The town of Crown Point, Indiana is about ten miles south of Gary. A block south of the historic courthouse at the center of town is the old jail and sheriff’s house. It was built in 1882, and at the time of its construction it was considered to be one of the Hoosier State’s best jails. It held many inmates over the years, and it was in use until it closed in 1974.
It held one of the most notorious gangsters, at least for a short time, until he escaped. In 1934, John Dillinger was captured in Tucson, Arizona and extradited back to Indiana. He was facing charges for the murder of a policeman who was killed during a Dillinger gang bank robbery in East Chicago, Indiana. He was held in the Crown Point Jail. Local policemen bragged about the jail and believed it to be escape-proof. In March 1935, Dillenger surprised the guards with a gun during morning exercise. He escaped with fifteen other inmates. After his escape, he stole the police chief’s car to make his getaway.
It is still unclear as to whether he carved a fake gun out of wood or someone slipped him a gun during a visit. Either way, he was on the loose. A few months later, he was shot and killed by FBI agents outside of the Biograph Theatre in Chicago.
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