An aerical view of the former Ohio Penitentiary from 1932. [Dispatch file photo] ▲

Stones that were once part of the Ohio Penitentiary, which closed in 1984 and was torn down in 1997, were moved to a safer location Friday. They had been sitting for years on a 28-acre site that is now being developed to house the new Crew Stadium. Columbus Landmarks coordinated the move to save the stones and hopefully use them in future construction at the site.

One by one, a mini-excavator lifted blocks of stone onto skids Friday to be hauled three miles away.

These stones have plenty of history attached to them. Two had dates: an arch with "1876" inscribed and another with "1878" etched inside a cloverleaf. A third, a cornerstone, contained the name of architect J.C. Johnson of Fremont, known for designing jails and courthouses.

These and dozens of other stones are what remain of the Ohio Penitentiary, demolished more than two decades ago. It stood since the 19th century on the site of what is now the Arena District. For years, the stones have been stored outside, just down a hill from Interstate 670 on the northwest corner of what is now the 28-acre site that will hold the new Crew Stadium.

With construction for the stadium underway, the stones needed to be moved in order to save them. Preservationists are hoping they can be incorporated into projects on the stadium site.

"They're very special," said Becky West, the executive director of Columbus Landmarks, which owns the stones.

The Ohio Penitentiary closed on Sept. 20, 1984. On July 6, 1994, a 60-foot section of the east wall collapsed, flattening two cars. In 1997, crews finally began demolishing the walls and towers and the buildings behind them.

Nationwide Realty Investors moved the scores of stones left from the Pen demolition to property it owned north of what is now Nationwide Boulevard. They have sat there outside ever since.

Nationwide Realty Investors never said exactly where they were, only that they were being stored. Other stones from the Pen have been incorporated in Arena District buildings constructed where the penitentiary once stood, including the walls of the former Arena Grand Theatre, and a service building in Burnham Square Condominiums. They are also in retaining walls at North Bank Park.

The stones were being taken to Connect Realty at 1400 Dublin Road. Brad DeHays of Connect Realty, a partner in redeveloping the Municipal Light and Power Plant across Nationwide Boulevard from the Crew Stadium site, said West reached out to him to store the stones until a use could be found for them.

"We just wanted to protect them," said DeHays, who said there is potential for them. "We value what Columbus Landmarks does."

Tom Mantey's company, Mantey Machine, was the one moving the stones Friday. Asked how many he would be moving, Mantey replied, "A lot more stones than we thought.

"You never know what you are going to dig into."

mferench@dispatch.com

@MarkFerenchik