Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary accepted its first prisoners 73 years ago today.
Alcatraz is a 22-acre rock island in San Francisco Bay, 1½ miles from shore. For 29 years the federal prison system kept its highest security prisoners there, including Al Capone, Machine Gun Kelly, and the famous Birdman, Robert Stroud (played by Burt Lancaster in the film Birdman of Alcatraz). Reportedly, no one was ever known to have successfully escaped from Alcatraz, though Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers were never found after their attempt (as dramatized in the Clint Eastwood movie).
From 1868 to 1934, Alcatraz was a military prison. In 1969, American Indian activists occupied and claimed the island. Their occupation lasted 19 months.
Alcatraz Island became part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area of the National Park Service in 1972.
Alcatraz, from the original Spanish Alcatraces, is usually defined as meaning “pelican” or “strange bird.”