In the 1920's and 1930's a new wave of crime had swept across the U.S. With the passage of the Volstead Act in 1920, producing and distributing alcohol became an extremely lucrative business. With this also came a sharp rise in organized crime in many of the big cities. Even worse, the crimes committed by members of these gangs became more violent. In July of 1933, J. Edgar Hoover was made the director of the newly formed FBI. Hoover decided that he was going to crack down on these criminals. Hoover chose to aim high and went after the heads of the crime gangs. The problem was that, no sooner did they manage to incarcerate the bad guys when their buddies in the crime organizations would bust them out. With this problem in mind, the U.S. Justice Department began looking into a maximum security prison that was inaccessible and thereby inescapable. When they found Alcatraz, it was almost too good to be true.
October 12, 1933- The U.S. Justice Department officially acquired Alcatraz from the military with plans to incorporate Alcatraz into the Bureau of Prisons.
April, 1934- Work began on Alcatraz to make the cellhouse more secure by replacing soft-iron square bars on the cells with rounded "tool-proof" bars. In addition, a new locking device was installed which allowed guards to open selected cells within a block. Metal detectors were installed on the dock and at the entrance to the cellhouse. Additionally, three new guard towers (right) were constructed to keep a birds eye view of the activities on the island.
Most of the military prisoners were released or transferred prior to control of the island switching hands, in June of 1934. However, 32 of the military's worst criminals remained on the island and became the first inmates of the U.S. Penitentiary, Alcatraz.
July 1, 1934- The U.S. Penitentiary, Alcatraz, formally opened with James A. Johnston, a retired California state prison official, as its first warden. At its inception, Alcatraz employed 52 full-time correctional officers, the most of any prison in the system.
Warden Johnston decided that the goal of Alcatraz was not going to be rehabilitation, but rather, it would be punishment to its inmates for the wrongs they had committed. Inmates were not permitted to have newspapers, radios, or magazines. In addition, it was decided that all incoming mail would be type-written by corrections officers, so that coded messages contained in the original letters could not be received by the inmates.
The first inmate to enter Kingston Penitentiary was Mathew Tavender who was sentenced to serve three years for grand larceny. He was placed in cell number four and was put two work as a stonecutter two days later. He was whipped on August 30, 1835 which was three months after his arrival, along with inmate number two, John Hamilton.
When envisioning a prison, one often conceptualizes a grisly scene of hardened rapists and murderers wandering aimlessly down the darkened halls of Alcatraz, as opposed to a pleasant facility catering to the needs of troubled souls. Prisons have long been a source of punishment for inmates in America and the debate continues as to whether or not an overhaul of the US prison system should occur. Such an overhaul would readjust the focuses of prison to rehabilitation and incarceration of inmates instead of the current focuses of punishment and incarceration. Altering the goal of the entire state and federal prison system for the purpose of rehabilitation is an unrealistic objective, however. Rehabilitation should not be the main purpose of prison because there are outlying factors that negatively affect the success of rehabilitation programs and such programs would be too costly for prisons currently struggling to accommodate additional inmate needs.
Prisoners were put under a monotonous and strict routine designed to keep them from rebelling. They were given the basic human needs: clothing, food, shelter, and medical care. Any other privileges had to be earned. One of the inmates’ biggest complaints was that it was always cold on the island. Another complaint was the rule of silence which banned conversation between inmates except for during recreation time and meals. This rule was eventually discontinued. Prisoners who acted out at Alcatraz were put in either the strip cell or the hole. Both were cells in complete isolation from other inmates but in the strip cell inmates were placed in the lightless cell naked and the only ‘toilet’ was a hole in the ground.
...hole”. Other than the harsh conditions warden had on us a times life wasn’t bad at Alcatraz. Kelly’s cellmate said he would get depressed when he got mail from his family and that he regretted all the crimes he committed to get himself locked up here. I didn’t believe him till I got a job in the mail room. I constantly saw letters from Kelly sent to Urschel begging him to plead his case, I never saw a reply to Kelly’s letters.
Roberts, John W. "Work, Education, and Public Safety: A Brief History of Federal Prison Industries." n.d.
Al Capone once said about Alcatraz " Don't mistake my kindness for weakness, I am kind to everyone, but when someone is unkind to me, weak is not what you are going to remember me about." One of the most dreaded prisons in America was Alcatraz, it was built on an island in the San Francisco Bay. Alcatraz was made for the United States most dangerous and difficult people during its years of being operated. Even though Alcatraz was built as a top end prison it was possible to escape, however it seemed prisoners never made it off the island alive.
In the 1970s, prison was a dangerous place. Prison violence and the high numbers of disruptive inmates led prison authorities to seek new ways to control prisoners. At first, prison staff sought to minimize contact with prisoners by keeping them in their cells for a majority of the day. As time went on, the prison authorities began to brainstorm the idea of having entire prisons dedicated to using these kind of procedures to control the most violent and disruptive inmates. By 1984, many states began construction on super-maximum prisons. In California, two supermax facilities were built by the state: Corcoran State Prison in 1988, and then Pelican Bay in 1989. The federal government soon followed suit and in 1994, the “first federal supermax opened, in Florence, Colorado.” It was not much longer before supermax prisons could be seen all over the country (Abramsky). In Wisconsin’s supermax facility, with similar conditions being found in a majority of supermaxes, there are “100-cell housing units” that are in groups of 25 cells. These cells all face a secured central area. Technology plays a major role in keeping the facility to the highest security standards. Every cell’s doors are controlled remotely and the cells include “video surveillance, motion detection and exterior lighting” (Berge). With these technological securities, there are also procedural precautions. Inmates are kept in their cells for 23 hours a day until their sentences are done. This is said to be for prisoner and staff safety, although some feel otherwise. In 2001, 600 inmates at Pelican Bay went on a hunger strike, demanding reform. Those on hunger strike believed that the isolation and deprivation they faced was against their Eighth Amendment rights. ...
Prisons have dated back to the twentieth century when the United States had almost two million people confined in prisons or jails. Prisons have been a form of government punishment that has shaped our nation to what it is today. The first jail was established in Philadelphia, in 1970. It was called the Walnut Street Jail and was recorded as the first use of imprisonment through solitary confinement. The basic principles of the new system were to reform those in prison, and to segregate those according to age, sex, and type of offenses charged against them (Schoenherr). The second prison was called Sing-Sing a...
There are different eras of prison. The reformatory era, industrial era, punitive era, treatment era, community era, and warehousing era are the different types of era of prisons. The Reformatory Era lasted from 1870-1910. The Reformatory era was good for prisoners because it actually teach them discipline while they were incarcerated. The inmates were getting education and vocational programs that can later help them become successful in life. They were getting quality skills. Furthermore, they will help them with how to be in economically self-supportive when they will get out of prison. After prison they will get parole and visit their parole officer every month and be going to rehabilitation program. Secure holding and/or monitoring of offenders. In the industrial era, there were large volumes of factories growing, and inmates worked in factories for very cheap. Punitive Era was from 1935 to 1945. This era focused on punishment. Treatment Era was from 1945 to 1967. This era was focused on fixing the offender. Community Era was from 1967 to 1980. In this era, they believed inmate should privileges, halfway houses, and a work release program. Warehousing Era was from 1980-1995. In this era, they believed that incarcerating as many people as they could protect the society. It made the growth of prison overcrowding. Just Desserts Era is from 1995 to the present. This era believed that incarceration is appropriate punishment for criminal behavior.
In 1962, one of the greatest escape attempts was undertook. Frank Lee Morris, the mastermind of the outbreak, was destined to be able to figure out how to break out of Alcatraz. He had escaped from multiple prisons before. The escape plan took months, but once completed it would leave thousands puzzled how they managed it. Frank, Clarence, and John started by collecting tools. These tools were used to dig through
When people talk about Alcatraz, they usually remember it is an island with a prison on it, but many do not know what is included inside the prison. Two common places inmates were in most of the time were either the dining hall, where the prisoners and staff would eat their meals, or a library in which inmates could check out books and magazines. The Models Industries Building contained a laundry facility, and the New Industries Building contained a clothing factory, dry cleaning plant, furniture plant, and a brush factory where prisoners could work and earn money. Prisoners had the chance to make items such as gloves, furniture mats, and army uniforms. Military officers were found in the dining hall since that was where they ate their meals, but they were also found in the other places as well. Former Military Chapel was a small building, where the ground floor had quarters for the officers and their families who worked at the prison. In 1920, when the building was first built, the top floor of the building was used as a school and chapel, but in 1934 when Alcatraz became a Federal Penitentiary, the building became a Bachelor Quarters for unmarried officers. Later on, the officers and their families eventually stayed in Building 64 which was a three story apartment building. The best part of living in the prison for
Alcatraz Island, an island located in San Francisco Bay in San Francisco, California, has held many roles since its discovery. Alcatraz Island has served as a military prison, federal penitentiary, meeting site for Native Americans, and it is currently a part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Even though the island has not served as a prison for 53 years, that is how most people remember it when they think of the island.
We stepped off the large tour boat with a look of fright in both our eyes. Some joy was there, but knowing what went on in this place made us feel the way we did. To me, Alcatraz didn't really look like a shut down prison at that moment. It looked more like an old worn down cemetery. The paint on most of the buildings was chipped off all the way down to the wood. Most of the buildings had collapsed down to some cement foundations and old rusted poles hanging every other way. As we walked to the building where you start your tour, that was probably the only building at this place with cleanliness to it. They gave us our tour headphones, which take you through the whole prison with a audio guide telling you how it was in the prison. Not just how it was for the prisoners, but how it was for the guards too.
The first warden on Alcatraz was James A. Johnston, he started on July 1, 1934 (Fuller, 12) On the island, of course there were many rules to go by. First, there were no visitors accepted within the first three months of living on the island (Welcome to Alcatraz). Enforcing the rule of no talking was apart of their psychological punishment. The prisoners were locked in their cells for over half the day, fourteen hours a day (Oliver, 53). Hygiene was very strict. Each inmate was to shave 3 times weekly (Fuller, 11). No prisoners were allowed to visit their cells during the day. Inmates also worked as servants for families that lived on the island (Welcome to Alcatraz). These prisoners were granted with an excellent kitchen ( Welcome to Alcatraz). They were able to get as much of what they like, but no food could be thrown away. If you wasted your food, you were not allowed to have the next meal (Welcome to Alcatraz). If prisoners went against these rules, some of their punishments were they had to wear ball and chain, the would have to do manual labor, and go...
2. Professor Clyde W. Richins, University of Michigan, 1990, Vol. 1 of "In the life of Alcatraz" pages 1944- 46