Inkcarceration economy: Visitor dollars add up to millions for Mansfield, Richland County
Lou Whitmire, Mansfield News Journal
Updated 8 min read
Carl Guidotti spent $13 for a large slice of pizza for Kaedyn Barnett Saturday and $13 for a Locked Up Lemonade for Kaedyn's mom as they listened to the band Uncured before taking a tour of the Ohio State Reformatory during the Inkcarceration music and tattoo festival.
Kaedyn, 16, and her mom, Colleen Barnett, were provided an all-expenses paid experience through the F Cancer organization, which had a tent setup on the grounds of the Ohio State Reformatory. Kaedyn has a tumor on her heart and loves music, especially one band performing at the festival, Mushroomhead, and not even cancer was keeping her from the event.
Colleen Barnett, who works in a glass factory in Dayton with Guidotti, said they were planning to come anyway but the F Cancer VIP treatment was much appreciated.
"She was raised metal," Colleen Barnett said, sitting beneath an awning at a picnic table with Kaedyn. Both were attending the festival for their second time. "The chemo she is on doesn't affect her. She is so healthy. She's in the color guard and plays cello at her high school."
Fans pack the grounds on Day 2 at the Inkcarceration music and tattoo festival on Saturday, July 20, 2024, at the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield.
"Her doctor said no crowd surfing," Colleen Barnett added, making Guidotti's son Giovanni laugh. VIP passes even allowed the mother and daughter to go backstage Friday and meet the members of Mushroomhead.
They were among the estimated 25,000 daily fans at the three-day festival contributing to the local economy by staying overnight in the Mansfield area, and dining, buying gas and purchasing goods and services at local businesses and at the festival.
Indianapolis residents Ryan Hutchinson and Hannah Woodward spent the weekend camping at the fairgrounds. Hutchinson made the trip for the fourth time. Woodward experienced her first Inkcarceration.
The couple said they have enjoyed eating so much food at the event ― chicken on a stick, spicy pizza, pulled pork and mac & cheese all three days, and the latter food choices cost about $15 each.
Hutchinson said he has decided to stop putting things off and making excuses and "just go," which led the couple to Mansfield.
Woodward said she couldn't wait to go tour the prison, known for films including, "The Shawshank Redemption" and "Air Force One."
"I love the prison," Hutchinson said, saying he has taken various prison tours to see every part of the historic building.
Inkcarceration/Danny Wimmer Presents' general manager big fan of OSR
Since 2021, Inkcarceration has brought in $10 million annually in economic impact to Mansfield and Richland County. Cumulatively since the festival’s inception in 2018, the event has brought over $50 million to Mansfield, according to Inkcarceration officials. Chamie McCurry, general manager for Danny Wimmer Presents in partnership with Dan Janssen/Re-Incarceration, in late June said the festival site build began after the Fourth of July with teams rolling in July 8 for stage builds and deliveries.
The organizers have been going full steam since July 16, working 18-hour days to make sure everything was set up properly, she said.
"What makes Inkcarceration so incredibly special is the historic backdrop we have with the Ohio State Reformatory," McCurry said. "It is a destination for people to visit, there's so much history and so many stories, so many movies, videos. That is what, first and foremost, that separates this event. And it is just such a gorgeous background that we leaned into."
Rock music and tattoos filled the grounds at the Ohio State Reformatory on the opening day of the 2024 Inkcarceration Music and Tattoo Festival.
This year, tours of the prison-turned-museum is part of the festival experience at no additional cost to fans, including the Haunted Blood Prison Tour.
"When you just combine the amazing lineup with the beautiful, historic reformatory, with the haunted tours, with the tattoo convention, it really makes it an event unlike anything in the United States," she said. "That's why we have fans that come from from all over the country to experience Inkcarceration."
Passes are sold to visitors from every state and 10 countries, McCurry said.
"We're incredibly proud of the $10 million annually that it provides back to the city," she said. "That wouldn't be possible to continue to grow this event without the hospitality and all the work that all the locals do to prepare (for) the influx of tourists coming in. We know that can be disruptive at some point, but it's so good to be able to showcase Mansfield in this way to people from all over the country. We're so thankful for the hospitality and all the hard work that goes outside of the festival but is being done locally to welcome all these fans."
Festivalgoers arrived early Saturday even though gates opened at 11 a.m.
Carl Slaten, 31, of Cleveland, was making his first trip to Inkcarceration with a group of six other family members and friends.
Slaten said he was excited about going to the mosh pit and hearing the bands. He was here for one day only and said the $170 ticket would be worth it. He said the event was extra-special because his friend Ryan Weldon of Cleveland and his fiancee, Brittany DiSiena, were celebrating Weldon's bachelor's party. The couple will wed Aug. 24.
Darrell Strohmenger and his girlfriend Marissa Mobech of Pennsylvania came to Inkcarceration last year too.
"We're going to hang out with some good friends and listen to some good music," Mobech said, adding she likes almost every band at the venue all three days. Mobech's dad lives in Columbus so they are just spending money on gas and $350 each for a ticket and everything they want inside.
"We're thinking about it," she said, in response to whether or not they will get tattoos. "Depends on whether or not we can do a walk-in."
Dusty Minton and Amanda Jones of Heath said they were coming each day and staying in a hotel downtown Mansfield for three nights.
They are big music fans and loved going to Legend Valley, south of Newark.
They planned to enjoy Godsmack, I Prevail, SevenDust and every band,. "Godsmack is my band," Jones said.
They planned to get T-shirts and some adult beverages but no tattoos.
"We initially came here when it was called Ink in the Clink," Minton said. He and his late wife, Millie, came to the event.
"This is our tradition, her memorial week. She died three years ago July 19," Minton said.
Brendan Schenk and his son Wyatt, a college student, drove to Mansfield from North Carolina and are staying at a hotel in Bucyrus. His favorite band at the event is SevenDust.
It is their first time at the festival. Brendan Schenk said they bought tickets, gas for the trip, the hotel and were enjoying the food.
Paige Cox of Bellefontaine; her mom and stepdad, Kim and Terry Rister; and Cox's sister, Kayla Cox, and friend, Jordan Hankey, of Chicago, were enjoying the weather and music.
"Uncured is the up-and-coming band," Paige said. The group stayed the weekend at the Quality Inn, dined out and ate snacks in the room.
Corrinne Harmon and her sister Maddie Harmon were 3 feet from the main stage listening to loud music.
"I like how close you can get, next to the stage," Corrinne Harmon said. The sisters are camping at the Richland County Fairgrounds, which cost a few hundred dollars for the weekend.
The sisters split the costs; one paid for the camping and the other the tickets.
One of their favorite bands is Halestorm, who were set to play later Saturday.
Corrinne Harmon said she got tattooed her first year at the festival, showing her "Fahrenheit 451" salamander tattoo on her upper chest in honor of her favorite book.
"If you're getting a tattoo at a festival it is much more expensive than you would anywhere else," she said, declining to say how much she paid for it. "It was definitely more than our tickets," she said with a laugh. "But I got it inside OSR."
Dozens of tattoo artists inked customers at Monster Energy Tattoo X during Friday's Day 1 of Inkcarceration at Ohio State Reformatory.
Adrian Ackerman, director of the city of Mansfield's codes and permits office, said permit fees to the city for the event include fees for 34 tents over 120 square feet in size, for which Prestige Tent of Mansfield paid a $5,298 zoning certificate fee to her office.
Ackerman said Metzger's Precision Electric LLC, of Shelby, also paid the city for a permit for $1,308.10 for electrical hookups at two stage stages and 14 generators.
Richland Public Health also collected fees from vendors and tattoo artists participating at the event. Throughout the area, hotel rooms are sold out.
Rock music and tattoos filled the grounds at the Ohio State Reformatory on the opening day of the 2024 Inkcarceration Music and Tattoo Festival.
An Inkcarceration spokesperson said there are 22 different food vendors at Inkcarceration including ice cream, alcohol, tater tots, Island noodles and more.
Lee Tasseff, president of Destination Mansfield, said, "The amount of notoriety brought to our community by something as big (and yes, loud) happening here is an incredible thing. Other communities our size would love to have a shot at bringing in a concert as large as Inkcarceration. They can’t because we have the good fortune of having an internationally known reformatory that is one of the coolest backdrops for such a festival."
Tasseff also provided a sample of local services and vendors benefiting financially, including ice vendors, Port-a-Johns, catering, the Richland County Fairgrounds where hundreds of campers stayed the weekend, beer and soft drink distributors and parking lot rentals.
Ohio State Reformatory in spotlight yearround
The Mansfield Reformatory Preservation Society is a nonprofit overseen by a volunteer board, and every donation goes directly to the maintenance and restoration of the building.
The reformatory houses the official Ohio State Corrections History Museum, is a popular site for ghost hunters and paranormal enthusiasts, hosts numerous special events, and as of 2018 welcomes more than 120,000 visitors per year.
The building’s striking architecture is a favorite choice for filmmakers. A number of films and music videos have been made at OSR over the years.
