Any of us who have been the San Francisco have probably spotted a little land mass in the bay called Alcatraz Island. Alcatraz operated as a federal prison from 1934-1963 where it was home to some of America’s most dangerous criminals.
First discovered in 1775 by Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala, the little island was named La Isla de los Alcatraces which fittingly translates to The Island of the Pelicans. Fast Forward 75 years, and President Fillmore mandated that Alcatraz be used as a military base. Alcatraz soon began to house some of the most dangerous criminals in the country.
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One of the most notorious inmates that stayed on Alcatraz was gangster Al Capone. Capone had originally been incarcerated in Atlanta, but was eventually moved because he had been able to continue running his criminal operations in Chicago from there. Additionally, while in Georgia, Capone was known for corrupting the prison guards. Another famous inmate was George “Machine Gun” Kelly who resided on Alcatraz for 17 years after being convicted of a kidnapping charge.
Since then, Alcatraz has been named a Golden Gate Recreation Area and has become tourist attraction that is visited by over 1.3 people each and every year.
Great post about one of the most iconic historical landmarks in the United States. Alcatraz was considered impossible to escape from yet numerous people tried it. Perhaps the most famous attempt was the June 1962 escape which is credited as possibly the one only successful escape. Four men did so by spending months digging through air vents. On the night of the escape, the made lifelike dummy heads and put them on their bed for the night. They then used a makeshift raft from more than 50 raincoats to get off the island. Nothing was heard from them since that day, so it unclear if they were successful. For more info, read this article http://www.history.com/news/escape-from-alcatraz-june-11-1962
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