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As one of America's most notorious prisons, Alcatraz has been a significant part of California's history for over 155 years. The small, lonely rock, known in sea charts by its Spanish name "Isla de los Alcatraces," or "Island of Pelicans," lay essentially dormant until the 1850s, when the military converted the island into a fortress to protect the booming San Francisco region. Alcatraz served as a pivotal military position until the early 20th century and in 1934 was converted into a federal penitentiary to house some of America's most incorrigible prisoners. The penitentiary closed in 1963, and Alcatraz joined the National Park Service system in 1972. Since then, it has remained a popular attraction as part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.
Examines how occupation of Alcatraz Island during 1969 helped focus internation attention to the plight of Native Americans and helped to end the policy of Termination and Relocation.
The occupation of Alcatraz Island by American Indians from November 20, 1969, through June 11, 1971, focused the attention of the public on Native Americans and helped lead to the development of organized Indian activism.In this first detailed examination of the takeover, Troy Johnson tells the story of those who organized the occupation and those who participated, some by living on the island and others by soliciting donations of money, food, water, clothing, or electrical generators.Johnson documents growing unrest in the Bay Area urban Indian population and draws on interviews with those involved to describe everyday life on Alcatraz during the nineteen-month occupation. To describe the federal government's reactions as Americans rallied in support of the Indians, he turns to federal government archives and Nixon administration files. The book is a must read for historians and others interested in the civil rights era, Native American history, and contemporary American Indian issues.
Prison, and the island's future roles.
In this fascinating autobiographical account, Jim Quillen tells the amazing story of his decade incarcerated in America's most infamous prison -- how he got there, how he stayed alive inside, and, most important, how he found the inspiration and courage to get out.
The Outlaws, the toughest gang in school, follow Danny Sullivan to Alcatraz Island after he unintentionally thwarts one member's attempt to mug an old woman. There he is trapped as they plot their revenge. PW praised Bunting's storytelling skill, saying, "Her new novel moves swiftly, creating white-knuckle suspense and an unfudged denouement." (12-up)
Some of the most notorious criminals in US history were kept under lock and key on the foggy, craggy shores of Alcatraz Island. Al Capone, “Machine Gun” Kelly, and the “Birdman of Alcatraz” Robert Shroud all haunted the dank cells of the infamous prison while they were alive. But do their spirits still remain? Readers will be ferried across San Francisco Bay to explore the history—and hauntings—of Alcatraz. Including the deep historical past of the California prison, the main content will engage readers while creepy photographs will invite them into “the hole” and the prison's hidden tunnels. Detailed sidebars offer even more ghostly sightings to readers who dare probe the past of spooky Alcatraz.