Alcatraz penitentiary draws in tourists with tales of infamous inmates such as Al Capone

But, that is exactly the case in San Francisco where tourists seem to only have eyes for the infamous Alcatraz penitentiary in its misty harbour. Forget about the wonderful restaurants at Fisherman’s Wharf. The Golden Gate Bridge is seen as little more than an excuse for a “selfie”. As for the giant redwood trees just out of town, to the casual traveler it is a case of seen one tree, seen them all.

Alcatraz, known almost affectionately as The Rock, admits more than one million visitors to see the prisoners’ cells annually. 

But, unlike the 1500 or so prisoners who were incarcerated there, the tourists can leave by ferry at the end of their daily excursion.

Next Wednesday, is the 55th anniversary of Alcatraz’s closure as a prison due to structural deterioration and the high cost of running the establishment – double any other penitentiary in the US.

Memories of some of the more notorious inmates remain. There was Alvin ‘Kreepy’ Karpis, murderer and kidnapper, who served more time on The Rock than any other inmate (August 1936 until April 1962). His claim to fame beyond his criminal activities was being arrested by FBI leader J Edgar Hoover. 

However, it has since been revealed that Hoover arrived after Kreepy was already in custody. Hoover and the FBI weren’t going to spoil a good story with the facts.

One particular former inmate attracts the major interest – Al ‘Scarface’ Capone. From his headquarters in Chicago, he controlled crime across the US during the Prohibition of the 1920s. However, the murderous bootlegger was only jailed in 1931 for tax evasion, as none of the witnesses to his crimes ever lived to testify. 

He was sent to Alcatraz in 1934, after his incarceration in Atlanta Federal Prison, where his cell had expensive deep-pile carpet, a comfy lounge, a radio, and an antique wardrobe. Capone tried to suck up to Alcatraz’s warden when he arrived, but it didn’t work. Scarface was thus treated no differently to the other 300 inmates during his four and a half years there.

Tourists learn about the escape attempts. Thirty-four prisoners were involved in 14 attempts to get off The Rock, two men trying twice.

Seven were shot and killed; two were found drowned; and all but five of the rest were recaptured. The authorities reckon those five also drowned, but can’t prove it.

Hollywood movies abound, many with apocryphal plots. But one of those yarns is true. Most of the prisoners were more than happy to be transferred there as they didn’t have to share a cell.