👿 Alcatraz Island: America’s Notorious Prison Rock 🏔️

Alcatraz Island—dubbed “The Rock”—sits 1.25 miles off SF’s coast, once home to the U.S.’s most feared federal prison. Here’s its chilling story: 🔐 Fortress to Prison 1850s: A military fortress 🏰 guarding SF Bay. 1910–1912: Main prison built for Army convicts. 1934: Modernized by the FBI into a max-security federal penitentiary 🚨. 🌊 Escape-Proof? Surrounded by icy currents and shark-infested waters 🦈, wardens bragged “No one could escape.” Yet 36 inmates tried—23 vanished, their fates still debated. 🚪 Inside the Cells Corridors named after iconic U.S. streets: “Broadway,” “Michigan Avenue” 🗽. Prison jobs (laundry, kitchen) were privileges—not rights. 🗝️ Legacy 1963: Prison closes. 1969–1971: Native American activists occupy the island 🌵. Today: A National Park Service museum 🏛️, drawing 1.5M visitors/year. 🌍 Compare & Contrast Like Japan’s Hashima Island (Battleship Island), both are eerie relics of industrial/prison pasts—but one held souls, the other coal miners. 💔⛏️ 💡 Pro Tip: Book Alcatraz tours months in advance! #Alcatraz #SanFranciscoHistory #EscapeFromAlcatraz 🚤🌉