On August 9th, 2009 the former penitentiary located in the middle of San Francisco Bay celebrated its 75th Anniversary. Alcatraz began operating as a federal prison in 1934 and housed over 1,500 prisoners until its closing March 21, 1963. Today Alcatraz is one of San Francisco's most popular sightseeing attractions and hosts guided tours, cruises and special events. Representatives from the Federal Bureau of Prisons, U.S. Coast Guard and other partner government agencies will be on hand to describe their long history with the island. Docked at the island will be the last boat, the Warden Blackwell, which carried prisoners, guards and their families back and forth to San Francisco.
The 75th Anniversary celebration will include a reunion of citizens who lived on the island and 2 former inmates. Most of the citizens were children of the prison guards although a few former guards will also be present during the celebration. The two reformed convicts, Fred Dekker and Darwin Coon, along with the other former citizens of Alcatraz will offer talks about life on the island. The group of former residents have started a nonprofit group to help raise funds that will be spent rebuilding some of the structures including a lighthouse keeper's quarters and a social hall for island families. This celebration takes place every year and tickets usually sell out weeks in advance. For more information regarding Alcatraz Island please visit www.nps.gov/alca.
