In 1857 New Castle County constructed a new prison complex on this site, designed by the Philadelphia architect Samuel Sloan with two parts: the Sheriff's House, which provided a roomy residence for the county sheriff and his family, and the prison, which could house as many as forty inmates. Although the county seat moved to Wilmington in 1881, the Sheriff's House and County Jail remained in service until 1902, when the new county prison opened at Greenbank. The jail in New Castle was torn down in 1912, while the Sheriff's House continued in use, most notably as the home of New Castle Club and later as the city police headquarters until 1997. The National Park Service now manages the Sheriff's House as part of First State National Historical Park. The New Castle Prison Yard also included a whipping post and pillory, and Delaware was the last state to abolish the whipping post, with the last whipping in 1952 and the practice not outlawed until 1972.