The iconic backdrop to the 1994 film “The Shawshank Redemption” has long been a popular historic site. However, the stories behind the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield rival the tale of Andy and Red.

They certainly are scarier.

The building itself has its own essence, said Ashleigh Ramey, the Ohio State Reformatory’s program director.

“Obviously, the building is not a living thing, but it has this aura and this feeling about it. It kind of breathes,” Ramey said. “You drive up and you just get this feeling.”

Jean-Marie Papoi / Ideastream Public Media

Cleveland architect Levi T. Scofield gave the prison its gothic look. After 10 years of construction, the facility admitted its first inmates in 1896.

“Scofield designed this prison to be something that was awe-inspiring,” Ramey sa

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