Smisby lock-up

The lock-up (or roundhouse) in Smisby, Derbyshire, England, is a village lock-up dating from the late 18th century. Such lock-ups were fairly common in England at that time and were used to hold miscreants, often drunkards, or other low-level offenders awaiting transportation to the local assizes, for short periods of time. The Smisby lock-up is built of brick and is a Grade II* listed building.

Smisby lock-up
“the most typical survival in the county”
Type	Village lock-up
Location	Smisby, Derbyshire
Coordinates	52.7682°N 1.4846°W / 52.7682; -1.4846
Built	late 18th century
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official name	The Lock Up (Round House)
Designated	19 January 1967
Reference no.	1281737
Location of Smisby lock-up in Derbyshire

History

Village lock-ups date from the mediaeval period. They were commonly constructed in rural areas, some distance from local courts, prisons or police stations, where there was a need for a structure for the temporary confinement of wrongdoers.^[1] They were frequently used to house drunkards, often overnight, in order to allow them time to sober up.^[2] It is estimated that around 200 lock-ups survive in England.^[3][a]

The Smisby lock-up dates from around 1790. It was built in response to an order from the Derbyshire Court of quarter sessions, dated January 1790, which required that, "all parishes in the county where there is not already a Round House, House of Correction, or Gaol, shall provide a place of temporary confinement for the reception of vagrants, paupers, felons and the like."^[5] The lock-up at Smisby, known locally as “The Jug”, is considered the best exemplar of the type now surviving in Derbyshire.^[6][b]

Architecture and description

Historic England dates the Smisby lock-up to the late 18th century. It is built of red brick with sandstone dressings.^[7] Clare Hartwell, in her 2016 revised volume, Derbyshire, of the Pevsner Buildings of England series, notes the pyramidal roof,^[8] topped by a ball finial.^[9] The lock-up is a Grade II* listed building.^[7]

See also

• Listed buildings in Smisby

Notes

1. The Prison History Project, run by the Centre for the History of Crime, Policing and Justice at the Open University, maintains an online database recording lock-ups in Great Britain.^[4]
2. Derbyshire Heritage describes it as “the most typical survival in the county”.^[6]