Indiscriminate use of the whip continued up to the mid-nineteenth century. An investigation into the management of the Kingston Penitentiary revealed that children had been routinely flogged, and such incidents belied the notion that penitentiaries were enlightened institutions. Although reforms in the 1850s ameliorated prison conditions somewhat, the lash was still used until the end of the century. This engraving, which appeared in the Canadian Illustrated News on 21 January 1871, shows a prisoner being whipped with a cat-o'-nine-tails while his fellow inmates are forced to watch. In most large jails and penitentiaries discipline was strict and inmates were punished for various minor infractions. These punishments could range from going without dinner to solitary confinement, although the whip seemed to be the usual recourse.
William Thomas designed the Toronto jail. Its radiating wings and the rotunda (shown here) are reminiscent of the design of the Kingston Penitentiary.
