8) Yuma Territorial Prison
The first prison to open in the Arizona area, the walls that were built in 1876 are still standing – and you can tour them. The first seven inmates actually helped to construct the prison with their free labor as convicts. The Yuma Territorial Prison is now a museum, which has a video exhibition as well as a gift shop. The prison was open for 33 years and housed around 3,000 inmates, and was apparently reputed for how reasonable its punishments were and the relatively good quality of life its inmates were allowed. Still, it had a shadier side: the dark cell was where those who broke the rules went, and was basically a small, damp cage set into a hillside. The classic ball and chain was another punishment favored by the prison, as you can see from some of the many photos of prison life that line the walls of the museum.
