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Idaho Matters

Take a tour of the Old Idaho Penitentiary's cemetery

You may have taken a tour or been to an event on the grounds of the Old Idaho Penitentiary, but there’s an even darker side to the prison that you may not be familiar with: the cemetery. More than half of the markers in the cemetery have no names, and some that do can’t be found on any of the prison records which begs the question, who is buried there?

Broadcast on:
15 Mar 2023

( Photo courtesy Idaho State Historical Society)

The Old Idaho Penitentiary in Boise was built in 1870 and has a long and sometimes creepy history.

You may have taken a tour or been to an event on the grounds of the old prison, but there’s an even darker side to the Old Pen you may not be familiar with: the cemetery. Over half of the markers in the cemetery have no names, and some that do can’t be found on any of the prison records.

Which begs the question, who is buried there?

Anthony Parry is the Historic Sites Administrator with the Idaho State Historical Society and next week there will be tours of the cemetery. He joined Idaho Matters to tell us more about it.