GREEN COVE SPRINGS – It’s often said, “If these walls could talk.” At the annual Tales from the Clink, they do.

Using court and genealogical records, Clay County Archives Supervisor Vishi Garig said the county found real people and real cases to curate captivating stories from the Historical Old Jail and Courthouse. After sifting through stacks of historical newspaper clippings and documents, sophomore, junior and senior students from Ridgeview’s Drama Club research all the cases to write their scripts and make their costumes to perform skits and tell their tales.

Touring the Old County Jail, guests can turn the corners to cells occupied by students acting out suspects of murder cases and mentally ill patients on Oct. 10 from 5-8 p.m.

The students will use unique dialogue to interact with guests who walk by. 

“This is a study and improvisation,” Garig said. “Because the characters interact with people. We loved it.”

Students will act out the "Sweetheart Slayer" case, depicting a 17-year-old’s 1925 murder trial in the Historic Courthouse.

Each year, a new wave of students gets to put a different spin on each character and case.

The event includes the story of Harry Kane, a man who was falsely convicted of murdering an engineer who was aboard the Twilight steamboat that sank in the Black Creek.

Last year, as guests entered the jailhouse, Kane begged them to help prove his innocence. His wife and kids also participated in the skit, providing guests with scavenger hunt worksheets.

Garig said there will be some new murders added to this year’s presentation.

“That way, the kids don’t have to do every single character every single time,” she said. “I’d like them to have a pool to choose from.”

Another story is of Chesser Rufus, a 17-year-old farmer living near Middleburg. He was convicted of a double homicide and sentenced to death by the electric chair.

His first victim, Rufus’ brother-in-law Laurence Dilaberry, was driving three miles out from Green Cove Springs with Sallie Broile, the girl whose affection Chesser is said to have sought to win.

According to the Palm Beach Post published in 1925, Dilaberry stopped his car on the return trip to repair a flat tire. Little did he know, Rufus was pursuing him from behind, a deadly glint in his eye. Gripping the wheel of his car, Rufus drove up behind Dilaberry, stopped, got out of the car, and approached his in-law.

Perhaps Rufus found the gun in his father’s closet. Maybe he ventured to the local general store just before committing the deed. Holding a shotgun in his hand, he directed the barrel toward Dilaberry and fired, striking his in-law in the back of the neck. Sallie jumped out of the car and fled towards the side of a roadside ditch hidden by a palmetto thicket. Three steps away from a chance to live, Rufus shot her, too, this time in the back.

“This place has so many stories,” Garig said.

Just imagine the deplorable conditions and the overcrowded cells. Imagine the closet-sized cell block and barred windows, confined by old brick walls so close that one could touch both walls simultaneously by standing in the center of the room. No air conditioning or heating. The cell usually smelled of urine and sweat. The inmate's beds, made of rusted iron, take up half of the cell’s floor space.

Tour prices are $3 for adults and $1 for children; cash only.

“Just fun for the whole family,” Garig said.