Alcatraz Island
HISTORY Alcatraz, also known as “The Rock” has a reputation for being one of the most “haunted” places in America. Some people even believe it is a possible porthole into a different dimension.
Native Americans found the island long before the prison was built and they strongly believed it was a dark and paranormal place. They believed it was plagued by evil spirits. The only people who would set foot on the island were those who were receiving punishment from their tribe. Some were sent to the island for a certain period of time, while others were banished for life.
Then in the 1850s, the first inmates, who were military prisoners, assisted in building the prison and the Army housed military prisoners there until 1933, when the government decided to make it a maximum-security prison. Only those who were considered the most dangerous criminals were sent to Alcatraz. This location was chosen because of the isolation of the island. People thought it would be impossible for a prisoner to break out. The prison was built to crush the spirits of the prisoners and to discipline them. The inmates were only given what they needed to survive; food, clothing, shelter, and medical care. The prison ran until 1963. Later, it was opened for public tours and soon after, people began to claim the feelings of the presence of those who had died there. Many thought it was a hoax to draw in crowds, but this wasn’t the first time hauntings had been reported in the prison.
Some famous prisoners who spent time in Alcatraz: Al Capone, “Machine-Gun” Kelly, Alvin Karpis, and Arthur “Doc” Barker.
PUNISHMENT AMONG PRISONERS Alcatraz is known for the way they’d punish their prisoners. They seemed very cruel and can be hard to read about, but these were the “most dangerous criminals in America.” Two of the most famous places of punishment were the Strip Cell and the Hole in the D-Block.
The Strip Cell: When prisoners would get out of hand, one place they’d be put as punishment was the Strip Cell. This cell is located in the D-Block. Prisoners would be completely isolated in the darkness, stripped of all clothing, and only provided with bread and water once a day. Their toilet was a hole in the cell and they did not have access to a sink for hand washing.
The Hole in the D-Block: Located in the D-Block, there were five ‘hole’ cells. In these cells, prisoners would stay for up to 19 days with no contact with others. They were provided with a toilet, sink, one light, and at night, a mattress.
Photos of strip cell and D-Block below:
AL CAPONE While spending his last years in Alcatraz, Al Capone learned to play the banjo. His favorite place to practice was in the shower room. To this day, people claim to hear him play. In fact, a park ranger who had never heard about Al Capone, reported that he heard music coming from the shower room.
MORE HAUNTINGS One area that is claimed to have a high level of spirit activity in the utility corridor where three inmates were shot and killed while trying to escape. In this area, while the prison was still running, a security guard also claimed to have heard clanging sounds coming from the corridor.
While visiting the ‘hole’' cells, many tourists and employees have reported feeling cold spots and a sort of ‘intensity’ coming from the cell, specifically the ‘hole’ cell 14D.
One certainly creepy encounter that has been reported many times in cell 14D is the claim of seeing glowing eyes. What makes it even creepier is that the first tourists who claimed to see this were not aware that a prisoner in the 1940s had died in that cell after calling out for help because there was “a creature with glowing eyes” trying to kill him. Is there really a creature lurking in the D-Block? Cell 14D below.
Security guards have also said that when doing head counts, they’d count more than the amount of people there. Many say they think that the ghosts of prisoners would be counted, then they’d disappear.
Another security guard said that one night he heard a woman sobbing inside one of the prison walls, but at that time, there were no women in the building.
Cell blocks A and B are also known to have crying and moaning sweep through the cells.
While visiting Block C, someone claimed they encountered a prisoner named Butcher. Later, it was found in the old prison records that there was a prisoner who was murdered in Block C. He was a hit-man who went by the name Butcher.
Tour guide, Leon Thompson, knew an inmate named Johnny Haus who died in the prison. Thompson is sure he’s seen the spirit of Haus. He claims that Haus appeared as a dark figure to him as he was waiting for tourists. Thompson later said, “I don’t care what anybody says, That was Johnny Haus.”
One story that really stands out to me is when a British couple visiting Alcatraz took a picture of an empty visitation block through the window. When looking at the photo, they discovered something terrifying. There seemed to have been a woman staring back at them. This photo has been studied numerous times and nobody can find any evidence that it has been tampered with. Photo below.
While the prison was open, guards would often claim to have heard gunshots and screams. They’d hear them so vividly that the guards would cover the grounds, believing there had been an escape.
What are your thoughts? Are these spirits? If they are, where did they come from? Is it really an evil place like the Native Americans believed, or did the hauntings start after the deaths of inmates? Is it really possible that this place is a whole other dimension? After all, no other places on earth seem to draw in that many souls of the deceased.
I own no photos, all credit to the photographers.