Alcatraz, The so thought inescapable prison was built when a crime wave hit the United States in the 1920s. No one had succeeded at escaping until the very famous prisoners at Alcatraz known as Frank Lee Morris and his friends, the two brothers. The reasons why they were famous at Alcatraz is because of their criminal history, how they escaped, and the mystery of where they are now after the escape is still not solved. The criminal history of Frank Lee Morris and the two brothers made it clear that they belonged in Alcatraz. One reason why they were all sent to Alcatraz is because Frank Lee Morris was notorious for escaping prisons so were the brothers so they would have been a perfect fit for Alcatraz (Library of Congress “1”). The reason why they were a perfect fit is because Frank Lee Morris had escaped many prisons before Alcatraz, …show more content…
No prisoner at Alcatraz had never had these materials and the plan Frank Lee Morris and the two brothers had used to escape. For example they had used stolen spoons and nail clippers to dig through the cement of their cell and to a utility closet that lead to the wall outside (Library of Congress “1”). You might be think how did the guards not see the giant hole in the back of their cell they had used cardboard to cover it up so no one except them knew where it was(Vega 2). After they got to the utility closet they made their plan to escape. Their plan was,”Once everyone had fallen asleep they had premade paper heads of themselves to place in their bed so the guards thought they were in bed.”(Hopkinson “1”). Once they dug through and had placed the heads in the bed they would have gone out to the bay but had to be very careful of not getting spotted by the search light. At the bay they made a raft out of 50 raincoats that they stole and set out to the sea while fighting rough currents, cold water, and shark infested water (Vega
February of 1964 brought more criticisms to the penitentiary. In a study done by Myrl Alexander, Director of the Southern Illinois University Center, he stated in a 15 page report, that there were “many” problems at the penitentiary.
At the same time, the seeming success of the Elmira Reformatory led to recommendations that that success be more widely publicized. With greater publicity, came thousands of visitors to Elmira and other states began to call on their own prisons to be modeled after the Elmira Reformatory where inmates were “wisely and humanely treated” (Brockway, 2012, p. 238). The Elmira Reformatory was widely recognized as a “new departure in the treatment of adult male felonious prisoners” (Brockway, 2012, p. 242).
Alcatraz was a super prison that protected the 1920’s and had to be closed But had to be closed. Alcatraz still has used to this day. Now it is a national park where you can take tours of the building and take a fairy back whenever you want to
In part 3, Morris (2002, p.171) discusses why prison conditions matter and why penal reformers, including himself, have devoted their lives and travelled thousands of miles
Twenty-three years ago, convict Jack Taylor told me his story while I sat in my office on unit 10-B one evening. Two days ago, I decided to check and see if any of his story was true. To my surprise, most of it was. Here is that story.
Time for the prisoners. Who came, you may ask. Some of the mightiest criminals alive. Try Al Capone; the most powerful criminal in the world who was responsible for more than 1,000 deaths of politicians, policemen, and other gangsters. He killed anyone who got in his way, even if they were his own men. This guy may ring a bell, Robert Stroud aka The Birdman; stabbing guards and killing innocent people, he was sent to prison for life. In that time, he had already wrote two books about birds and lived in a cell filled with feathered creatures. How’d these men react, different. The first few years of prison were very quite. Al Capone owed 39 days to the Hole. Isn’t so fun being the underdog, is it?! He drove him so nuts that when he was freed in 1939, he died a few years later. He wasn’t the only one who had died because of Alcatraz. Teddy Cole, a kidnapper and a murderer, was sent to the “Rock” for 50 years. But he did not stay long. In December in 1937, he and a bank robber named Ralph Roe teamed up. Sawing the bars off a window,
Alcatraz began in 1850 as a military prison. Later it became a federal prison. Then on the verge of 30 years it was closed. Then for a while Indians used the island. Alcatraz was used to house the criminals who provoked problems at other jails. The island was located off the coast of California.
Can two brothers and a fuegitive survive escaping Alcatraz, the most secure prison in the country at that time? Yes, because there is enough evidence to prove that they could have survived, in this essay I will list multiple reasons to influence you on why they survived. At the time Alcatraz was the so called “most secure prison in the country” holding the most worst of the worst. Two criminal brothers by the names of John and Clarence Anglin were transferred to the prison. The two brothers got to know Frank Morris over the months of being in the prison.
Thesis: Alcatraz has been a popular social topic because of the mystery that surrounds it and the stories exaggerated in movies and television shows.
Over the 29 years that Alcatraz was an operating prison, there were no “successful” escapes. There were 14 separate attempts that included 36 men. Out of the 36 men, 23 were caught, six were shot, and two had drown. To this day, there are five prisoners that are listed as “missing and presumed dead”. One of the greatest escape attempts took place on June 11, 1962. Frank Lee Morris was the brain behind the escape. He took several months to design the escape plan and spent his time navigating the prison system before he even arrived at Alcatraz. Morris’s “great escape” was accompanied by John and Clarence Anglin, and Allen West. The plan took shape in December 1961 when West found and collected several saw blades. The plan involved using lifelike
According to Scholastic scope that after that it turned into a military base. When the stock market crashed the amount of criminals shot up, prisons were running out of spots to put criminals, so the need for an prison arouse, and they turned Alcatraz into an high security prison, and the worst criminals ended up in Alcatraz including Al capone, George
Alcatraz was a very famous prison located on a island in the San Francisco bay. It was used for many different things over the years. All different types of people also stayed there, and not just the prisoners. Life at the prison was bad in some ways but not as bad as you think. Many did try to escape and failed, but some did succeed. However with every land some wanted it as much as we did.
Their escape took more than a year in the making. It was not a spur of the moment thing. Everyone always wondered who came up with the plan. West claimed responsibility because he was the one left behind and he was known as the bragger; but with an eight-grade education it was not likely his plan. Morris was the one who had a history of staging experienced escapes and articles were found in his cell about how to make life jackets and boats. The men always heard it was impossible to escape from Alcatraz, but they were desperate to prove everyone wrong (Hopkinson, 6).
Thesis: Alcatraz has been a popular social topic because of the mystery that surrounds it and the stories exaggerated in movies and television shows.
The legendary film, Escape from Alcatraz (1979) directed by the famous iconic movie maker, Don Siegel, tells a riveting story about three close inmates and their highly thought out escape plan. Frank Morris, played by the famous Clint Eastwood, is transported to the most solid and uptight prison, Alcatraz, in San Francisco, California. He is transferred from a prison in Atlanta, Georgia and booked into Alcatraz on January 18, 1960. Upon his arrival, the prison warden informs Morris that no one has ever escaped Alcatraz. He lets Morris know that many have tried to escape, but they were never successful. As a warning to Morris, the warden states that no one will ever escape under his supervision. Morris in turn uses this statement from the warden as his motivation to once again escape from prison. Morris has previously escaped every prison he has been placed in, and this happens to be the reason for his transfer to Alcatraz. Two other inmates, Clarence and John Anglin who are biological brothers, assist in the notorious escape and manage to flee alongside Morris. Clarence and John Anglin are played by the actors Frank Ward and Jack Thibeau. The brothers were not transported to Alcatraz Island until months after Frank Morris had been transferred and booked. However, the three “friendmates” were tight acquaintances in the Atlanta, Georgia prison. The movie and the characters tell the true and unruly story of the escape from the most secure prison in the United States known as