BONNER COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY & MUSEUM
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Leg Irons
This style is also know as an "Oregon Boot."   The 
Oregon Boot or "Gardner Shackle", was patented by Oregon State Penitentiary Warden J.C. Gardner in 1866. The shackle consisted of an iron band of varying weights that was locked around one of prisoners ankles and supported by braces which went down and under the prisoners foot. The shackle's weight hobbled the prisoners' movements to prevent escape and long term use would cause severe injury to the wearer. Use of this type of shackle was ended by the mid-20th century. While we may not know whose ankle this leg iron was used on, we do know that they were not going very far, or very fast.

​Donor: Bonner County Sheriff's Department
​Adopted by:
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  • About
    • Mission
    • Donors & Sponsors
    • Board & Staff
  • Visit
  • Exhibits
  • Programs
    • Signature Events >
      • Historic Driving Tour
      • Historic Walking Tour
    • Education Programs >
      • School Tours
      • Traveling Trunks
      • At Home with BCHS >
        • Young Explorers (0-10)
        • At Home Historians (11 and up)
      • Project-Based Learning
    • Connecting the Past to the Present
    • Podcast: North Idaho Nuggets
  • Collections
    • Special Collections
    • Oral Histories
    • Historic Preservation
    • Object Identification
    • Research
  • Support
    • Donate an Artifact
    • Volunteer
    • Membership
    • Sponsorship
    • Shop Museum Guild