Alcatraz
Island is a small isle with a colorful history.
Located in the San Francisco Bay, the land has filled important functions for the United States since California’s Gold Rush. Today it is best
known for housing the Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. Alcatraz Island
has been a national recreation area since 1963.
The island first became known to
Europeans in 1775. That year, Spanish naval officer Juan de Ayala discovered it
while charting the San Francisco
Bay. He named the land
mass “La Isla de los Alcatrices”, which translates to Pelican Island.
Spain put the island under Mexico’s jurisdiction. After a few
sales and legal battles, the island eventually became the property of the United States
government; explorer John Frémont purchased it on the nation’s behalf for $5000
in 1846.
Two years later, when gold was
discovered at Sutter’s Mill, ships from around the world set sail for San Francisco Bay. Sailors urgently needed a
lighthouse for navigation, and Alcatraz
Island was a prime
location. A lighthouse was set atop Alcatraz
in 1853.
That same year, the US Army began
studying the island’s potential as a defense base. The Army Corps of Engineers
began a five-year fortification project in 1853. Soldiers moved in by 1859.
When the American Civil War broke out, resident soldiers mounted more than 100
cannons around the island’s perimeter. They never fired the cannons, but they
did use a guardhouse basement to imprison west coast Confederate sympathizers,
Native American Hopis, and other persons deemed threats to the Union.
Following the war, the government
transitioned Alcatraz
Island from a center of
military defense to a detention center. The island’s isolation amidst cold
water and powerful currents made prisoner escape highly unlikely. A brick
jailhouse was quickly constructed, and long-term military prisoners were
delivered there by 1868.
Alcatraz
Island began housing civilian prisoners by the
hundreds in 1906. This was a result of the San Francisco earthquake; with jails
destroyed on the mainland, law enforcement needed a new secure location for the
inmates. In 1907 the building was designated the Western US Military Prison.
The original lighthouse gave way to a three-story concrete cell block in 1909.
(A second lighthouse was constructed later that year.)
As a military prison, Alcatraz held a range of prisoners from convicted
murderers to World War I conscientious objectors. Those who behaved well might
enjoy time outdoors. Some even worked as servants for families who lived on the
island! However, others experienced the military’s strict discipline;
punishments included solitary confinement, severe food and water restrictions,
and hard labor.
The prison drew interesting
characters as Prohibition era crime developed. Famous mobsters like Al Capone
and George “Machine Gun” Kelly found Alcatraz
was their new home. The government responded to their especially ruthless
reputations by upgrading security. This included such additions as iron bars,
metal detectors to screen visitors, teargas canisters, and the cementing of old
underground tunnels. Prisoners were closely monitored with the issuing of one
guard for every three inmates. There were also twelve inmate countings per day!
According to prison records, no
inmates successfully escaped during the penitentiary’s 29 years in operation.
Most people who fled the island were shot, were returned, or were found to have
drowned. Some escaped convicts are unaccounted for, but most people assume they
perished in the frigid San
Francisco Bay.
A $1 million recapture reward offered by a local ferry operator remains
unclaimed.
Despite the restrictions, prisoners
also had recreation. By the 1920s these prisoners had formed baseball teams,
and on Fridays the Army hosted “Alcatraz Fights”, a tradition of boxing matches
between inmates.
The War Department closed the famous
military prison in 1934. The prison had unusually high operational costs, and
waste from island residents was polluting the San Francisco Bay.
The Department of Justice assumed management until 1963.
Today, the island is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The
National Park Service provides tours. During the warmer months, tourists reach
the island via a ferry that departs San
Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf neighborhood. Some Alcatraz Island attractions include the scenic
bay view, the island’s flora and fauna, and
tours of the famous prison.
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