Folsom Prison Museum
Folsom Prison Museum
4
This location was reported permanently closed
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The museum contains various exhibitions, including descriptions of executions and mugshots.
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4.0
213 reviews
Excellent
88
Very good
81
Average
36
Poor
7
Terrible
1
jcw0312
Houston, TX170 contributions
Jan 2015 • Family
We were in Folsom visiting a son and his family. A visit to the Folsom Prison Museum was suggested as an afternoon activity. We ranged in age from 70 down to 5 and all seemed interested but in different things. The museum is small and run by volunteers. There is a small charge of $2.00 per person which we gladly paid and then donated additional to help the museum. The lady that conducted our tour was a retired guard and had some very interesting personal stories to tell and facts to relate. As has been said in other reviews, much info on Johnny Cash and his concert recorded here in Folsom. Some neat artifacts and collections of knives, guns, law enforcement patches, etc. If you are already in Folsom and have from 30 minutes to two hours to spare.....why not! We enjoyed our outing and ended up spending about an hour and a half here.
Written 5 February 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ronald M
New Hartford227 contributions
Apr 2018 • Couples
Just a small two story just inside gate of prison.Loaded with alot of facts,Johnny Cash made famous as well as Rick James.2 dollar admission fee.Staff well versed and readily answer any questions.Prison is a working facility with 3000 inmates housed here.Agin small but well worth the time to view.
Written 2 May 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Emwheezey
Orange County, CA8 contributions
Apr 2015 • Solo
Nice little museum with some history of the prison. $2.00 Donation entrance. $18.00 T-Shirts. Lots of Johnny Cash memorabilia. This museum is ON the prison grounds so you best be on your best behavior or you might end up on the other side of the wall!!!
Written 8 April 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tamara S
Surprise, AZ40 contributions
Feb 2015
They have a great tribute to Johnny Cash. Very cool exhibits. It is a small museum but only 2.00 and you get bragging rights. Lots of books, t shirts, etc. The noon siren will blow so if you are there at noon don't panic. LOL.
Written 1 March 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Peter R
Sarasota, FL1 contribution
June 2022
We attempted to visit on a Sunday, but the guard informed us that the museum will be closed indefinitely. There is no notice of this on the website or Facebook page, and the phone recording states Saturday and Sunday hours only.
Written 15 June 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
musicperson1
Bismarck, ND296 contributions
Folsom Prison is huge and sits on a wide expanse of land near Folsom Lake. The scenery is really impressive, so a drive around the perimeter is something worth doing if you're already in the area. One can't actually go inside the prison, but you can view the entrance from a short distance. The museum holds a fair amount of artifacts and has a good portion of info about the history of the prison, including Johnny Cash's visits (he was never a prisoner at Folsom, contrary to popular belief). The museum itself is nothing too extraordinary. It's actually very small & some of the info was obviously printed directly from a wiki site. However, the museum director was knowledgable and friendly. He was able to answer all questions. For $2, it was worth checking out. We were able to take a few photos of the outside of the prison. If you're a Johnny Cash fan, it's definitely worth a stop. You can see from a distance where Cash posed for a photo standing by East Gate.
Written 11 January 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lee T
Brisbane, Australia117 contributions
Dec 2014 • Friends
great to see and would say a 'must see' if you are in the area.
However it feels really small and consists of a few cabinets of artifacts from the prisons history and some pictures mostly revolving around johnny cash. There were a few bigger items such as a ferris wheel made of tooth picks.
Would have been better to be able to go in a cell or see more of what the actual prison was like rather than just a few items taken out of the prison over the years.
but for the entry price of $2 it was definetly a fair price.
However it feels really small and consists of a few cabinets of artifacts from the prisons history and some pictures mostly revolving around johnny cash. There were a few bigger items such as a ferris wheel made of tooth picks.
Would have been better to be able to go in a cell or see more of what the actual prison was like rather than just a few items taken out of the prison over the years.
but for the entry price of $2 it was definetly a fair price.
Written 1 January 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Melis_76
Sparks, NV41 contributions
July 2014 • Family
If you are in the Folsom Area, I would definitely recommend a stop at the Folsom Prison Museum. The museum is very small. Our visit only took about 30 minutes. There is a lot of Johnny Cash stuff of course, and a bunch of interesting old prison items. The prison itself is really cool to see. You cant get too close to the actual prison Gate entrance, but you can get a really cool picture of it with the tower. The rock walls are really cool looking. It is definitely worth a stop if you are in the area.
Written 27 July 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
starla
Idabel, OK77 contributions
If you like history, Johnny Cash, or prison history etc. This is a interesting place to go.
You park in an area a bit away from the museum. But its easy to get to museum.
It is a small building, with a few rooms full of prison history, pictures, and interesting objects. The people who run it are retired guards. There was a very nice lady when we went, she showed us around and told us about her time as a guard and guided us through the museum.
There is a small gift shop inside with postcards and tshirts and books. The money goes to charities.
The prison is surrounded by alot of land, the museum lady told us alot of animals have found refuge in the area. There was deer walking across the street.
You can take a pic with the tower in background, just dont get any guards in the picture and dont cross the crosswalk ( a guard told us).
You park in an area a bit away from the museum. But its easy to get to museum.
It is a small building, with a few rooms full of prison history, pictures, and interesting objects. The people who run it are retired guards. There was a very nice lady when we went, she showed us around and told us about her time as a guard and guided us through the museum.
There is a small gift shop inside with postcards and tshirts and books. The money goes to charities.
The prison is surrounded by alot of land, the museum lady told us alot of animals have found refuge in the area. There was deer walking across the street.
You can take a pic with the tower in background, just dont get any guards in the picture and dont cross the crosswalk ( a guard told us).
Written 3 July 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
historyrocks
Olivehurst, CA60 contributions
July 2019 • Friends
Small museum but worth the visit. Was free for military and retirees. Make sure you watch the video. Was 30 mins but nicely done.
Written 1 December 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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