Tucked in a lonely island in the middle of San Francisco Bay is the legendary Alcatraz prison. The facility was once the most dreaded home for the world’s most hardened prisoners. After decades of closure, there might be a possibility of a reopening. The shocking news has thrown a spotlight on America’s culture of building island prisons.
With its unique and terrifying reputation, Alcatraz prison stands out as one of the most fascinating prisons in the United States. Here, we will delve into the captivating history and architecture of this popular island prison and uncover the intriguing reasons behind the government’s decision to reopen the fortress at Alcatraz.
The Prison at Alcatraz
Nicknamed “The Rock,” Alcatraz Prison was built by presidential order in the early 1850s. The United States government saw the island’s potential as a perfect facility for the U.S. military. Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala discovered the island nearly a hundred years before.
The adventurous man stumbled on the piece of earth as he sailed across the San Francisco Bay on an expedition. It was one of the three islands he found around the bay. He named this particular one Alcatraces.
Although the meaning of the Spanish-sourced word is still controversial, many agree that it could either mean “pelican” or “strange bird.” Later, English speakers changed the name to Alcatraz.
Aside from its suitability for war, the building of Alcatraz Prison was in response to the fierce gold rush in California at the time. A fortress on the Island would discourage gold hunters from venturing across the sea to ransack it. Over 100 cannons were also installed on the island, making it even more unapproachable.
By the late 1850s, Alcatraz had become the most impregnable military site on the West Coast. Before the end of the decade, it had a lighthouse and had welcomed its first inmates. It had become a full-fledged prison facility, and it remained so for the next century.
The Alcatraz Prison enjoyed an upgrade in 1909 after the military brought down the building and erected a new one. The prisoners worked to construct the new structure, which was completed in 1911.
In 1933, the prison was transferred from the military to the Department of Justice. It then officially became a federal maximum security prison reserved for the most daring criminals and no longer for prisoners of war.
The Alcatraz Prison Held Some Notable Inmates
Alcatraz was a high-profile prison facility reserved for some of the nation’s worst criminals. Prisoners had only four rights: food, clothing, shelter, and medical care. Every other benefit was a privilege left to the discretion of the prison officials. One of these prisoners was the dreaded Chicago crime boss Al Capone.
Al Capone
Also known as “Scarface” because of his facial scars, which he earned from bar fights, Alphonse Gabriel Capone rose to become one of the nation’s biggest crime bosses. He led the Chicago Outfit, which was known for organized crime in the Chicago area.
Through the Chicago Outfit, Al Capone supervised and profited from bootlegging, extortion, gambling, and prostitution. He was a brutal criminal who took the life of anyone who stood in his way.
One notable example was the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre of 1929. Despite orchestrating this and many other crimes, federal authorities struggled to obtain sufficient evidence to pin him to the offenses.
By the time they arrested him in 1931, it was for tax evasion charges. He was found guilty and sentenced to Alcatraz for 11 years. He was, however, released after 8 years, after suffering from syphilis. Al Capone lived in Florida till his death in 1947.
George “Machine Gun” Kelly
George “Machine Gun” Kelly was another prominent detainee at Alcatraz. Kelly was a notorious bootlegger who illegally sold and smuggled liquor during Prohibition. He later graduated to bank robbery and kidnapping.
He was sentenced to life in prison for the kidnapping of some high-profile personalities in 1933. Initially sent to Leavenworth Penitentiary, he was transferred to Alcatraz in August 1934. His transfer came after he boasted of escaping Leavenworth.
In Alcatraz, he kept a low profile and complied with officials. After 17 years, he was taken back to Leavenworth, where he died of a heart attack in 1954.
Robert “Birdman of Alcatraz” Stroud
Another high-profile Alcatraz prisoner was Robert Stroud, the Birdman of Alcatraz. He was found guilty of manslaughter and served his sentence in another prison. There, he attacked another inmate and was subsequently transferred to Leavenworth Penitentiary.
There, he killed a correctional officer in 1916 and was sentenced to death. Later on, his sentence was changed to life imprisonment. He spent about 30 years in Leavenworth, where he developed a passion for birds. There, he also wrote books about birds. Specifically, he documented his thoughts and research about the diseases of canaries.
Initially, the prison authorities encouraged his studies. But they withdrew their support when they found contraband materials in the bird cages he tended. They also found that he used the equipment he requested for his experiment to construct a still for “home-brew.”
He was transferred to Alcatraz, where he couldn’t keep or study birds. He was later transferred to another prison, where he died four years later.
Why Was Alcatraz Closed?
Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary was closed on March 21, 1963, after the then-United States Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy gave the order. The closure was one of the significant moves in a plan to rebrand the federal prison system and a cost-saving move for the government.
Before its closure, the government was very concerned about the cost of running the prison. Alcatraz prison cost more to keep in operation than others, and its location was a major reason for this.
Because the prison was on an island, the government had to transport supplies across the sea. These included food, fuel, water, and staff. Transportation alone took a massive chunk of the prison’s operating cost.
Another reason for the closure was the dwindling state of the prison’s infrastructure. Its location in a saltwater environment exposed it to speedy damage, and the cost of renovation was pretty high.
Above all, the government had changed its incarceration approach. It decided to move from isolation and punishment to rehabilitation. The prison represented the former and, therefore, had to give way to the new plan. The prison has been closed since then.
Why Does America Want to Reopen the Alcatraz Prison?
On Sunday, May 4, 2025, President Donald Trump announced plans to reopen the Alcatraz prison. In the shocking declaration, he also disclosed that he has ordered his administration officials to conduct an expansion of the prison facility.
He made his plans known via a post on his Truth Social page. There, he revealed that the move was aimed at addressing the rising crime wave in America. He had previously blamed the influx of millions of illegal immigrants during the Biden administration for the spike in crime.
“REBUILD AND OPEN ALCATRAZ!” read the beginning of the President’s post. “For too long, America has been plagued by vicious, violent, and repeat Criminal Offenders, the dregs of society, who will never contribute anything other than misery and suffering,” the post continued.
“Today, I am directing the Bureau of Prisons, together with the Department of Justice, FBI, and Homeland Security, to reopen a substantially enlarged and rebuilt ALCATRAZ, to house America’s most ruthless and violent Offenders,” Trump declared.
This announcement comes in the backdrop of the president’s controversial policy of deporting alleged gang members to an El Salvadorian prison. His administration has rounded up and sent over 200 suspected gang members to prison in the island country. Trump has also threatened to send criminal American citizens there.
Given the enormous cost of managing Alcatraz prison, people have expressed concern over the planned move. Although some have praised the president’s tough stance on crime, they have disagreed with his approach.
Experts who have been against the move argue that there has been a drop in the prison population in the last few years. Therefore, there are enough bed spaces in American prisons to contain more criminals.
Opposition politicians have also condemned the plan. For example, Scott Wiener, a Democratic state senator from California, has called the move “an attack on the rule of law.”
Most Americans only remember Alcatraz prison because of the 1979 movie “Escape From Alcatraz.” The movie was made in reference to an actual escape from Alcatraz. Three inmates, Frank Morris and brothers Clarence and John Anglin, pulled off the prison break in 1962.
The three men made the intelligent escape after months of painstaking work. They even constructed dummy human heads to fool the guards who came to inspect their rooms at night. By the time prison authorities got wind of their absence the next morning, they were already gone.
To date, prison officials and federal authorities have been unable to locate the men. No one knows if they died at sea or not.
Donald Trump is set to bring the escape story back to American consciousness again. Alcatraz could return—bigger and more secure, and with modern technology and higher-quality building materials, Donald Trump’s Alcatraz will be much more difficult to escape.
