Name: Alcatraz Island
Brand: Gregory L. Wellman
SKU: 9780738525280
Price: 7.99 USD
Availability: InStock

Alcatraz Island

9780738525280

$7.99

One of America's most notorious prisons from 1934 to 1963, Alcatraz has been a significant part of California history for over 155 years. Originally know as Isla de los Alcatraces, or Island of Pelicans, Alcatraz has also been a pivotal military installation and popular tourist attraction.

The Ohio State Reformatory

9781467114899

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What started as an institution to reform young and non-violent criminals became one of the most infamous prisons in American history.

Before 1884, most first-time offenders between the ages of 16 and 30 were housed in the Ohio Penitentiary, where they were likely to be influenced by hardened criminals. That changed when the Ohio Legislature approved the building of a reformatory, a new type of institution that would educate and train these young men. Since its opening in 1896, the reformatory expanded its training programs and became a self-sustaining institution - the largest of its kind in the United States. By 1970, the reformatory had become a maximum-security prison filled with the most dangerous criminals in the U.S., with a death row but no death chamber. It closed on December 31, 1990, but preservation and restoration efforts are ongoing, and it continues to be as infamous today as in its heyday, appearing in numerous television shows and feature films, including The Shawshank Redemption.

New Jersey's Lindbergh Kidnapping and Trial

9780738597744

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The kidnapping and murder of Charles Lindbergh Jr. and the subsequent arrest, trial, and execution of Bruno Richard Hauptmann have intrigued true crime buffs for decades.

New Jersey's Lindbergh Kidnapping and Trial tells the story of ""the case that never dies"" through vintage photographs. Rare photographs, many not seen since the 1930s, will allow the reader to experience the massive police investigation led by New Jersey State Police superintendent H. Norman Schwarzkopf and the circus-like trial and execution of Bruno Richard Hauptmann.

West Virginia Penitentiary

9780738566955

$23.99 $16.79 Save 30%

One of the most notoriously dangerous and deadly correctional facilities in the US, this history of the legendary penitentiary in West Virginia will make you reconsider a life of crime.

In 1863, the newly formed West Virginia lacked a state penitentiary to house convicted felons. As a result, construction began in July 1866 on the West Virginia Penitentiary, the second public building constructed in the state. The infamous and foreboding West Virginia Penitentiary in Moundsville was known as one of the bloodiest institutions in the United States. With an extensive history of violence, the prison was ranked on the Department of Justice's Top Ten Most Violent Correctional Facilities list. Nearly 1,000 inmates perished within the stone walls of the prison, many of whom are said to still be serving their sentence, even after death. Many inmates were tortured, executed, murdered, or committed suicide. Plagued by these horrific events, the prison is a hotspot for paranormal activity. Images of America: West Virginia Penitentiary chronicles the fascinating history of a notorious prison from the planning stages to present day.

Sam's Castle

9780738574868

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With romance, elegant parties, and dashing, uniformed gentlemen, this charming castle story is almost what one might expect. But add in dramatic police raids and rumors of bodies buried in the garden, and it becomes the very unique tale of Sam's Castle. Built in 1908 as a haven for the earthquake-rattled Henry Harrison McCloskey (grandfather of former congressman Pete McCloskey), the castle served as a home, speakeasy, rum-runner signaling station, abortion clinic, and U.S. Coast Guard lookout during World War II. Despite its turbulent history, however, this castle story has a happy ending. In the care of the Sam Mazza Foundation, the magnificent estate will remain a treasured Pacifica landmark for all to enjoy.

Central Ohio's Historic Prisons

9780738560038

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With the opening of the Ohio State Reformatory in 1896, the state legislature had put in place the most complete prison system, in theory, which exists in the United States. The reformatory joined the Ohio Penitentiary and the Boys Industrial School, also central-Ohio institutions, to form the first instance of graded prisons; with the reform farm on one side of the new prison, for juvenile offenders, and the penitentiary on the other, for all the more hardened and incorrigible class. However, even as the concept was being replicated throughout the country, the staffs of the institutions were faced with the day-to-day struggle of actually making the system work.

Cover image for Central Ohio's Historic Prisons, isbn: 9780738560038

Maine State Prison

9780738562445

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For 178 years, Maine State Prison peacefully coexisted with the town of Thomaston. In addition to its stately elms, the formidable brick facade overshadowed Main Street to the south and provided a stark contrast to the former sea captains' homes to the north. At the time of its closure in 2002, Maine State Prison was one of the oldest prisons still in use in the country. The decision to move from the antiquated prison to a state-of-the-art facility in nearby Warren was met with mixed emotions and even sadness. On February 12, 2002, round-the-clock operations moved Maine's most violent and dangerous prisoners, leaving behind unlocked doors and darkened cells. By June of that year, the old prison was demolished and buried in the ancient abandoned limestone quarry, although its memory continues to live on in the minds of those who knew it firsthand.

Folsom Prison

9780738559216

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Folsom Prison is California's second-oldest prison, dating back to 1880. In the decades following the Gold Rush, it housed some of the state's most notorious prisoners in stone, dungeon-like cells behind solid-metal doors; was the first prison with electric power; and for many years provided labor for various state projects, including construction, fabrication, and printing of license plates. Thrust into the public consciousness in the 1960s by high-profile performances from country music's Johnny Cash, the prison remains a notorious and legendary institution. The variety of offenders housed at Folsom are incarcerated for a large gamut of criminal behavior, and the California Department of Corrections has been dedicated to rehabilitation efforts throughout the facility's long history.

Missouri State Penitentiary

9780738590806

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The Missouri State Penitentiary was established in 1833 via a bill passed by the state legislature, and the first prisoner was incarcerated in 1835. Inmates constructed the main prison building from rock quarried at the site in 1836. The penitentiary closed on September 15, 2004, and plans are in place to redevelop the site into offices for state agencies and private enterprises. The Missouri State Penitentiary was once considered one of the largest maximum-security penal institutions in the United States. After 550 serious assaults occurred inside the prison in the early 1960s, Time magazine called it "the bloodiest 47 acres in America" (although the walls of the penitentiary only contained 37 acres). The penitentiary had the distinction of housing some very famous individuals: boxing champion Sonny Liston learned to box there under the direction of the prison
chaplain, infamous gangster Charles Arthur "Pretty Boy" Floyd spent time there, and James Earl Ray was an escapee when he shot and killed Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Cover image for Missouri State Penitentiary, isbn: 9780738590806

Huntsville Penitentiary

9780738599618

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The state of Texas, home to one of the largest prison systems in the country, opened its first penitentiary in 1849. The Walls Unit in Huntsville was the genesis of a prison system that became the home of notorious convicts and the focus of much debate about incarceration and the death penalty in the United States. The Walls Unit housed gunslinger John Wesley Hardin, members of the Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker gang, and infamous drug cartel leader Fred Carrasco. Built using convict labor, the Walls Unit was heralded as a modern approach to incarceration in Texas. The prison dominated the landscape of the town of Huntsville when it was built and remains central to that community today.

Lorton Prisons

9781467109345

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The workhouse, reformatory, and penitentiary buildings of the Lorton Correctional Complex were built on land purchased by the federal government in 1910 and leased to the District of Columbia Department of Corrections to establish prisons. The men's workhouse was built in 1910, and a women's annex was added in 1912. A reformatory to rehabilitate prisoners convicted of more serious crimes was built in 1916. All three were constructed dormitory style with no cells or walls. A brick wall enclosed the penitentiary built to house serious felons in the 1930s. When the Lorton prisons closed in 2001, the complex had grown to 3,200 acres. Its story reflects the history of the 20th century as it was impacted by and reacted to the ideas, events, and people outside its walls.

Old Idaho Penitentiary

9781467131674

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Between 1872 and 1973, the Idaho State Penitentiary housed over 13,000 inmates. Some of Idaho's most corrupt and cunning criminals resided behind these Boise sandstone walls. Constructed in large part by inmate labor, the "Old Idaho Penitentiary" stands as a reminder of Idaho's Wild West past. Horse thieves, moonshiners, bank robbers, and assassins alike all called this penitentiary home. Owned and operated by the Idaho State Historical Society, the Old Idaho Penitentiary is one of only four territorial prisons open to the public in the United States.

Chicago to Springfield

9780738583730

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The story of Chicago gangsters in the 1920s is legendary. Less talked about is the tale of the politicians who allowed those gangsters to thrive. During the heyday of organized crime in the Prohibition era, Chicago mayor "Big Bill" Thompson and Gov. Len Small were the two most powerful political figures in Illinois. Thompson campaigned on making Chicago "a wide open town" for bootleggers. Small sold thousands of pardons and paroles to criminals, embezzled $1 million, and was then acquitted after mobsters bribed the jury. This book is the story of those Jazz Age politicians whose careers in government thrived on and endorsed corruption and racketeering, from Chicago to Springfield. It complements author Jim Ridings's groundbreaking biography, Len Small: Governors and Gangsters, which was praised by critics and situated Ridings as a trailblazer among Chicago crime authors.

Wisconsin State Reformatory

9780738577159

$24.99 $17.49 Save 30%

In 1897, the Wisconsin state legislature approved the creation of the Wisconsin State Reformatory on a 200-acre site between Green Bay and De Pere. It was born during a period of profound change when liberal reformers began to question the traditional punitive approach employed in American prisons. The result was a shift from a punishment-based system to one that favored progressive rehabilitation within the framework of the traditional prison model. Elmira, New York, may have served as the reformatory model, but no other state embraced the idea more fully than Wisconsin. For more than 50 years, the Wisconsin State Reformatory remained faithful to the reform mission, adapting to changes when necessary but always maintaining a strong link to its past.

Nevada State Prison

9780738585451

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A bloody palm print, footprints of monster men, the nation's first legal lethal gas chamber--all of this and more are at the heart of the Nevada State Prison story. Founded in 1862, before Nevada was "battle born," the prison is the oldest continuously operated penal facility in the state. Over its 150-year history, the prison has been home to some of Nevada's most notorious criminals as well as some of the state's stranger events. Fossilized footprints of a "giant race of man" were found buried deep within the prison quarry. The prints gave rise to the infamous Homo Nevadensis, a supposed lost branch of the human evolutionary tree. On the more macabre side, the prison hosted the nation's first state-sanctioned execution by lethal gas. While dutifully and vigilantly serving its penal function, the Nevada State Prison has periodically garnered international attention and amassed a history worthy of study.

Oregon State Penitentiary

9781467132213

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As the only maximum-security prison in the state, the Oregon State Penitentiary (OSP) has housed some of the most violent criminals on the West Coast, including brutal serial killers Charley Panzram in 1915 and Jerry Brudos in 1969. Sixty men have been executed inside OSP. The prison was originally built in Portland in 1851 but moved to Salem 15 years later, after Oregon became a state. From that time forward, the Oregon State Penitentiary grew from 23 prisoners in 1866 to 1,912 by 1992. The penitentiary suffered several serious fires and riots. On March 9, 1968, the most expensive riot ever experienced in the United States flared inside the walls, causing over $2.5 million in damages. Numerous escapes plagued the prison until 1970, when security measures were tightened. The most famous escape involved Harry Tracy and David Merrill in 1902.

Tennessee State Penitentiary

9781467112789

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As Tennessee grew into a modern state, it found itself increasingly beset by crime. In 1831, the legislature approved the construction of the first penitentiary. The pen world was violent and dark, with several major riots, fires, and escape attempts throughout the years. However, the prison also gave birth to a culture of creativity born from despair, with entertainment shows often featuring the biggest names in country music sharing the stage with inmate bands. The best-known pen, "the Castle," has become a familiar icon to filmgoers, being used in productions like The Last Castle and The Green Mile. Today, the building sits abandoned, facing an uncertain future.

Lansing Correctional Facility

9781467112468

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Since 1868, the Lansing Correctional Facility (formerly the Kansas State Penitentiary) has stood watch over what would become the city of Lansing. Designed by Erasmus Carr, architect of the Kansas State Capitol, the prison is the oldest in Kansas. In the beginning, it housed male and female inmates from Kansas and Oklahoma, as well as inmates serving federal sentences. Today, the facility's population of minimum, medium, maximum, and special management custody offenders is approximately 2,400. Leavenworth County has also seen the addition of the United States Disciplinary Barracks, United States Penitentiary-Leavenworth, and Corrections Corporation of America-Leavenworth, making it the only county in the country to host a state, military, federal, and private prison. Images of America: Lansing Correctional Facility features photographs of the early days, when inmates were on the "silent system" and could not speak to one another, to more modern times when rehabilitation has become an important component of prison life.

Anamosa Penitentiary

9780738577791

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In 1868, with Iowa fast outgrowing its only prison in Fort Madison, state lawmakers began thinking about building a new penitentiary. Several cities around the state vied for the prestige and economic benefits the new prison would provide. Anamosa, a rapidly growing town of 2,000 in east-central Iowa, was ultimately awarded the prize, in no small measure because of its proximity to some of the largest and finest dolomite limestone deposits in the world, coveted as the perfect building material for the massive institution. From 1873 until major construction ended in 1943, inmate workers literally built walls around themselves, slowly erecting a structure from the Iowa prairie whose imposing and magnificent architecture would continue to command respect and awe even to the present day. From Wild West bad man Polk Wells and boy-murderer Wesley Elkins to heinous mass murderer John Wayne Gacy, many have passed through Anamosa's iron gates and, with the quietly dedicated men and women who managed them, have contributed to the rich tapestry of Anamosa prison history.