Alcatras (San-Francisco, USA)

Alcatras

Alcatras, Alcazar, the Rock – is an old prison which was used as a Federal penitentiary establishment for 29 years, 1934-1963. The island received its name in 1775 when a Spanish traveler Juan Manuel de Ayala explored the bay and called a small piece of land «La Isla de los Actatraces», which is translated as the “Island of the Pelicans”.

Originally, the island was used as a military fortress which was later transformed to a Federal penitentiary. Alcatras was famous for the impossibility to escape from it. The reason for this at first disputable statement is that the prison is located in the middle of the bay near the city of San-Francisco and can be reached only by water. But water is not the only obstacle on the way of a possible runaway. The thing is, the temperature of the water of the bay is not high but currents are very strong, so that even an excellent swimmer won’t be able to cover the distance of more than two kilometers from the island to San-Francisco.

Alcatras was also the first long-term military prison. In 1800s prisoners of the Civil and the Spanish-American wars were the first convicts who arrived on the island. Later, because of the isolated location and unconquerable cold water of the bay, the authorities considered Alcatras an ideal place to keep dangerous convicts.

In the beginning Alcatras or Alcazar was yet another Federal penitentiary, but as time went by the prison became famous after such criminals as George «Machine Gun» Kelly, Robert Franklin Stroud, Alvin Karpis, Henry Young, and Al Capone who had served their terms in it. Criminals that could not be kept away in other penitentiaries were also brought here. The average amount of convicts in Alcatras was approximately 260 people, while during the whole time of 29 years of the prison’s functioning 1545 convicts were placed there. During that time there were attempts to escape, however there is not one official record of any success of any one of them. Several prisoners disappeared but they are all believed to have drowned in the waters of the bay.

The Alcatras prison consisted of 336 cells for convicts, which were divided into two big blocks “B” and “С”, 36 isolated cells, 6 one-man cells in a separate block “D”. Two cells in the end of block “C” were used as lounge rooms for the guards. The majority of Alcatraz’s prisoners are those who were convicted as especially cruel and dangerous, those who could undertake an attempt to escape as well as those who, rather, could refuse to abide by the rules of behavior in another federal penitentiary unit.

The prisoners of Alcatras were able to earn privileges of having jobs, family members’ visitations, access to the prison’s library, and leisure time – being indulged in painting and music. The prisoners had only major rights – food, clothing, shelter, and medical aid.

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