign with one which would read “Federal Gold Depository.”

Ed Johnson lives in Noank.