The prison was opened in 1901. From 1933, the fascist SA used it as a central detention and torture centre. After the war, a youth and men’s prison was set up, and later a remand centre. Scribbles on the walls of the former prison still bear witness to times long past when the inmates had to serve their time in the narrow, dark cells. A simple bucket served as a toilet. Most recently, a television station used the rooms as a costume store. The prison has been almost empty since the 1980s.