Letters From Alcatraz - Michael Esslinger [213]
In going over what transpired that evening with Mr. Willingham, it does not seem that our officers were derelict in their duty, however this hideout points out clearly that we must take further precautions in order to have a officer watching these men at all times. During the course of the day when freight is coming and going, and the dock is a very busy place, it seems easier to watch the men than in a situation such as confronted us at this time. Two of the inmates were in the process of changing clothes getting ready to go into the institution; the inmate mechanic was doing some work around a truck in the garage, while Wilson who usually is a lone wolf type and stays off by himself, apparently was able to scamper under the hole in the fence under cover of the smoke produced by the burning tire.
We have one satisfaction of knowing that our procedure was tight enough to prevent any of these men from getting on the water barge, but we are red-faced in the fact that Wilson was able to elude us for the number of hours that he did.
P. J. MADIGAN
Warden
Wilson remained at Alcatraz until just before its closure in 1963. He was then transferred to the Federal Penitentiary in Atlanta, and only a few months later to Lorton Reformatory in Virginia. In August of 1966 it was documented that he had once more assembled contraband materials for use in another escape attempt. He remained a problematic inmate until his parole on April 5, 1971. Upon his release Wilson went back to the trade of carpentry and returned to Maryland where he had been living prior to his arrest. His parole report states that once he returned to normal civilian life, he seemed to adjust well despite his years of incarceration. A 1972 report read: “Floyd Wilson has led a rather quiet and orderly life since his release on parole. He visits with relatives, enjoys sports, and engage in other reputable pursuits when not working.” Wilson died of natural causes in January of 1974.
An excerpt from a letter written to Warden Blackwell by Floyd Wilson while he was serving time at the Federal Penitentiary in Atlanta. Both Wilson and Blackwell were Alcatraz alumni. Wilson requested that his “good time” be restored, in consideration of his upcoming parole hearing. Floyd displayed a sense of humor in his letter, stating: “I would like to go home this summer if I possibly could - without being shot at, if possible.” Wilson was paroled in 1971.
ESCAPE ATTEMPT #12
Date:
September 29, 1958
Inmates:
Aaron Walter Burgett
Clyde Milton Johnson
Location:
Outside Garbage Detail (southeast island area near the family residences)
On a murky September afternoon in 1958, Clyde Johnson and Aaron Burgett were to engage in what would be the last forceful escape attempt ever made on Alcatraz. Both inmates had been assigned to an outside garbage detail, and they were accompanied by a solo officer tasked to supervise their activities as they walked freely outside the normally authorized perimeter. Using a smuggled paring knife, a rope and some tape, they overpowered the unsuspecting guard, and bound and tied him to a eucalyptus tree. They then slipped away under cover of heavy fog...
Clyde Milton Johnson
A mug shot series of inmate Clyde Milton Johnson. Taken during the period from 1949 until 1993, these photographs illustrate the effects of a lifetime of incarceration. Johnson and fellow inmate Aaron Burgett bound and gagged a guard at knifepoint during their attempt to escape Alcatraz.
Clyde Milton Johnson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on August 16, 1918, the second of two siblings. Johnson’s father, whose profession was officially listed as a “truck driver,” died when Clyde was only two years of age. With no other means of financial support, his mother relocated the family to Glendale, California, where she secured exhausting employment as a laundress. Johnson’s file shows no record of delinquency as a juvenile, but after joining the Army in 1941 he deserted on several