Informative Essay On Alcatraz
Estelene Stoffel
November 13, 2012
Audience: Visitors of Historical Alcatraz Island
Purpose: To Inform
The Rock
Robert Stroud “Birdman of Alcatraz”, Alvin “Creepy Karpis” Karpowicz, and Al “Scarface” Capone were only some of the notorious criminals to pass through Alcatraz Island. Surrounded by harsh currents and cold waters, Alcatraz Island was thought to be the ultimate place to keep criminals too criminal for landlocked prisons. In the early 1930s, renovations made Alcatraz a better, yet still crude, establishment that housed the worst of the worst criminals and isolated them from life on the mainland. Alcatraz Island (1934-1963), a harsh penitentiary off the coast of San Francisco, California, was home to some of America’s …show more content…
most notorious criminals, holds a fascinating escape attempts story.
Alcatraz Island was officially opened as a federal penitentiary on July 1, 1934. With dimensions of 1675 feet long, 590 feet wide, and 135 feet tall, the government was happy to have found a place to keep murderers, robbers, and other criminals(Alcatraz, Part 1). However, it was not until October 11, 1934 that 137 male inmates were brought from other prisons unable to contain their behavior and placed in isolation on Alcatraz Island (Alcatraz, Part 1). The men took one look at Alcatraz and realized this was no place like home. Alvin Karpowicz described the island as an unkind, inhumane, and dreadful place (Alcatraz, Part 1).
Out of the 137 inmates, 83 of the men had life sentences, some of which were double or triple life sentences (Alcatraz, Part 2). Alvin “Creepy Karpis” Karpowicz spent the longest of any inmate at Alcatraz, serving 33 years. In an interview with actor, Howard Duff, Karpowicz said he was adequately fed to keep him healthy, given clothes to wear, and no recreational hobbies whatsoever (Alcatraz, Part 2). However, he was given a bunk only after he spent several days in isolation or better known as “the Hole”. Spending time in “the Hole” was protocol for all inmates when they first arrived to Alcatraz (Alcatraz, Part 2).
Isolation from light, normal living conditions, and contact with other humans lead to some inmates needing psychiatric help. Food was supplied only to keep the inmates alive. Bread and water served for most meals in isolation (Alcatraz, Part 2). Contact, physical or verbal, with other inmates was not allowed on Alcatraz Island. Talking was banned as was living in a cell with other men. Once given a cell sharing was prohibited (Alcatraz, Part 3). These living conditions were much different than what some big city gangsters were used to.
Robert Stroud “Birdman of Alcatraz” was moved from his sentence at Leavenworth Prison in Kansas to Alcatraz in 1942 where he was to serve a life imprisonment in solitary confinement for stabbing and killing multiple people before and through prison, including an official (Robert). He is given his nickname because as a loner he studied some university courses in prison and became a self-taught ornithologist. He wrote down a lot of his research and managed to smuggle some of it out of prison and have it published (Robert). When he was moved to Alcatraz he was able to continue his study of birds, but was denied the opportunity to publish his findings (Robert).
Al “Scarface” Capone a notorious prohibition gangster received his nickname when we got into a bar fight and was cut by a razor (Capone). Capone did time in an Atlanta, Georgia prison but was kept too close to contacts still running his criminal business in Chicago, Illinois. Capone was then moved from Georgia to Alcatraz where he served four and a half years during the 1930s (History).
Alvin “Creepy” Karpowicz was public enemy number one in the 1930s for murder and robbery.
He was given his nickname, Creepy, for his dark, sinister smile (History). Although he spent the longest sentence out of any Alcatraz prisoner, he never tried to escape but frequently complained about the conditions (History).
Under extreme surveillance at all times, it’s a wonder any attempts to escape were made at all (Alcatraz, Part 3). A conspiracy theory about escaping from “The Rock” gives off the notion that even if a prisoner snuck past all of the security without being shot, he would not survive the cold and harsh currents of the Pacific. Over the duration of Alcatraz as a prison, 36 inmates tried to escape in 14 attempts. Out of the 36 there were 5 missing, 23 captured, 6 shot and killed, and 2 that drowned (Alcatraz …show more content…
Prison).
Frank Lee Morris and the Anglin brothers, Clarence and John, made one of the most profound and researched escape attempts from Alcatraz in 1962. The night of June 11, 1962 three convicts escaped from Alcatraz unseen and unheard (McFadden, 1). These men lived in the same cellblock and worked for months to perfect an escape plan to set them free of Alcatraz. Morris and the Anglin brothers dug into the back wall of their cell with a spoon and escaped to the roof through an unmonitored hallway used to enclose heating ducts and plumbing pipes (McFadden, 2). Mr. Morris would play the accordion to drown out the sound of the chipping (McFadden, 2). Once the hole was big enough, the men greased themselves with lard and slipped through the small opening, to the hidden hallway, onto the roof were they made a makeshift raft out of stolen raincoats (McFadden, 2).
Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers had previously and separately escaped out of other prisons, but escaping alive from Alcatraz was unheard of. Morris was a smart man with the I.Q. of 133. It was no surprise that he was the mastermind behind this great escape (McFadden, 2). The men were escaping night after night under the guard’s noses, climbing 3 stories to the roof, where they glued together the stolen raincoats and made plywood paddles (Mythbusters). Along with making the raft and paddles, the men made makeshift dummies out of crude material – plaster and toilet paper. So when the men escaped to the roof to their “workshop”, they made it past cell check by the guards (McFadden, 2). The accordion Morris played was transformed into a pump to blow up the “raincoat-raft”. The thorough plan was almost flawlessly executed except for Allen West’s escape. He participated in the planning but had tried to patch part of the hole in the back of his cell with contact cement and the vent got glued shut. West was left behind (McFadden, 2).
The remaining men fetched their raft, paddles, and other materials from the rooftop and scaled their way down the side of the prison. Once on the ground, they climbed two 12-foot, barbed-wire fences and headed to the northeast shoreline where they were out of sight of the gun towers (McFadden, 3). They inflated their raft and were never seen again. Dave Branham, a marshal’s service spokesman, said, “We think there is a possibility they are alive” (McFadden, 3). A Discovery Channel Mythbusters program was run in 2003 testing the feasibility of the 1962 escape from Alcatraz (McFadden, 3).
Hosts of the show, Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage were not disappointed to find that it was entirely possible. Hyneman and Savage made a raft out of exactly the same material and glue that the escapees used and also used an accordion to blow up the raft; same as the escapees (Mythbusters). However, they did prove a couple of the plans, made by Morris and the Anglin brothers, wrong. Morris planed that the raft would head towards Angel Island, but with much research the Mythbusters damaged the seal on that myth and found out that the raft would instead follow the rough current west to the shore under the Golden Gate Bridge (Mythbusters). Hyneman and Savage believe that Morris was smart enough to know how the tides worked around Alcatraz Island and were not sure why he would plan to go towards Angel Island (Mythbusters). With a trip of over three miles to the shore where the current would lead the men, the waters got rougher the further away they paddled from Alcatraz (Mythbusters). As the Mythbusters, Hynman and Savage, worked carefully through doing every step exactly as the escapees did, they realized just how plausible the escape was. They themselves made the same raft, by the same dimensions, carefully following the plans made by Morris, and as they set sail, they made it to the shore under the Golden Gate Bridge as expected, and … they
were alive! Proving that an escape from Alcatraz was completely feasible (Mythbusters).
Alcatraz Island was a harsh penitentiary in operation from 1934 to 1963 and located off the coast of San Francisco in California. Some of America’s most notorious criminals were given a sentence on Alcatraz Island for incomparable crimes and actions. Some learned their lessons while others tried to escape; many failed, three may have survived. Although no one will ever know for sure what happened to Frank Lee Morris and the Anglin brothers, conspiracy theories and lots of research have proved escaping is in fact plausible. Alcatraz was eventually shut down because expenses to keep it alive and running were too expensive and became a financial burden (History). Someday maybe the escape will be made to Alcatraz Island, so someone can discover for themselves the fascinating mysteries that lie within it’s walls.
November 13, 2012
Audience: Visitors of Historical Alcatraz Island
Purpose: To Inform
The Rock
Robert Stroud “Birdman of Alcatraz”, Alvin “Creepy Karpis” Karpowicz, and Al “Scarface” Capone were only some of the notorious criminals to pass through Alcatraz Island. Surrounded by harsh currents and cold waters, Alcatraz Island was thought to be the ultimate place to keep criminals too criminal for landlocked prisons. In the early 1930s, renovations made Alcatraz a better, yet still crude, establishment that housed the worst of the worst criminals and isolated them from life on the mainland. Alcatraz Island (1934-1963), a harsh penitentiary off the coast of San Francisco, California, was home to some of America’s …show more content…
most notorious criminals, holds a fascinating escape attempts story.
Alcatraz Island was officially opened as a federal penitentiary on July 1, 1934. With dimensions of 1675 feet long, 590 feet wide, and 135 feet tall, the government was happy to have found a place to keep murderers, robbers, and other criminals(Alcatraz, Part 1). However, it was not until October 11, 1934 that 137 male inmates were brought from other prisons unable to contain their behavior and placed in isolation on Alcatraz Island (Alcatraz, Part 1). The men took one look at Alcatraz and realized this was no place like home. Alvin Karpowicz described the island as an unkind, inhumane, and dreadful place (Alcatraz, Part 1).
Out of the 137 inmates, 83 of the men had life sentences, some of which were double or triple life sentences (Alcatraz, Part 2). Alvin “Creepy Karpis” Karpowicz spent the longest of any inmate at Alcatraz, serving 33 years. In an interview with actor, Howard Duff, Karpowicz said he was adequately fed to keep him healthy, given clothes to wear, and no recreational hobbies whatsoever (Alcatraz, Part 2). However, he was given a bunk only after he spent several days in isolation or better known as “the Hole”. Spending time in “the Hole” was protocol for all inmates when they first arrived to Alcatraz (Alcatraz, Part 2).
Isolation from light, normal living conditions, and contact with other humans lead to some inmates needing psychiatric help. Food was supplied only to keep the inmates alive. Bread and water served for most meals in isolation (Alcatraz, Part 2). Contact, physical or verbal, with other inmates was not allowed on Alcatraz Island. Talking was banned as was living in a cell with other men. Once given a cell sharing was prohibited (Alcatraz, Part 3). These living conditions were much different than what some big city gangsters were used to.
Robert Stroud “Birdman of Alcatraz” was moved from his sentence at Leavenworth Prison in Kansas to Alcatraz in 1942 where he was to serve a life imprisonment in solitary confinement for stabbing and killing multiple people before and through prison, including an official (Robert). He is given his nickname because as a loner he studied some university courses in prison and became a self-taught ornithologist. He wrote down a lot of his research and managed to smuggle some of it out of prison and have it published (Robert). When he was moved to Alcatraz he was able to continue his study of birds, but was denied the opportunity to publish his findings (Robert).
Al “Scarface” Capone a notorious prohibition gangster received his nickname when we got into a bar fight and was cut by a razor (Capone). Capone did time in an Atlanta, Georgia prison but was kept too close to contacts still running his criminal business in Chicago, Illinois. Capone was then moved from Georgia to Alcatraz where he served four and a half years during the 1930s (History).
Alvin “Creepy” Karpowicz was public enemy number one in the 1930s for murder and robbery.
He was given his nickname, Creepy, for his dark, sinister smile (History). Although he spent the longest sentence out of any Alcatraz prisoner, he never tried to escape but frequently complained about the conditions (History).
Under extreme surveillance at all times, it’s a wonder any attempts to escape were made at all (Alcatraz, Part 3). A conspiracy theory about escaping from “The Rock” gives off the notion that even if a prisoner snuck past all of the security without being shot, he would not survive the cold and harsh currents of the Pacific. Over the duration of Alcatraz as a prison, 36 inmates tried to escape in 14 attempts. Out of the 36 there were 5 missing, 23 captured, 6 shot and killed, and 2 that drowned (Alcatraz …show more content…
Prison).
Frank Lee Morris and the Anglin brothers, Clarence and John, made one of the most profound and researched escape attempts from Alcatraz in 1962. The night of June 11, 1962 three convicts escaped from Alcatraz unseen and unheard (McFadden, 1). These men lived in the same cellblock and worked for months to perfect an escape plan to set them free of Alcatraz. Morris and the Anglin brothers dug into the back wall of their cell with a spoon and escaped to the roof through an unmonitored hallway used to enclose heating ducts and plumbing pipes (McFadden, 2). Mr. Morris would play the accordion to drown out the sound of the chipping (McFadden, 2). Once the hole was big enough, the men greased themselves with lard and slipped through the small opening, to the hidden hallway, onto the roof were they made a makeshift raft out of stolen raincoats (McFadden, 2).
Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers had previously and separately escaped out of other prisons, but escaping alive from Alcatraz was unheard of. Morris was a smart man with the I.Q. of 133. It was no surprise that he was the mastermind behind this great escape (McFadden, 2). The men were escaping night after night under the guard’s noses, climbing 3 stories to the roof, where they glued together the stolen raincoats and made plywood paddles (Mythbusters). Along with making the raft and paddles, the men made makeshift dummies out of crude material – plaster and toilet paper. So when the men escaped to the roof to their “workshop”, they made it past cell check by the guards (McFadden, 2). The accordion Morris played was transformed into a pump to blow up the “raincoat-raft”. The thorough plan was almost flawlessly executed except for Allen West’s escape. He participated in the planning but had tried to patch part of the hole in the back of his cell with contact cement and the vent got glued shut. West was left behind (McFadden, 2).
The remaining men fetched their raft, paddles, and other materials from the rooftop and scaled their way down the side of the prison. Once on the ground, they climbed two 12-foot, barbed-wire fences and headed to the northeast shoreline where they were out of sight of the gun towers (McFadden, 3). They inflated their raft and were never seen again. Dave Branham, a marshal’s service spokesman, said, “We think there is a possibility they are alive” (McFadden, 3). A Discovery Channel Mythbusters program was run in 2003 testing the feasibility of the 1962 escape from Alcatraz (McFadden, 3).
Hosts of the show, Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage were not disappointed to find that it was entirely possible. Hyneman and Savage made a raft out of exactly the same material and glue that the escapees used and also used an accordion to blow up the raft; same as the escapees (Mythbusters). However, they did prove a couple of the plans, made by Morris and the Anglin brothers, wrong. Morris planed that the raft would head towards Angel Island, but with much research the Mythbusters damaged the seal on that myth and found out that the raft would instead follow the rough current west to the shore under the Golden Gate Bridge (Mythbusters). Hyneman and Savage believe that Morris was smart enough to know how the tides worked around Alcatraz Island and were not sure why he would plan to go towards Angel Island (Mythbusters). With a trip of over three miles to the shore where the current would lead the men, the waters got rougher the further away they paddled from Alcatraz (Mythbusters). As the Mythbusters, Hynman and Savage, worked carefully through doing every step exactly as the escapees did, they realized just how plausible the escape was. They themselves made the same raft, by the same dimensions, carefully following the plans made by Morris, and as they set sail, they made it to the shore under the Golden Gate Bridge as expected, and … they
were alive! Proving that an escape from Alcatraz was completely feasible (Mythbusters).
Alcatraz Island was a harsh penitentiary in operation from 1934 to 1963 and located off the coast of San Francisco in California. Some of America’s most notorious criminals were given a sentence on Alcatraz Island for incomparable crimes and actions. Some learned their lessons while others tried to escape; many failed, three may have survived. Although no one will ever know for sure what happened to Frank Lee Morris and the Anglin brothers, conspiracy theories and lots of research have proved escaping is in fact plausible. Alcatraz was eventually shut down because expenses to keep it alive and running were too expensive and became a financial burden (History). Someday maybe the escape will be made to Alcatraz Island, so someone can discover for themselves the fascinating mysteries that lie within it’s walls.