The federal prison at Alcatraz, in San Francisco Bay, was only in operation for 29 years. The first prisoners began to arrive in 1934 and Robert Kennedy, attorney general, decided to close it in 1963 because he considered that its facilities were obsolete and too expensive to maintain. Famous inmates such as Al Capone and the most persecuted criminals in the country passed through there, since the Government considered that it was impossible to escape from the island where the prison was located due to the strong currents and cold waters. Alcatraz, also known as ‘The Rock’, is today a legend and a place visited by more than a million tourists a year. The buildings and cells have been restored and a museum has been built showing how prisoners lived on this small island of two square kilometers. They were held in the main four-block building in individual cells with steel bars. Each one of them measured 2.7 meters by 1.5. There was no privacy because the guards could see inside each room. Famous people such as Al Capone and the most persecuted criminals in the country passed through there. Alcatraz was already a military prison since 1912, but later the federal government decided to build a center from which it would not be possible to escape. A metal detection system was installed and extreme security measures were taken. More than 200 officials monitored the prisoners, confined in 336 cells. Some of the guardians lived with their families in an annex building. There was also a hospital, an administrative center and the warden’s residence. T he corridors of Alcatraz were named after the streets of large American cities. Subsistence conditions were better than those in other prisons in the country and prisoners received training and worked. But the discipline was relentless. ‘Hellalcatraz’ Those who violated the regulations were confined to Block D, known as ‘The Hole’. The inmates familiarly knew the prison as ‘Hellalcatraz’, that is, hell. “Alcatraz is a pit where garbage from other prisons is thrown,” said one of its wardens. The truth is that the Government decided to transfer the most dangerous inmates to the island, including gangsters and repeat murderers. They were allowed to have a radio in their cells and receive visitors. Hundreds of films, documentaries and books have illustrated the lives of the prisoners at Alcatraz, which has become a legend. But what has inspired the creativity of the artists are the escape attempts carried out by 36 prisoners. All of them failed and 13 lost their lives, according to the official version. In 1946, six inmates took guards hostage and stole the keys. The attempt failed, but two officials were shot dead. Two of the prisoners were sentenced to death and executed in the gas chamber. The most famous attempt took place in 1962 when three inmates carried out an ingenious operation that inspired a film starring Clint Eastwood. After making a hole in the cells, they fled through the ventilation ducts, overcoming all controls. They reached a raft that they had built with stolen raincoats. Finally they managed to escape. After a fruitless search, the authorities considered that the three prisoners had drowned. Their bodies were never found. The silhouette of Alcatraz remains one of the symbols of San Francisco. The prisoner who spent the longest time there was Alvin Karpis, declared public enemy number one by the FBI. He remained 26 years until his release. “It was an inhuman and claustrophobic place,” said Karpis, who lived his last months in Torremolinos. Dozens of his companions died on the island where their remains still lie.
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