Alcatraz (prison): history. History of Alcatraz Prison Prison in San Francisco

Just 2.5 km from San Francisco there is a famous landmark of America - the famous Alcatraz prison, known to everyone from many films, TV series and games. Prison Rock, as it is sometimes called, is located on a small rocky island in the middle of the San Francisco Bay. The island where Alcatraz is located belongs to the state of California and belongs to the Golden Gate National Park. Throughout its history, the island has been used as a fort, a prison, and most recently a museum. You can get to the museum island using a special ferry from San Francisco. About a million tourists visit Alcatraz Island every year.

The history of Alcatraz prison dates back to the advent of the Gold Rush in California in 1848. In just three years, San Francisco's population increased from 500 to 35,000 people. Thousands of ships arrived in the bay. There was a need for a lighthouse that would help ships navigate in heavy fog. In 1853, a lighthouse was built on Alcatraz Island, the first in the entire western United States. But after 56 years it was dismantled. A new lighthouse was built in its place in 1909. After 54 years, the lighthouse was modernized, making it capable of automatic operation without requiring 24-hour maintenance.

Alcatraz in 1895

Fort

The harbor area of the Californian coast was not sufficiently protected from external invasion. Therefore, there was a need to protect the bay. In 1850, US President Millard Fillmore ordered the construction of a defensive fort on Alcatraz Island. In December 1859, construction of the fortress was completed. On the territory of which there were about 110 guns. At the height of the Civil War (1861-1865), the military fort was considered the largest on the west side of the Mississippi River.

Cannons on Alcatraz Island with 15 inch balls, 1868

Military prison

Beginning in 1861, the fortress on the island was also used as a military prison. This was facilitated by the favorable location of the mainland in the bay (more than 2 km from civilization), which was washed by icy water and had strong sea currents. Which created a powerful isolation from the outside world. Therefore, it was an ideal place to keep prisoners of war. The number of prisoners increased greatly during the Spanish-American War in 1898. From 25 to 450 people. The American prison Alcatraz became known for its severity and was considered the first long-term military prison. Disciplinary measures in prison could take the form of hard work, constant wearing of a heavy chain, or transfer to a special solitary confinement cell, which was considered the most severe punishment. The isolation room was practically without light, except for the cracks through which food was supplied, essentially it was bread and water. The temperature in the room was quite cold, but a blanket was only provided at night. All types of contact were prohibited. Therefore, staying in such a room seemed eternal, and some could not stand it and went crazy.

Prisoners of war at Alcatraz, 1902

The Alcatraz prison began to receive more and more civilian prisoners temporarily transferred from other places. Especially after the San Francisco earthquake in 1906, when thousands of houses were destroyed and heavy looting began in the city.

Over time, discipline in the military prison decreased. For example, some prisoners were allowed to perform various chores for families living on the island. In the late 20s, a baseball field was even built. Various boxing competitions were held, which even attracted civilians from San Francisco. But in the end, the military authorities decided to completely abandon the prison due to the high costs of its maintenance. Therefore, in 1934 the prison was officially closed.

Federal maximum security prison

In the late 20s and early 30s, the United States experienced the Great Depression, accompanied by riots and organized crime. There was a war over the sphere of influence between various mafia families and gangs. And, as a rule, ordinary citizens and police officers became victims. Officials received bribes, turning a blind eye to the lawlessness, and power in the cities essentially belonged to gangsters.

For this reason, the US authorities reopened Alcatraz prison in 1934, but at the same time completely rebuilt the buildings on the island. So the wooden bars and bars were replaced with steel ones. Electricity was installed in each cell. All extra tunnels were walled up. Weapons rooms for the guards were built in the prison building. The most popular place, namely the prison canteen, was equipped with special tanks with tear gas. After all, it was in this room that fights and various showdowns often broke out. Almost all doors had electric sensors. The best security specialists (Robert Burge and others) were involved in the project. And James A. Johnston, known as the “Chief of the Golden Rule,” was also appointed. He was distinguished by his strict principles and reformist approach to prisoners. Thus, Alcatraz prison became a nightmare for the entire criminal world and became the basis for various rumors and myths.

Prison cells in Alcatraz

Alcatraz prisoners and escape attempts

The most violent prisoners from other prisons were transferred to Alcatraz. It was impossible to get there directly. Only for some gangsters were exceptions made, among which were: Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelly.

Alcatraz prisoners lived in separate cells. They had minimal privileges to receive medical care, water, food, and clothing. They were forbidden to have any personal belongings or read newspapers. The Alcatraz prisoner had to earn the opportunity to communicate with visitors, visit the library and write letters. Moreover, all privileges were revoked at the slightest violation of the rules of conduct in prison.

A typical day started early in the morning at 6:30. 25 minutes were given to clean the cell, then roll call followed. And exactly at 6:55 everyone headed to the dining room. After a 20-minute breakfast, prison work began. This daily rhythm in prison did not change for several years.

Escape attempts from Alcatraz prison

As stated earlier, escaping from Alcatraz prison was practically impossible. But nevertheless, in history there were a couple of attempts to escape from the strictest American prison at that time. There is no official confirmation of a successful escape from prison. But nevertheless, it was not possible to find five prisoners who went missing. A total of 34 prisoners tried to escape from the island. Of these, two drowned, seven were shot, five went missing, the rest were intercepted and returned. The most famous escape attempts were made in 1946 (Battle of Alcatraz) and 1962 (Escape of Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers).

Closing of Alcatraz prison

Alcatraz prison was closed on March 21, 1963. The reason was that the costs of maintaining the prison were too high. It was necessary to import food, clothing, etc. from the mainland. Periodically make repairs, which were estimated at 3-5 million dollars. That's why Alcatraz was closed.

Tour of Alcatraz video

While the Vietnam War was going on and the hippie movement was booming, a couple of Indian tribes moved to live on the island of Alcatraz. According to the law on free movement, they were allowed to do this, but by a court decision in 1971 they were forced to leave Alcatraz. At the same time, leaving behind a lot of destruction and garbage. Many buildings were damaged due to frequent fires, and most of the walls were painted with inscriptions that remain to this day.

In 1971, Alcatraz was annexed to Golden Gate Park, making it a museum complex. And in 1973, the first tourists visited it.

Discovery of the island and its name
In 1775, the Spaniard Juan Manuel de Ayala was the first to enter San Francisco Bay. His team mapped the bay and gave the name La Isla de los Alcatraces to one of the three islands, now known as Yerba Buena. It is widely believed that the name could mean "Pelican Island", due to the abundance of these birds on the island. However, according to reports from ornithologists, there are no colonies of pelicans or gannets, either on the island or nearby, but there are many different species of cormorants and other large waterfowl.

In 1828, the English geographer Captain Frederic William Beechey mistakenly transferred the name of the island from Spanish maps to the neighboring one, currently known as the site of the famous prison, under the name Island Alcatrazes. In 1851, the US Coast Guard surveyor shortened the name to Alcatraz.

History of the lighthouse

The discovery of gold in California in 1848 brought thousands of ships into the San Francisco Bay, creating an urgent need for a lighthouse. The first lighthouse was installed and launched on Alcatraz in the summer of 1853. In 1856, a bell was installed at the lighthouse, which was used in the fog.

In 1909, during the construction of the prison, after 56 years of use, the first Alcatraz lighthouse was dismantled. The second lighthouse was installed next to the prison building on December 1, 1909. And in 1963, the lighthouse was modified and made automatic and autonomous, and it no longer required round-the-clock maintenance.

Fort

As a result of the gold rush, there was a need to protect the bay. In 1850, by order of the President of the United States, they began to build a fort on the island, where more than 110 long-range guns were installed. The fort was subsequently used to house prisoners. In 1909, the army demolished it, leaving only the foundation, and by 1912 a new building was built for prisoners.

Military prison

The location in the middle of a bay with icy water and strong sea currents ensured the island's natural isolation. Thereby Alcatraz soon came to be seen by the US Army as an ideal place to hold prisoners of war. In 1861, the first Civil War prisoners from various states began arriving on the island, and in 1898, as a result of the Spanish-American War, the number of prisoners of war increased from 26 to more than 450. In 1906, after the San Francisco earthquake destroyed much of the city, hundreds of civilian prisoners were moved to the island for safety reasons. A large prison building was built in 1912, and by 1920 the three-story structure was almost completely filled with prisoners.

Alcatraz was the Army's first long-term prison and began to gain a reputation for being harsh on offenders, who faced severe disciplinary action. The punishment could be assignment to hard work, placement in solitary confinement with a limited ration of bread and water, and the list was not limited to this. The average age of imprisoned military personnel was 24 years, and most were serving short sentences for desertion or less serious offenses. There were also those who served long sentences for disobedience to commanders, physical violence, theft or murder.

An interesting element of the military order was the prohibition of being in the cells during the day, except in special cases of forced confinement. High-ranking military prisoners could move freely throughout the prison, with the exception of the guard rooms located on a higher level.

Despite the harsh disciplinary measures applied to criminals, the prison regime was not strict. Many prisoners performed household chores for the families living on the island, and a select few were sometimes trusted to look after the children. Some took advantage of the vulnerability of the prison security organization to escape. Despite all efforts, most of the fugitives were unable to reach the shore and had to return back to be rescued from the icy water. Those who did not return died from hypothermia.

Over the decades, prison rules have become even softer. In the late 1920s, prisoners were allowed to build a baseball field and even wear their own baseball uniforms. The army command organized boxing competitions between prisoners, held on Friday evenings. The fights were very popular, with civilians from San Francisco often traveling to Alcatraz just to watch them.

Due to the high maintenance costs associated with the location, the Department of Defense decided to close this famous prison in 1934 and it was taken over by the Department of Justice.

Federal prison

In each cell there is a book “The Rules of Alcatraz”

In response to gangster crimes, the government decided to reopen Alcatraz , but already like federal prison. Alcatraz satisfied the basic requirements: to place dangerous criminals far from society and to frighten the remaining criminals who were still at large. Federal Prisons Commissioner Sanford Bates and Attorney General Homer Cummings initiated the prison renovation project. For this, Robert Burge, at that time one of the best experts in the field of security, was invited. He was supposed to redesign the prison. During the reconstruction, only the foundation was left untouched, and the building itself was completely rebuilt.

In April 1934, the military jail received a new face and a new direction. Before the reconstruction, the bars and bars were wooden - they were replaced with steel ones. Electricity was installed in each cell, and all service tunnels were walled up to prevent prisoners from entering them for shelter and further escape. Along the perimeter of the prison building, above the cells, special weapon galleries were placed, which allowed the guards to stand watch while protected by steel bars.

The prison canteen, as the most vulnerable place for fights and brawls, was equipped with tear gas containers, which were located in the ceiling and controlled remotely. Security towers were placed around the perimeter of the island in the most strategic places. The doors were equipped with electrical sensors. The prison block contained a total of 600 cells and was divided into blocks B, C and D, whereas before reconstruction the prison population never exceeded 300 prisoners. The introduction of new security measures, along with the cold waters of San Francisco Bay, created a reliable barrier for even the most incorrigible criminals.

Boss

Before Alcatraz, Johnston was a director at prison San Quentin, where he introduced several successful educational programs that had a beneficial effect on the majority of prisoners. At the same time, Johnston was a supporter of strict discipline. His rules were the strictest in the correctional system, and his punishments the most severe. Johnston had been present at San Quentin hangings more than once and knew how to deal with the most incorrigible criminals.

Prison life

The courts did not sentence people to imprisonment in Alcatraz; especially “distinguished” prisoners from other prisons were usually transferred there. Voluntarily choose Alcatraz it was impossible to serve the prison term. Although exceptions were made for some gangsters, including Machine Gun Kelly (in those years “public enemy No. 1”) and others.

The rules at Alcatraz have changed dramatically. Now each prisoner had only his own cell and minimal privileges to receive food, water, clothing, medical and dental care. Prisoners at Alcatraz were not allowed to have any personal belongings. To obtain privileges to communicate with visitors, visit the prison library and write, the prisoner had to earn it through work and impeccable behavior. At the same time, prisoners with bad behavior were not allowed to work in prison. For the slightest offense, all privileges were revoked. All media were prohibited in Alcatraz, including reading newspapers. All letters, as in any other prison, were corrected by a prison official.

The wardens of federal prisons had the right to transfer any delinquent prisoner to Alcatraz. Despite popular belief, Alcatraz did not only house gangsters and especially dangerous criminals. Alcatraz was filled from other prisons with fugitives and rebels or those who systematically violated the regime of detention. Of course, there were gangsters, but most of them were sentenced to death.

At one time it was a legend of the American penitentiary system: the most dangerous criminals or those who managed to escape from other prisons were imprisoned here.

Prison life began with rising at 6:30, prisoners were given 25 minutes to clean their cells, after which each prisoner had to go to the cell bars for roll call. If everyone was in place at 6:55, the individual rows of cells opened one by one and the prisoners moved into the prison cafeteria. They were given 20 minutes to eat, then they were lined up to distribute prison work. The monotonous cycle of prison routine was unforgiving and remained unchanged for many years. The main corridor of the prison building was called "Broadway" by prisoners, and the cells on the second tier along this passage were the most coveted in the prison. Other cells were located downstairs, were cold, and were frequently passed by staff and prisoners.

During the early years of Alcatraz, Warden Johnston maintained a policy of silence, which many prisoners considered the most intolerable punishment. There were many complaints demanding its cancellation. There were rumors that several prisoners went crazy because of this rule. The silence policy was later abolished, one of the few rule changes on Alcatraz.

In the eastern wing there were solitary cells in isolation cells. They didn’t even have a full-fledged toilet: just a hole, the flush of which was controlled by a security guard. They were placed in the isolation ward without outer clothing and on meager rations. The cell door had a lockable narrow slot for passing food, which was always closed, leaving the prisoner in complete darkness. Usually they were placed in isolation for 1-2 days. It was cold in the cell, and a mattress was only provided at night. This was considered the most severe punishment for serious violations and bad behavior, and it was a punishment that all prisoners feared. The new prison also needed a new chief. The Federal Bureau of Prisons selected James A. Johnston for this position. Johnston was chosen for his strong principles and humane approach to reforming criminals to reintegrate them into society. He was also known for his reforms to benefit prisoners.

Johnston did not believe in chained convicts. He believed that prisoners should be put into work where they were respected and rewarded for their efforts. Nicknamed the "Golden Rule Warden," the press praised Johnston for the improvements he made to California highways at his road camps. The prisoners working in them were not paid any money, but their sentences were reduced for diligent work.

Alcatraz Prison Escapes

The most successful escape attempt that was possibly successful occurred in 1962. Frank Morris, along with his brothers John Anglin and Clarence Anglin, were using a homemade drill to pick out cement from the walls. Having carefully prepared, having studied the security shift schedule and other nuances, on June 11, 1962, they escaped through the service tunnel , located behind their cells. Having got out into the tunnel, they blocked the hole from the nutria with bricks, and in their sleeping places, in our opinion (beds, or more precisely in relation to prisons, bunks) they left dummies of their bodies so that the escape would be revealed as later as possible. Then, through the screw system, they penetrated the roof and went down to the water through a drainage channel. There, using pre-prepared rubber raincoats, they inflated a raft of raincoats with the help of a small accordion and set off to swim. According to the official version, they never swam to shore and drowned somewhere in the bay, and their bodies were never found.

But according to the unofficial version, verified by many independent experts, this escape from Alcatraz prison was successful and the prisoners managed to escape to freedom. Even the famous show “MythBusters,” becoming interested in this story, carried out its own investigation, which proved that the escape could have been successful.

Another possibly successful escape attempt occurred on December 16, 1937 - Theodore Cole and his friend Ralph Roe, after working for some time in an iron workshop, developed a plan and, on one of their shifts, used the tools there to remove the bars from the window and headed towards the water. On that ill-fated day, they were unlucky - a strong storm broke out and, probably “according to the official version,” they drowned without reaching the shore of San Francisco. Their bodies were never found, and most people are convinced and believe that they were swept out to sea by a storm. According to the official version, they are still considered missing.

Notable Alcatraz Prison Inmates:

The most famous prisoner who served his sentence in Alcatraz prison is by far the most famous. In July 1931, a federal court sentenced Al Capone to ten years in prison for tax evasion and sent him to the Atlanta Correctional Facility to serve his sentence. In 1934, he was transferred to a special security prison on Alcatraz Island, from where he was released seven years later, terminally ill with syphilis.

State enemy number one, George Machine Gun Kelly, was sentenced to life imprisonment; in Alcatraz, he was not the ruthless and cruel killer and gangster he was in freedom. For his exemplary behavior, he received the nickname Flapper George. After serving 17 years in Alcatraz prison, he was transferred to the mainland back to Leavenstone prison (Kansas) where he died of a heart attack in 1951.

A young guy whose fate was ruined by one judge, Robert Stroud, a poultry farmer, killed a man who had beaten and robbed his wife in self-defense, for which he received 12 years, although at that time in practice they gave 2-3 years for similar crimes, but the new judge decided to show himself and gave him 12 years old. Then he went on a rampage in prison, killing a guard who cruelly mocked him and was sentenced to death, and only thanks to his mother remained alive; she miraculously submitted a request to replace the death penalty with life imprisonment to US President Woodrow Wilson. He spent almost 80% of his time in solitary confinement. He received his nickname because of his passion for birds, which turned into a real scientific work that was appreciated by the entire scientific community. Died in Alcatraz Prison at the age of 75, without receiving a pardon.

Known gangster and train robber Roy Gardner, who stole more than $350,000 during his criminal career, primarily robbed mail trains. The reward on his head at that time was a very impressive 5 thousand US dollars, he was the most wanted man on the US Pacific coast in all history. On September 5, 1921, he escaped from the Prison on McNeil Island. Apparently out of stupidity there is no other way to call it, he began writing letters to newspapers appealing to the authorities “come and get me,” and after being captured he was transported to Alcatraz prison. He published his autobiography with the title “hellish Alcatraz”. In it he talked not only about his life but also about others. famous personalities of Alcatraz prison(Al Capone, Birdman, George Machine Gun Kelia and others). He was part of a group that planned an escape and it seems to me that they were successful, but he did not go with them.

Closing the prison

On March 21, 1963, Alcatraz prison was closed. According to the official version, this was done because the costs of maintaining prisoners on the island were too high. The prison required approximately $3-5 million worth of renovations. In addition, keeping prisoners on the island was too expensive compared to a mainland prison, since everything regularly had to be imported from the mainland.

After the closure, many ways to further use the island were discussed - for example, it was proposed to place a UN monument there. In 1969, a group of Indians from various tribes moved to the island, effectively capturing it. This was done thanks to the federal Indian Free Removal Act of 1934. While living on the island, the Indians burned large fires in the buildings and painted the walls. Due to the fires, the security rest house, a quarter of the coast guard barracks and the prison warden's house were severely damaged, and many apartments in residential buildings on the island were also significantly damaged. However, the Indians did not stay on the island for long, and in June 1971, by decision of the US government, they were expelled from Alcatraz. The writings on the walls can still be seen today. In 1971, the island was made part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The island was opened to tourists in 1973 and now receives about a million visitors each year.

One of the most famous prisons in the world is the American prison Alcatraz ( Alcatraz), also known as Rock (from English - Rock), which is located on a small island of the same name in San Francisco Bay. The prison has been closed for several decades, but thanks to numerous stories and rumors, when people hear the word “Alcatraz” for a long time, they will think first of all about the prison, and not about the island itself!

The prison gained its fame not because of the numerous films filmed here, but because of the prisoners who served time in their cells. Alcatraz housed the most violent criminals in the United States! The island received its name in 1775, when the Spaniard Juan Manuel Ayala arrived in San Francisco Bay. Juan Manuel de Ayala). There are three islands in total in the bay, and the Spaniard gave one of them the name Alcatraces. The meaning of this word is still hotly debated, but most agree that it translates to “pelican” or “strange bird.”

The island was originally used as a military fortress, which was later converted into a federal penitentiary.

Alcatraz was famous for the fact that it was impossible to escape from it. The reason for this seemingly controversial statement is that the prison is located in the center of the bay near the city of San Francisco and can only be reached by water.

However, water is not the only obstacle on the path of a possible fugitive.

The fact is that the water temperature of the bay is not high, and the currents are very strong, so even an excellent swimmer will not be able to overcome
the distance is just over two kilometers from the island to San Francisco.

Alcatraz was also the first long-term military prison. In the 1800s, captives of the civil and Spanish-American
Wars were the first prisoners to arrive on the island. Later, due to the isolated location and
Because of the insurmountable cold waters of the Gulf, authorities viewed Alcatraz as an ideal place to hold dangerous prisoners.

In the beginning, Alcatraz or Alcazar was just another federal penitentiary, but over time the prison became famous after such criminals as George "Machine Gun" Kelly and Robert Franklin Stroud served their time there. , Alvin Karpis, Henry Young and Al Capone. Criminals who could not be held by other correctional institutions were also housed here. The average number of inmates at Alcatraz was approximately 260, with 1,545 inmates throughout the prison's 29 years of operation. During this time, there were attempts to escape, but there is not a single official record of the success of at least one of them. Several prisoners have disappeared, but they are all presumed to have drowned in the waters of the bay.

However, soon the first prisoners appeared on the island. These were not notorious criminals at all, but ordinary soldiers who violated some decree. The more prisoners there were on Alcatraz, the fewer guns there were in the fortress. Several more years will pass before the fortress finally loses its original significance and turns into one of the most famous prisons on earth!

Already in 1909, the fortress was demolished, and a prison was built in its place. Construction took two years, and the main workforce was prisoners from the Pacific Division of the US Army Disciplinary Barracks. It is this structure that will subsequently receive the name “Rock”.

The prison on Alcatraz Island was supposed to be a real dungeon for the most notorious criminals with minimal rights for prisoners. Thus, the US government wanted to show the public that it was doing everything possible to combat the crime that swept the country in the 20s and 30s of the last century.

In total, Alcatraz prison was designed for 336 people, but it usually housed much fewer prisoners. Many people believe that Alcatraz is one of the darkest and most brutal prisons on Earth, but this is not entirely true. Despite the fact that it was positioned as a maximum security prison, the cells here were single and quite comfortable. Many prisoners from other prisons even wrote applications to be transferred to Alcatraz!

Some of Alcatraz's most famous prisoners are Al Capone, Arthur Doc Barker and George "Machine Gun" Kelly, but the vast majority of local criminals were far from notorious thugs and murderers.

The prison on the island usually only imprisoned those prisoners who were prone to escape. The fact is that it was almost impossible to escape from here. Of course, there were many attempts, and many prisoners even managed to get out of the prison itself, but leaving the island was an impossible task. Strong currents and icy water killed many fugitives who decided to swim to the mainland! During the time Alcatraz was used as a federal prison, there were 14 escape attempts involving a total of 36 people. None of them managed to leave the island alive...

On March 21, 1962, the prison on Alcatraz Island was officially closed. It is believed that it was closed due to the significant costs of maintaining prisoners, as well as the need for expensive restoration work. Several years passed, and in 1973 the legendary prison became available to the general public. Today, Alcatraz is visited by tens of thousands of tourists every year.

Alcatraz prison consisted of 336 cells for serving sentences, divided into two large blocks “B” and “C”, 36 isolated cells, 6 solitary cells in a separate block “D”. The two cells at the end of Block C were used as security break rooms. Most of the prisoners at Alcazar are those who have been identified as particularly violent and dangerous, those who could attempt to escape, and those who are likely to refuse to follow the rules of conduct and procedures in another federal correctional institution.

Alcatraz prisoners could earn privileges that included work, visits from family members, access to the prison library, and recreational activities such as painting and music. Prisoners had only four basic rights - food, clothing, shelter and medical care.

Alcatraz did not have the facilities to carry out the death penalty, so those prisoners who were sentenced to death were sent to San Quentin City Prison for execution in the gas chamber.

Despite strict rules and strict standards for hardened criminals, Alcatraz mostly operated in minimum security mode. The types of work performed by prisoners varied depending on the prisoner, the type of work and the degree of responsibility. Many worked as servants: they prepared food, cleaned, and performed household chores for families living on the island. Alcatraz security officers lived on the island with their families in a separate building and, in fact, were partly prisoners of Alcatraz. In many cases, individual prisoners were even trusted to care for the children of prison staff. Alcatraz was also home to several Chinese families who were hired as servants.

It is officially believed that there was no successful attempt to escape from the Rock, but to this day five prisoners from Alcatraz are listed as "absent, presumed drowned."

* April 27, 1936 - Joe Bowers, who was assigned to burn garbage that day, suddenly began to climb the fence. The guard gave him a warning, but Joe ignored him and was shot in the back. He died from his wounds in the hospital.

* December 16, 1937 - Theodore Cole and Ralph Roy, who worked in the store, decided to escape through the iron bars on the window. They managed to get out of the window, after which they ran to the water and disappeared into San Francisco Bay. Despite the fact that a storm broke out on this very day, many believed that the fugitives managed to reach land. But officially they were considered dead.

* May 23, 1938 - James Limerick, Jimmy Lucas and Raphas Franklin, working in a woodworks store, attacked an unarmed security guard and killed him with a hammer blow to the head. The trio then climbed onto the roof and attempted to disarm the officer guarding the roof of the tower, but he opened fire. Limerick died from his wounds, and the surviving couple received life sentences.

* January 13, 1939 - Arthur Doc Barker, Dale Stamphill, William Martin, Henry Young and Raphas McCain escaped from the isolation compartment into the building where the cells for prisoners were located. They sawed off the bars, climbed out of the building through a window and headed to the water's edge. The guard discovered the fugitives already on the western shore of the island. Martin, Young and McCain surrendered, and Barker and Stamphill, who refused to obey orders, were wounded. Barker died a few days later.

* May 21, 1941 - Joe Kretzer, Sam Shockley, Arnold Kyle and Lloyd Backdall took several of the guards they were working under hostage. But the guards managed to convince the prisoners to surrender. It is significant that one of these guards later became the third commandant of Alcatraz.

* September 15, 1941 - John Bayles tried to escape while clearing garbage. But the icy water in San Francisco Bay forced him to return to shore. Later, when he was brought to federal court in San Francisco, he tried to escape from there. But again without success.

* April 14, 1943 - James Borman, Harold Brest, Floyd Hamilton and Fred Hunter took two guards hostage in an area where prisoners were working. They climbed out through the window and jumped into the water. But one of the guards managed to signal the emergency to his colleagues, and the officers, who set off in the footsteps of the fugitives, overtook them only at the moment when they were already sailing away from the island. Some of the guards rushed into the water, others opened fire. As a result, Hunter and Brest were detained, Borman was wounded and drowned. And Hamilton was pronounced drowned. Although in fact he hid in a small gorge for two days, and then returned to the territory where the prisoners were working. There he was captured by guards.

* August 7, 1943 - Charon Ted Walters disappeared from the laundry, but was caught on the shore of the bay.

* July 31, 1945 - one of the most elaborate escape attempts. John Giles often worked in the prison laundry, which also washed army uniforms, which were sent to the island especially for this purpose. One day he stole a full set of uniform, changed clothes and calmly left prison and went to lunch with the military. Unfortunately for him, the military was having lunch that day on Angel Island, and not in San Francisco, as Giles had assumed. In addition, his disappearance from prison was immediately noticed. So as soon as he arrived on Angel Island, he was arrested and sent back to Alcatraz.

* May 2-4, 1946 - this day is known as the "Battle of Alcatraz." Six prisoners disarmed the guards and seized a set of keys to the cell block. But their plan began to go awry when the prisoners discovered that they did not have the key to the door leading to the recreation yard. Soon the prison administration suspected something was wrong. But instead of surrendering, the prisoners resisted. As a result, four of them returned to their cells, but not before opening fire on the guards who had been taken hostage. One officer died from his wounds, and a second officer was killed while attempting to regain control of the cell block. About 18 guards were injured. American sailors were immediately called in to help, and on May 4 the mutiny ended with the murder of three prisoners. Subsequently, two “rebels” received a death sentence and ended their days in the gas chamber in 1948. And the 19-year-old rioter received a life sentence.

* July 23, 1956 - Floyd Wilson disappeared from his job at the dock. He hid among the rocks for several hours, but when he was discovered, he gave up.

* September 29, 1958 - While clearing debris, Aaor Bargett and Clyde Johnson subdued a prison officer and attempted to swim away. Johnson was caught in the water, but Bargett disappeared. Intensive searches yielded no results. Bargett's body was found in the San Francisco Bay two weeks later.

* June 11, 1962 - This is the most famous escape attempt thanks to Clint Eastwood and the film "Escape from Alcatraz" (1979). Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin were able to disappear from their cells, never to be seen again. A fourth man, Allen West, was also involved in planning the escape, but for unknown reasons remained in the cell the next morning when the escape was discovered. The investigation revealed that the fugitives prepared not only fake bricks to cover the holes made in the walls, but also realistic dolls in the beds, stuffed with human hair, to hide the absence of prisoners during the night rounds. The trio exited through a ventilation pipe adjacent to their cells. The fugitives climbed the pipe to the roof of the prison block (they had previously unbent the iron bars in the ventilation). At the north end of the building they climbed down a drainpipe and thus reached the water. They used prison jackets and a pre-made raft as a means of floating. As a result of a thorough search in the cells of the fugitives, tools were found with which the prisoners used to hammer the walls, and in the bay they found one life jacket made from a prison jacket, an oar, as well as carefully packed photographs and letters belonging to the Anglin brothers. A few weeks later, the body of a man wearing a blue suit similar to a prison uniform was found in the water, but the condition of the body made it impossible to identify him. Morris and the Anglin brothers are officially listed as missing and presumed drowned.

Currently, the prison has been disbanded, the island has been turned into a museum, accessible by ferry from San Francisco from Pier 33.

Alcatraz is a famous island located in San Francisco Bay, California. Translated from Spanish, Alcatraz means “pelican”. The island also has another name - The Rock, which it received thanks to the 1996 Michael Bay film of the same name.

Alcatraz is one of the top tourist attractions of this port city. Perhaps this place is so attractive due to its interesting, but rather dark history. Alcatraz is never empty. Travelers from all over the world come to the island to see with their own eyes the place, “glorified” in many films, television programs, literature and even music.

History of the island

The first to enter San Francisco Bay was a Spaniard named Juan Manuel de Ayala. This happened in 1775, and at the same time he and his team compiled a map of the bay. One of the three islands, which today is called Yerba Buena, was named La Isla de los Alcatraces. It may have meant "Pelican Island", but this is just a guess. The fact is that there were no birds of this species nearby at all.

Later, in 1828, English geographer Frederick Beechey made a mistake when transferring island names from Spanish maps. Thus, the neighboring island received the name Island Alcatrazes. Subsequently, by the decision of the US Coast Guard topographic service, the name was shortened to what we know today - Alcatraz.

The Gold Rush brought about a number of changes to the island. For example, in 1853 a lighthouse was installed on Alcatraz, and three years later a bell was installed, which was used in fog. Then the need arose to protect the bay. To achieve this, in 1850, construction began on a fort with more than 110 long-range guns.

Prisons in Alcatraz

Due to its location, the island was in true natural isolation. Icy water, the middle of the bay and strong sea currents were the reasons that pushed the US Army to look at Alcatraz from a new point of view. This place was ideal for holding prisoners of war, and from 1861 to 1898 their number increased to 450 people.

In 1934, the Ministry of Defense decided to close the prison - too much money was spent on its maintenance.

However, this did not end the history of prisons on the island. The Great Depression brought a new wave of crime, and the government decided to reopen Alcatraz, this time as a federal prison. Now dangerous criminals are located here. Later, reconstruction was carried out, and the prison turned into a completely impregnable place with tear gas canisters in the cafeteria and other means to “tame” prisoners.

It is interesting that the courts did not sentence him to serve time in Alcatraz. Prisoners who had managed to “distinguish themselves” in their previous place were brought into the walls of a world-famous prison. So the myth that Alcatraz was filled entirely with the most dangerous criminals is not entirely true - those who showed waywardness and disobedience also visited here. Of course, famous and dangerous criminals also managed to visit Alcatraz - just look at the names of Al Capone or Machine Gun Kelly.

Alcatraz today

These days, the prison has long been disbanded, and the entire island is a museum. You can get there by ferry from Pier 33 in San Francisco.

Alcatraz Tours

Departure time: 8:45, 9:10, 9:30, 10:00, 10:30, 11:00, 11:30, 12:00, 12:30, 13:05, 13:35.

Tour price: for adults - $46.35; for children - $31.50.

Night tour: 3:50, 4:45.

Price: for adults - $53.50; for children - $35.05.

You shouldn’t miss the chance to see the famous Alcatraz with your own eyes, so if you find yourself in San Francisco, visit this famous island. In this city you can see a lot of interesting things; you should definitely visit the beloved Pier 39, once the home of fur seals.

For tourists

On the island itself, park rangers conduct detailed tours of the cell of Al Capone and other prisoners who, due to the severity of the crime, could not be held in regular prisons. (Be sure to dress warmly, as the air above the bay is cold even in summer). Here you can listen to tape-recorded memories of the guards and the prisoners themselves. Night tours are conducted by a park ranger. Please purchase your tickets at least two weeks in advance. Ferries depart from Pier 33 (Pier 33) every half hour from 9.00 to 15.55, at 18.10 and 18.45.

Alcatraz; cruises to Alcatraz tel.: 415-981-7625 and 415-561-49-26; www.alcatrazcruises.com, www.nps.gov/alcatraz; adult/child day $26/16, night $33/19.50; telephone information service 8.00-19.00.

Alcatraz prison

History of Alcatraz

Central passage in Alcatraz

In 1775, Spanish explorer Lieutenant Juan Manuel de Ayala mapped a small island, which he named Isla de Las Alcatraces - Island of the Pelicans, due to the huge population of these birds that nested here. He could not even imagine that this island would go down in history as the worst prison in the United States. You may be familiar with Alcatraz thanks to the films “Escape from Alcatraz” with Clint Eastwood and “The Rock” with Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage.

Years passed. The year 1848 arrived. Gold was discovered near the town of San Francisco. The news of this discovery quickly spread throughout the country, and thousands of people poured into California. In a few years, the population of San Francisco increased from 300 people to 300 thousand. Prospectors arrived both by land and sea.

Alcatraz Island in 1895

Suddenly the city found itself in the spotlight of the whole world. The young state of California needed protection from the sea, and the choice fell on Alcatraz Island. This piece of land turned out to be an ideal location - just one mile from the city, from here all the ships trying to dock in San Francisco harbor were perfectly visible. No sooner said than done. In 1854, the first defensive structures were built and 11 guns were installed. (later there will be more than a hundred of them).

Together with Fort Point and Lime Point, Alcatraz formed a kind of “defensive” triangle, protecting the bay from attacks. By the end of the decade, the first military prisoner appeared on the island. Over time, Alcatraz's defensive function decreased (by the way, the island never had to use its weapons in action), but it acted as a prison for more than 100 years. In 1909, the army demolished the fortress, leaving the basement level to be used as the foundation for a new prison. From 1909 to 1911, prisoners built the prison building, which belonged to the Pacific Division of the US Army Disciplinary Barracks. It was this building that later became known as the Rock. The army used the island for more than 80 years: from 1850 to 1933. In 1909, after 56 years of use, the first Alcatraz lighthouse was dismantled during the construction of the prison. The second lighthouse was installed next to the prison building on December 1, 1909. And in 1963, the lighthouse was modified and made automatic and autonomous, and it no longer required round-the-clock maintenance.

Camera

The location in the middle of a bay with icy water and strong sea currents ensured the island's natural isolation. Thanks to this, Alcatraz was soon considered by the US Army as an ideal place to hold prisoners of war. In 1861, the first Civil War prisoners from various states began arriving on the island, and in 1898, as a result of the Spanish-American War, the number of prisoners of war increased from 26 to more than 450. In 1906, after the San Francisco earthquake destroyed much of the city, hundreds of civilian prisoners were moved to the island for safety reasons. A large prison building was built in 1912, and by 1920 the three-story structure was almost completely filled with prisoners.

Boiler house and water tower

Alcatraz was the Army's first long-term prison and began to gain a reputation for being harsh on offenders, who faced harsh disciplinary measures. The punishment could be assignment to hard work, placement in solitary confinement with a limited ration of bread and water, and the list was not limited to this.

The average age of imprisoned military personnel was 24 years, and most were serving short sentences for desertion or less serious offenses. There were also those who served long sentences for disobedience to commanders, physical violence, theft or murder.

Tourists in Alcatraz

Despite all efforts, most of the fugitives were unable to reach the shore and had to return back to be rescued from the icy water. Those who did not return died from hypothermia.

View of Alcatraz from a helicopter

During the Great Depression (late 1920s to mid-1930s), crime rates increased greatly and the era of organized crime began. Large mafia families and individual gangs waged a war for spheres of influence, the victims of which were often civilians and law enforcement officers. Gangsters controlled power in the cities, many officials received bribes and turned a blind eye to the crimes that were happening. In response to the crimes of the gangsters, the government decided to reopen Alcatraz, but as a federal prison. Alcatraz satisfied the basic requirements: to place dangerous criminals far from society and to frighten the remaining criminals who were still at large. Federal Prisons Commissioner Sanford Bates and Attorney General Homer Cummings have initiated a prison renovation project. For this purpose, Robert Burge, at that time one of the best experts in the field of security, was invited. He was supposed to redesign the prison. During the reconstruction, only the foundation was left untouched, and the building itself was completely rebuilt.

Warden uniform

In April 1934, the military prison received a new face and a new direction. Before the reconstruction, the bars and bars were wooden - they were replaced with steel ones. Electricity was installed in each cell, and all service tunnels were walled up to prevent prisoners from entering them for shelter and further escape. Along the perimeter of the prison building, above the cells, special weapon galleries were placed, which allowed the guards to stand watch while protected by steel bars. The prison canteen, as the most vulnerable place for fights and brawls, was equipped with tear gas containers, which were located in the ceiling and controlled remotely. Security towers were placed around the perimeter of the island in the most strategic places. The doors were equipped with electrical sensors. The prison block contained a total of 600 cells and was divided into blocks B, C and D, whereas before reconstruction the prison population never exceeded 300 prisoners. The introduction of new security measures, along with the cold waters of San Francisco Bay, created a reliable barrier for even the most incorrigible criminals.

The new prison also needed a new chief. The Federal Bureau of Prisons selected James A. Johnston for this position. Johnston was chosen for his strong principles and humane approach to reforming criminals to reintegrate them into society. He was also known for his reforms to benefit prisoners. Johnston did not believe in chained convicts. He believed that prisoners should be put into work where they were respected and rewarded for their efforts. Nicknamed the "Golden Rule Warden," the press praised Johnston for the improvements he made to California highways at his road camps. The prisoners working in them were not paid any money, but their sentences were reduced for diligent work. Before Alcatraz, Johnston was director of San Quentin Prison, where he introduced several successful educational programs that benefited the majority of prisoners. At the same time, Johnston was a supporter of strict discipline. His rules were the strictest in the correctional system, and his punishments the most severe. Johnston had been present at San Quentin hangings more than once and knew how to deal with the most incorrigible criminals.

The rules at Alcatraz have changed dramatically. Now each prisoner had only his own cell and minimal privileges to receive food, water, clothing, medical and dental care. Prisoners at Alcatraz were not allowed to have any personal belongings. To obtain privileges to communicate with visitors, visit the prison library and write, the prisoner had to earn it through hard work and impeccable behavior. At the same time, prisoners with bad behavior were not allowed to work in prison. For the slightest offense, all privileges were revoked. All media were prohibited in Alcatraz, including reading newspapers. All letters, as in any other prison, were corrected by a prison official. Federal prison governors had the right to transfer any offending prisoner to Alcatraz.

The courts did not sentence people to imprisonment in Alcatraz; especially “distinguished” prisoners from other prisons were usually transferred there. It was impossible to voluntarily choose Alcatraz to serve a prison sentence. Although exceptions were made for some gangsters.

Al Capone was one of the first such prisoners at Alcatraz prison. The police hunted for him for a very long time, and he ended up behind bars as a result of banal tax evasion! At first, the offender was in Atlanta, but soon his “comrades in arms” settled around the prison, and Al Capone calmly led his group directly from prison, where he acquired a whole army of prisoner servants, bribed the prison authorities, and visitors constantly came to him. “I sat and did not grieve” until I ended up in Alcatraz, from where I came out a weak and terminally ill old man.

Another famous Alcatraz prisoner was Robert Stroud, nicknamed the "bird catcher." In fact, Stroud never raised birds in Alcatraz, and indeed, he spent most of his time not in this prison at all. He also wasn't the sweet uncle Burt Lancaster portrayed him in Birdman Of Alcatraz (1962). In 1909, Stroud was imprisoned for robbery. But while he was serving his sentence in a Washington prison, he attacked a fellow inmate. He was transferred to a Kansas prison. But in 1916, he killed a guard there, for which Stroud was sentenced to death. However, then then-President Wilson, at the request of Stroud’s mother, replaced the execution with a life sentence. In 1942 he was transferred to Alcatraz. There he began studying birds, which he had been interested in since childhood, and even wrote two books about canaries and common diseases among them. Seeing such keen scientific interest, the prison administration allowed Stroud to study birds in the wild. But Stroud did not betray himself, and items prohibited in prison were often found in bird cages. He spent only 17 years in Alcatraz - 6 years in "block D" and 11 years in the prison hospital. In 1959, he was sent to a federal prison facility in Springfield, Missouri, where he died in 1963.

Another Alcatraz legend is George Machine Gun Kelly. He got his nickname because he always used a machine gun when robbing banks. He was responsible for bootlegging, murder, bank robberies and even the kidnapping of an Oklahoma oil tycoon. Machine Gun Kelly received a life sentence and spent 17 years in Alcatraz, after which, again for health reasons, he was transferred to another prison, where he soon died.

Despite popular belief, Alcatraz did not only house gangsters and especially dangerous criminals. Alcatraz was filled from other prisons with fugitives and rebels or those who systematically violated the regime of detention. Of course, there were gangsters, but most of them were sentenced to death. Prison life began with rising at 6:30, prisoners were given 25 minutes to clean their cells, after which each prisoner had to go to the cell bars for roll call. If everyone was in place at 6:55, the individual rows of cells opened one by one and the prisoners moved into the prison cafeteria. They were given 20 minutes to eat, then they were lined up to distribute prison work. The monotonous cycle of prison routine was unforgiving and remained unchanged for many years. The main corridor of the prison building was called "Broadway" by prisoners, and the cells on the second tier along this passage were the most coveted in the prison. Other cells were located downstairs, were cold, and were frequently passed by staff and prisoners. During the early years of Alcatraz, Warden Johnston maintained a policy of silence, which many prisoners considered the most intolerable punishment. There were many complaints demanding its cancellation. There were rumors that several prisoners went crazy because of this rule. The silence policy was later abolished, one of the few rule changes on Alcatraz. In the eastern wing there were solitary cells in isolation cells. They didn’t even have a full-fledged toilet: just a hole, the flush of which was controlled by a security guard. They were placed in the isolation ward without outer clothing and on meager rations. The cell door had a lockable narrow slot for passing food, which was always closed, leaving the prisoner in complete darkness. Usually they were placed in isolation for 1-2 days. It was cold in the cell, and a mattress was only provided at night. This was considered the most severe punishment for serious violations and bad behavior, and it was a punishment that all prisoners feared.

On March 21, 1962, Alcatraz prison was closed. It is officially believed that this decision was made due to the growing cost of keeping criminals on the island. For the further use of the prison, restoration work totaling $3-5 million was required. However, these figures did not include the daily maintenance of prisoners - and Alcatraz prisoners cost the budget three times more than any other federal prison. For example, in 1959, the daily cost of holding a prisoner for Skala was $10.10, compared to $3 in the Atlanta prison. The high cost was explained by the fact that literally everything - food, fuel - had to be delivered from the mainland. The island did not even have its own drinking water, and about a million gallons of water had to be delivered to Alcatraz every week. Since the prison's closure, many ideas have been discussed for the future use of the island. For example, it was proposed to build a UN monument here as the West Coast's answer to the Statue of Liberty. Businessmen tried to take the island for hotels and shopping centers, and the Indians - for the cultural center of the indigenous population of America. In 1969, a group of Indians actually took over the island, gaining enormous public support among a wide range of American society - from opponents of the Vietnam War to hippies and Hell Angels bikers. However, the Indians could not maintain order throughout the island, and in June 1971, by government decision, they were expelled from Alcatraz. In 1972, Congress approved the creation of Golden Gate National Park, and Alcatraz became one of the park's properties. In 1973, the Rock was opened to the public and has become one of the most attractive places in the National Park - about a million tourists visit Alcatraz every year.

Escape from Alcatraz

Perhaps the most interesting thing about Alcatraz is the stories about attempts to escape from “American Siberia,” as this prison was also called. They say that only 36 prisoners tried to escape, but it seems that not a single escape was successful. The fact is that in San Francisco Bay there is icy water and a very strong current, so, although the city is “a stone’s throw away”, the chances of swimming to the shore are practically zero, and the approach of boats to the island was strictly prohibited - shooting would immediately open up.

Alcatraz Island

And yet, among the prisoners there was a rumor that the island was full of man-eating sharks that would immediately tear to pieces anyone who found themselves in the water. They often talked about a shark named Bruce, which the guards supposedly specially fed so that it would always be “on duty.”

It is reliably known that only one prisoner named John Scott managed to swim to the shore. This happened in 1962. At the end of the swim, the fugitive was so exhausted and exhausted that he collapsed on the shore, where two boys found him. The children decided that the man had tried to commit suicide by jumping from the nearby Golden Gate Bridge and called the police for help, who immediately identified the fugitive and brought him back to Alcatraz.

The most famous and prepared was the escape of the two Anglin brothers and their accomplice Morris, which served as the basis for the plot of the film Escape from Alcatraz. Using spoons secretly taken from the dining room, they made a passage in the wall and escaped through the ventilation shafts. The most remarkable thing is that they made their “heads” out of cement, glue, paint and hair stolen from a hairdresser and placed them on pillows so that the guards only noticed their absence in the morning during roll call. It is still unknown how this escape ended - over the past 38 years, the fugitives have not been announced anywhere, but there is also no reliable evidence of their death. And the “heads” can be seen in Alcatraz in the cells of the fugitives - they are actually made very skillfully.

A total of 29 years (1934-1963) While Alcatraz was in use as a federal prison, it is officially believed that there were no successful attempts to escape from the Rock, but five Alcatraz prisoners are still listed as "absent, presumed drowned."