20's brick buildings

[MountainMan]

Ashlar stone block construction at CTCF. The blocks, and all of the blocks for the admin building, cellhouses, industries and infirmary as well as the high stone walls and guard towrs, were cut by inmate labor from the rock you see behind the "Original Hard Rock Cafe". Although you cannot see it in this image, a canal runs from the Arkansas River at th mouth of the Royal Gorge directly through the Territorial Prison and right out the other side, a unique feature in any prison in America. Equally unique is a railroad directly across the street.



Along the front of the prison yard, you can clearly see the canal that feeds water to the entire Canon City irrigation system and the city itself, with multiple bridges crossing it to cell blocks. Along the lower edge of the image are visible the train tracks, specifically the spur off of the Royal Gorge route which feeds into the city power plant. Note the old stone guard tower on the bluff in the upper left that watched over the quarry and inmates before completion of the walls, cut from the same stone.


Tower Three, still in use and the sealed up old Main Gate. Note the quality of the workmanship and the decorative embellishments and corniches. This part of the walls still serves it's intended purpose to this day. This type of construction cries out to be modeled, perhaps an old prison served by a prison train as an "industry"?