The Tennessee State Penitentiary was the first prison in Tennessee. It became operational on January 1, 1831 with 200 cells, a warden’s residence, and a hospital. The prison was the first of its kind in Tennessee and the South. Inmates were subject to practices such as "during the day the prisoners, with downcast eyes, labored silently together in workshops, while at night they slept alone in separate cells. Under no circumstances could they communicate with one another, and only when necessity demanded could they receive letters or calls from relatives and friends. The prison housed both men and women, with the first male inmate registered in 1831 and the first female inmate registered in 1840.
