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Preston School of Industry

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Coordinates: 38°21′40″N 120°56′13″W / 38.36111°N 120.93694°W / 38.36111; -120.93694
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For the rock band, see Preston School of Industry (band).
Preston Castle
Preston School of Industry is located in California
Preston School of Industry
Preston School of Industry is located in the United States
Preston School of Industry
Nearest cityIone, California
Coordinates38°21′40″N 120°56′13″W / 38.36111°N 120.93694°W / 38.36111; -120.93694
Built1890
ArchitectSchulze, Henry A.
Architectural styleRomanesque
NRHP reference No.75000422
CHISL No.867[1]
Added to NRHPJuly 30, 1975[2]

The Preston School of Industry, also known as Preston Castle, was a reform school located in Ione, California, in Amador County.[3] It was proposed by, and ultimately named after, state senator Edward Myers Preston.[4] The cornerstone was laid in December 1890, and the institution was opened in June 1894 when seven wards (minors under the guardianship of the state, but not necessarily juvenile offenders) were transferred there from San Quentin State Prison. It is considered one of the oldest and best-known reform schools in the United States.

Preston School and Director C.B. Riddick in 1900

The original building, known colloquially as "Preston Castle" (or simply "The Castle"), is the most significant example of Romanesque Revival architecture in the Mother Lode.[1] This building was vacated in 1960, shortly after new buildings had been constructed to replace it, and has since been named a California Historical Landmark (#867),[1] and listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NPS-75000422).[3] A National Register listing encompassing most of the historic facility was approved in 2024.[5]

In 1999, the institution's official name, applied to the newer 1960 buildings, was changed to the "Preston Youth Correctional Facility".

In 2010, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation announced that the facility was to close,[6] and a closing ceremony was held on June 2, 2011.

As of 2024, Preston Castle remains in considerable disrepair, and efforts to restore Preston Castle are underway. The Preston Castle Foundation, which purchased the castle for $1 from the state in 2014, is overseeing the restoration work. It could be many years before Preston Castle is fully restored, and it is estimated that the full cost of repairs could be as much as $45 million.[7]

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The school was used as a shooting location (as the "Bleeding Heart Orphanage") for the 1984 comedy film Bad Manners.

The 2014 film A Haunting at Preston Castle is set at the castle and surrounding area, as is the 2019 movie Apparition.

The first episode of season 2 of the TV series Ghost Adventures is about Preston Castle.[8]

Ghost Hunters investigated the castle's paranormal reports in season 6, episode 6.[9]

The facility is the subject of The Lowe Files Season 1, Episode 1: "Haunted Boy's Reformatory".[10]

Preston School of Industry was an American indie rock band formed by Scott Kannberg (a.k.a. Spiral Stairs) in 1999, following the dissolution of his previous band, Pavement.

Former wards

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Former Preston wards include:[11][12][13][14]

Preston Castle in 2009

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Preston Castle". Office of Historic Preservation, California State Parks. Retrieved 2024-10-17.
  2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  3. ^ a b "Preston Castle Foundation". www.prestoncastle.com. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
  4. ^ "State Reform School". Grass Valley Union. 1889-02-17. p. 2. Retrieved 2024-10-17.
  5. ^ "Weekly List Of Actions Taken on Properties: 10/7/2024 Through 10/11/2024". National Park Service. Retrieved 2024-10-15.
  6. ^ Hedger, Matthew (October 21, 2010). "Preston Youth Correctional Facility to close". Ledger Dispatch. Amador: Ledger-Dispatch.com. Retrieved 2011-01-30.
  7. ^ Womack, Graham (September 15, 2024). "Once-abandoned castle looms over a small California town. Its story is spooky and redeeming". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  8. ^ ""Ghost Adventures" Preston Castle (TV Episode 2009) - IMDb". www.imdb.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  9. ^ "Ghost Hunters" Haunted Reform School (TV Episode 2010) - IMDb, retrieved 2021-06-10
  10. ^ "Watch The Lowe Files Season 1 Episode 1". A&E. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  11. ^ McManis, Sam (27 June 2015). "Discoveries: Ione's Preston Castle opens up about its harsh, haunting past". Retrieved 29 March 2018 – via Sacramento Bee.
  12. ^ Rubio, J'aime (November 28, 2012). Behind The Walls: A Historical Exposé of The Preston School of Industry (ISBN 1481075047)
  13. ^ Rubio, J'aime (October 6, 2017). If These Walls Could Talk: More Preston Castle History (ISBN 1548569909)
  14. ^ Anderson, Scott Thomas. "Amador in Action: Remember the 'master' from the castle". Calaveras Enterprise. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  15. ^ Marjorie Kirk (2016-09-09). "Popular Preston Castle: Striking architecture, eerie past". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved 2021-06-11.

Further reading

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