Letters From Alcatraz - Michael Esslinger [31]
The food is excellent, as good, I should think, as the average soldier’s mess. There is a theatre with a show six nights in the week, a library containing twelve thousand well-selected books, and a playground for tennis and handball. The prisoners all wear a cheerful look and their behavior is excellent. Many of them are at work in the vocational department where trades are taught them. Twenty-six care for the vegetable gardens on Angel Island, and raise sufficient fresh vegetables for the entire prison.
Since January 1, 1915, up to the first of last January, 8,495 men have passed through this prison. Out of that number 1,609 have been restored to the colors without a black mark. Five hundred and forty paroled men should be subtracted from those figures; also ten percent should be deducted for men who didn’t care to return to the army. Those who are interested in prison reform should visit the disciplinary barracks at Alcatraz.
But despite these glowing reports, the public disliked having an Army prison as a sterile focal point seated right in the middle of the beautiful San Francisco Bay. In order to soften the island’s appearance, the military made arrangements to have soil from Angel Island brought over and it was spread across the barren acreage of Alcatraz. The Army trained several prisoners as gardeners, and planted several varieties of flowers and foliage. The California Spring and Wild Flower Association made contributions of top-grade seeding for plants ranging from rose bushes to lilies. The residents enjoyed tending their gardens and it was said that the landscape work assignments were among the most favored by the prisoners.
Over the decades the prison's routine grew increasingly more relaxed, and recreational activities became more prevalent. In the late 1920's prisoners were permitted to build a baseball field, and even to wear their own baseball uniforms while playing.
Military prisoners at work in the Cobbler Shop.
Prisoners in the Barbershop in the prison basement. Note the shaving mugs lined up along the walls. Each inmate was provided with their own shaving mug for sanitary purposes.
On Friday nights the Army hosted "Alcatraz Fights" featuring boxing matches between inmates selected from among the population of the Disciplinary Barracks. These fights were popular, and they often drew visitors from the mainland who had managed to finagle an invitation. These boxing matches became such an attraction that sold-out arena events were held at Fort Mason, sponsored by local businesses. Patrons received event programs that included business advertisements and listings of the inmates’ weight classes.
In 1934 the Military decided to close the prison due to the high cost of operation, and ownership shifted to the Department of Justice. The Great Depression had become the root of a severe crime surge during the late 20's and 30's, and this gave birth to a new era of organized crime. The gangster era was in full swing, and the nation was a helpless witness to violent crime waves brought on by the twin forces of Prohibition and desperate poverty. The nation watched in fear as influential mobsters and sharply dressed “public enemies” exercised their considerable influence on metropolitan cities and their authorities. Law enforcement agencies were often ill-equipped to deal with the onslaught and would frequently cower before better-armed gangs in shoot-outs and public slayings.
J. Edgar Hoover had been appointed as Assistant Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1921, and in 1924 he would take over as the Director. This was a position he would hold until his death in 1972. It has been written that Hoover exercised immense power and was a persuasive politician. Together with Attorney General Homer Cummings, Hoover waged a public war against the American gangster and petitioned for establishment of a “super prison.” Future inmates at