Downing reveals, "If you're looking for a movie-themed last minute road trip this Memorial Day weekend, the Shawshank Trail, with 12 stops in three counties, might be just the ticket. The drive-it-yourself Hollywood tour, mostly around Mansfield in Richland County — some three hours from Detroit — celebrates the 1994 film "The Shawshank Redemption" with Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. It has its own website, brochure, map and special offers for visitors."
The notes in this article are great. Want to see the tree where the letter was hidden? You can pay it a visit. . . only it's on private property! And what about the prison itself? Yep! You can visit there, too!
Downing explains, "The Mansfield Reformatory Preservation Society offers Sunday afternoon tours. . . . The Hollywood tour includes a peek at Dufresne's tunnel, which is two feet in diameter. The sewage Dufresne crawled through in the film was concocted from chocolate syrup, sawdust and water. You can also see the warden's office and the carving on the ceiling that reads "Brooks was here. So was Red."
And I was wondering where to spend my summer vacation!
This is under the heading: "If You Go"
The Shawshank Trail
Mansfield & Richland County Convention & Visitors Bureau
124 N. Main St., Mansfield, Ohio 44902
(419) 525-1300 or (800) 642-8282; www.mansfieldtourism.com/shawshank
Ohio State Reformatory
100 Reformatory Road, Mansfield, Ohio 44905
Tickets for the Sunday and weekday tours are $8 for adults and $6 for children 7 to 17.
(419) 522-2644; www.mrps.org or www.mansfieldtourism.com.
Malabar Farm
4050 Bromfield Road, Lucas, Ohio 44843
Tour fee is $4 for adults, $3.60 for 55 and older and $2 for students 6 through 18.
The Full Article Is Here:
http://www.detnews.com/article/20110528/LIFESTYLE07/105280303/1034/ENT/Fans-can-escape-to-Shawshank
Well, if I find myself in Mansfield one of these days, maybe I'll take one of those tours. Probably not worth a trip from Alabama to do, though. Although, really, any excuse to get out of Alabama for a few days is a good one...
ReplyDeleteI've been to the prison, and on this particular tour. During a summer where I took many "mini" vacations, my day spent visiting the Reformatory was the best! Being a huge SK & Shawshank fan made it special, but everyone would enjoy the trip. Scenes from other movies were filmed there (Air Force One comes to mind) and even a few music videos if I recall what the guide said. It's a "hot spot" for ghost enthusiasts, has been highlighted on several ghost television shows, and is very interesting simply for the history of the prison alone (the new prison is a stone's throw away, and when you venture to the roof during the tour you see the prisoners in the yard, which kind of adds to the "spooky" aspects of the tour). I say you should definitely plan to visit if you're ever in the area!
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