31 Oct, 2009
Alcatraz Island’s Prison Past - No One Was Known to Escape
Posted by: Beach Reporter In: beaches| california| travel
If names such as Alphonse “Scarface” Capone, “Machine Gun” Kelly, Robert Franklin Stroud, “The Birdman of Alcatraz”, and Alvin “Creepy” Karpavicz, ring a bell, these are some of the prisoners who lived and served their sentences for serious crimes on The Rock in the San Francisco Bay at Alcatraz.
Today you can tour this historic spot, and many believe there are some nasty ghosts that haunt the facility and its crumbling building remains. While the hauntings are reported, there are also some lovely gardens, and the island is a unique habitat for many birds and plants. Be sure to take the boat tour when you visit San Francisco. It is well worth your time. Information and ticket prices for tours.
Before Alcatraz was transormed into a prison for what were considered the worst of the worst criminals, it was Fortress Alcatraz from 1859 to 1907, serving as the bay’s only defense until Fort Point was completed in 1861. Alcatraz’s fortifications included more than 100 cannons. After 1861, it became a military prison where Confederate sympathizers, disobedient soldiers, Native Americans, and suspected spies were detained. Fortress Alcatraz formally turned into a military prison in 1907 and stayed that way till 1933.
Best known for its years as a prison, the other thing people hear most about this island is the number of escapes attempted. During 29 years of operation as a penitentiary, no one ever proved to have survived an escape, though over 30 prisoners tried. 23 were caught, 6 were shot, and 3 were lost at sea and never found.
The prison was shut down due to the cost of keeping it open versus newer, less expensive operations on land. It cost three times more to keep a prisoner on Alcatraz, which by the time it was closed, was deteriorating from the salt air and sea. It also was polluting the bay with a corroded sewer system.
Today it is a nationa park that you can tour. Read more
