By Frank Passic
Happy New Year everyone. It was heartening to learn recently of the establishment of an Albion Arts Center in the old Water Works building at 107 E. Cass St. This historic building has been modernized and will provide a home for Albion’s aspiring artists for years to come. This is the same building that once housed the Albion Recycling Center from 1970 to 1993.
The Water Works building was erected in 1889 as part of the establishment of a community water system begun in 1885, which provided adequate fire protection for our community. There had previously been a city tool garage on the site, according to the 1888 Sanborn Insurance Map. I’ve covered the history of the Water Works in previous editions of this column.
In 1895, the Albion Water Works was under the supervision of John Welper. The commissioners appointed to look after the water works system were: Henry M. Dearing, president; Palmer M. Dearing, clerk; Manley S. Amsden, Augustus J. Gale, Isaac Sibley, board members; and Frederick W. Peabody, superintendent.
This site was also used for other purposes by the City of Albion. Using Sanborn insurance maps as guides, we find that a brick addition was subsequently erected on the east side of the original building sometime between 1900 and 1907, which became the Water Works office. A new Water Works pumping station opened on N. Albion St. in 1916. That was the same year the new city-manager charter form of government took effect. During that year the Water Works office moved out, and the City Manager and the City Clerk moved in.
In the meantime, a one-story building adjacent to the west of the Fire Station on W. Cass St. was remodeled. When work was completed in early 1917, the City Manager and City Clerk moved back to the W. Cass St. location where other city offices were located. At that time in 1917, the City Jail was moved from 109 W. Cass St. to the former Water Works office building on E. Cass St. The police station eventually followed suit, because the State of Michigan ruled that the jail must be at the same location as police headquarters.
The 1917-18 city directory lists the jail located at (the then-numbered) 119 E. Cass St. in the former Water Works office building. It was nicknamed “the cage,” and also “the Bastille.” The city jail was located here until January 25, 1936 when the jail became the first “department” that was moved to the newly erected City Hall on the north side of W. Cass St. The police department followed suit when the new City Hall official opened in May, 1936.
Today, there still exists remains of the jail, constructed with concrete walls 19 inches thick. The jail was 12 feet long, 9 feet tall, and 9 feet wide. It was “L” shaped inside due to the structure being built attached to the corner of the original Water Works building. The concrete was reinforced by metal wire found therein. It appears that the jail could hold around 3-4 persons. This is where drunks were placed during the Prohibition years. The jail ceiling also consisted of reinforced metal placed into concrete, but some of the concrete has been chipped away in recent years, forming clumps, revealing the metal today.
From our Historical Notebook this week we present a June 13, 2025 photo of the former Albion City Police and Jail (1917-1936) building. We also present a photo taken on December 13, 2025 showing today’s building owner, Casey Merrill, standing inside next to the former jail concrete wall and its entrance.
Congratulations to Casey Merrill and our Albion artists on this new endeavor. We know that special events will be held here in the months to come for our residents to enjoy. How many of our readers have visited the new Albion Arts Center?
