Alcatraz

13 Stories

'They Were Able to Do What No One Else Has Done'

US Marshals Service releases new age-progressed images of Alcatraz escapees

(Newser) - The US Marshals Service wins this week's prize for persistence. The law enforcement agency has a new APB out for a trio of notorious escaped inmates, even though it's now been more than six decades since they busted out and they'd all be well into their 90s....

They Used Decoy Heads to Flee Alcatraz. Now, FBI Replicas

3D-printed dupes look like the heads used by Frank Morris, Anglin brothers

(Newser) - Half a century after a notorious prison escape from Alcatraz Island, the FBI has created replicas of decoy heads that inmates used to distract guards from a plan that still captivates researchers and tourists. Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D-printed copies of the decoys that inmates Frank Morris and John and...

2013 Letter Spurs Speculation Alcatraz Escapees Survived
2013 Letter Spurs Speculation
Alcatraz Escapees Survived
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jan 28, 2018 7:03 AM CST

2013 Letter Spurs Speculation Alcatraz Escapees Survived

But US Marshals says lead is a dead-end

(Newser) - The argument has been made before : that some or all of the three inmates who famously escaped from Alcatraz prison in 1962 may not have ended up dead after all. Now, KPIX 5 reports on another potential bit of evidence. Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin escaped by...

Key to Infamous 1962 Alcatraz Break: Popular Mechanics?

The magazine flags 2 past issues

(Newser) - This week brought the revelation of a letter written in 2013 and sent to San Francisco police, purportedly by John Anglin—who, with brother Clarence and fellow inmate Frank Morris—famously escaped Alcatraz in 1962. That they famously escaped at all is thanks to Popular Mechanics, argues ... Popular Mechanics in...

9-Year-Old Completes Record-Breaking Swim

He swam from SF to Alcatraz Island and back

(Newser) - Nine-year-old James Savage may have a new Guinness World Record under his belt. The California boy swam from the shore of San Francisco to Alcatraz Island and back on Tuesday, becoming the youngest swimmer to complete the two-mile trip, per NBC News . A 10-year-old boy previously held the record after...

New Evidence: Alcatraz Escapees Didn't Die

John and Clarence Anglin would be in their 80s today

(Newser) - Three inmates who famously escaped from Alcatraz prison in 1962 may not be so dead after all. In fact, new evidence that they survived has spawned a History Channel special and inspired a retired US marshal to revive the investigation, the New York Post reports. "This is absolutely the...

Alcatraz Escapees May Have Survived After All
1962 Alcatraz Escapees
May Have Survived After All
in case you missed it
Dec 20, 2014 1:43 PM CST

1962 Alcatraz Escapees May Have Survived After All

Interactive model shows 3 prisoners in break could have beaten the odds

(Newser) - It seems highly unlikely that three men who pulled off a daring escape from San Francisco's Alcatraz Island prison in 1962 survived, though their feat spawned a Clint Eastwood film and has become the stuff of legends. Now Dutch scientists have released a study based on interactive models that...

Tourist Claims She Has Photo of Alcatraz Ghost

Her partner thinks it's a woman from 1930s or '40s

(Newser) - We're going to preface this one with a recommendation you ingest a grain of salt before reading on—but it's an intriguing story all the same. A British tourist claims she captured an image of a ghost at Alcatraz during an April visit to the former prison. Sheila...

Hidden Fortress Found Under Alcatraz

Radar reveals long-lost Civil War-era buildings

(Newser) - A surprising find under what used to be America's most notorious prison: Texas A&M researchers using ground-penetrating radar have discovered the remains of an old military fortress long believed to have been completely destroyed, reports the BBC . The San Francisco Bay island was once the home of Fort...

The Best Prison Breaks
 The Best Prison Breaks 
OPINION
Mar 31, 2009 4:43 PM CDT

The Best Prison Breaks

Frenchman's joins infamous company with clever escape

(Newser) - A Frenchman’s daring escape from a London prison—Julien Chautard turned himself in yesterday after busting out by gripping the bottom of a prisoner transport van as it left the courtyard—gets Jon Henley, in the Guardian, thinking about the best such tries ever. His highlights:

Alcatraz Garden Blooms Despite Years of Neglect

Once cared for by prisoners, plants still thrive on 'The Rock'

(Newser) - The hardened inmates on San Francisco’s Alcatraz Island had tough neighbors who endure to this day: sun-kissed geraniums, snapdragons, gazanias, and roses. Thanks to an ambitious restoration project, “The Rock” is blooming, the Sacramento Bee reports. After work began 5 years ago, gardeners discovered 145 plant varieties that...

America's Most Haunted
 America's Most Haunted 
May 11, 2008 3:31 PM CDT

America's Most Haunted

Murders, ghostly encounters add mystery to historic sites

(Newser) - Your local graveyard may be creepy, but mazelike mansions and murderous history make up LifeScience’s list of the most haunted places in America:
  1. Winchester Mystery House: More than 100 rooms and staircases leading nowhere fill this San Jose, Calif., mansion, built by its paranoid owner to ward off ghosts.
...

SF Voters Nix Plan to Tear Down Alcatraz

Motion to transform island prison site into peace center fails

(Newser) - Alcatraz Island shouldn't be transformed into a global peace center, San Franciscan voters decided in rejecting a measure on Tuesday's ballot. Only 28% backed the non-binding proposal to convert the one-time penitentiary and tourist hotspot into a peace dome, the New York Times reports. But DaVid, the measure's main sponsor,...

13 Stories