Washington County Jail and Sheriff's Residence

This structure was built in 1881, and is a Second Empire style brick and stone building. It consists of a 2+1⁄2-story residence with a mansard roof with a 1+1⁄2-story rear jail addition. An office addition was added to the jail in 1974. The structure was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. It is included in the Salem Downtown Historic District.

The sheriffs residence stands in front of the jail structure on South Main and is one of three French Second Empire residential structures in town and is one of the few designed by an architect, Joseph Balsley. The local contractors were Alfred Shrum and H.H. Routh, both of whom are involved in the construction of many buildings on the square, including the Redmart's Building, the Routh Building, Lyon Block, and the Berkey Building.