Alcatraz wasn’t so bad: These are the reasons why prisoners liked the island prison

According to federal officials, no prisoner ever successfully escaped from Alcatraz, with those who tried either being caught, shot and killed, giving up or drowning. There is, however, some possibility that three men who broke out of the main prison in June 1962, as told in the appropriately named “Escape from Alcatraz” movie starring Clint Eastwood, didn’t drown after disappearing in the water, as is presumed.

Among those who didn’t attempt to regain their freedom, the general consensus was that life inside what was arguably the world’s most famous prison wasn’t actually all that bad.

Alcatraz’s most infamous criminals

Sure, Alcatraz became the unwanted home for some of the United States’ most notorious criminals, including Al “Scarface” Capone, George “Machine Gun” Kelly and Robert Stroud, nicknamed the “Birdman of Alcatraz.”

However, the conditions in the federal prison on the rocky island a little over a mile off the coast of San Francisco meant convicts preferred to get locked up in one of the so-called toughest prisons in American history.

As outlined by History and Atlas Obscura, there were a number of reasons why spending time in Alcatraz was preferable to other penitentiaries.

The reasons why convicts preferred Alcatraz

Inmates, all male and made up of many unsavory characters (to put it mildly), could avoid each other the majority of the time as each man had his own cell, which wasn’t the norm in other prisons.

There, they could either have time alone with their thoughts (perhaps not always wise, given their past misdemeanors) or read one of the 15,000 books in the Alcatraz library.

Organized crime boss Whitey Bulger, meanwhile, who spent four years in Alcatraz, spoke of his enjoyment of the food. According to History and Atlas Obscura, the prison’s first warden believed good food was the key to keeping inmates happy, thus avoiding any potential trouble.

Whether it was due to the high-quality food on offer or not, Alcatraz closed its doors after less than 29 years in March 1963 having become the most expensive prison to run in the United States.

Tourism on Alcatraz Island

Alcatraz has operated as a tourist site and museum dedicated to its time as a federal penitentiary since 1972, when it was purchased by the National Park Service.

As anyone who has visited the island will attest, it offers stunning views of downtown San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge and more, another reason why it may not have been the very worst place to have been locked up.

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