Alcatraz Prison
The high security prison on Alcatraz Island in the chilly waters of California, San Francisco Bay housed some of America's most difficult and dangerous felons during its years of operation from 1934 to 1963. Among those who served time at the maximum-security facility where the notorious gangster Al "Scarface" Capone (1899-1947) and murderer Robert "Birdman of Alcatraz" Stroud (1890-1963). No Prisoner ever successfully escaped The Rock, as the prison was nicknamed, although more than a dozen known attempts were made over the years. After the prison was shut down due to high operating costs, the island was occupied for almost two years, starting in 1969, by a group of Native-American activists. Today, historic Alcatraz Island,…show more content… Seventy-five years later, in 1850, President Millard Fillmore (1800-1874) signed an order reserving The Rock for military use. During the 1850s, a fortress was constructed on Alcatraz. Around 100 cannons were installed around the island to protect San Francisco Bay. Also during this time, Alcatraz became home to the West Coast's first operational lighthouse.
By the late 1850s, the U.S. Army had begun holding military prisoners at Alcatraz. Isolated from the mainland by the cold, strong waters of San Francisco Bay, the island was deemed an ideal location for a prison. It was assumed no Alcatraz prisoner could attempt to escape by swimming and survive.
During the early 20th century, inmate labor fueled the construction of a new cellhouse (the 600-cell structure still stands today) on Alcatraz, along with a hospital, mess hall and other prison buildings. According to the National Park Service, when this new complex was finished in 1912 it was the world's largest reinforced concrete…show more content… Justice Department, which wanted a federal prison that could house a criminal population too difficult or dangerous to be handled by other U.S. penitentiaries. Following construction to make the existing complex at Alcatraz more secure, the maximum-security facility was officially opened on July 1, 1934. The first warden, James A. Johnston (1874-1954), hired approximately one guard for every three prisoners. Each prisoner had his own cell.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) viewed Alcatraz as "the prison system's prison," a place where the most disruptive inmates could be sent to live under sparse conditions with few privileges in order to learn how to follow rules (at which point, they could be transferred to other federal prisons to complete their sentences). According to the BOP, Alcatraz typically held some 260 to 275 prisoners, which represented less than 1 percent of the entire federal inmate population.
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