Alcatraz : A virtual tour

Virtual tour

Alcatraz

A postcard from Sébastian, Soen, Clémentine, Brenda

The Rock

We'll be boarding shortly, but as a reminder, as soon as you arrive on the island, anything that may happen to you will be out of our hands and we won't be held responsible. For your own safety, we advise you to follow the instructions in the leaflet we've distributed.

Virtual tour

Alcatraz

The Rock

01 : The history of Alcatraz

Map

02 : Prisoner of Alcatraz

1973

1969

1963

1962

1861

1848

Surprise test on the previous passage point!

00:40

- Many legends have been- created from this grim and mysterious place

- The most fam ous prison in- the world

-29 years of activity-

Map

01 : The history of Alcatraz

01 : The history of Alcatraz

03 : Locked in Alcatraz

02 : Prisoner of Alcatraz

Surprise test on the previous passage point!

00:10

Life in Alcatraz was far from a basic lifestyle, for both the guards and all the hundreds of convicts that were incarcerated in this prison. You’ll learn all about how they pushed through these hard days, with testimonies from a former prisoner and from a former guard.

Map

03 : Locked in Alcatraz

01 : The history of Alcatraz

02 : Prisoner of Alcatraz

04 : Al Capone shines my shoes

Surprise test on the previous passage point!

00:30

Map

04 : Al Capone shines my shoes

03 : Locked in Alcatraz

05 : Alcatraz inmates survived escape

Surprise test on the previous passage point!

01:00

John Anglin

Map

05 : Alcatraz inmates that (maybe) survived the escape

01 : The history of Alcatraz

04 : Al Capone shines my shoes

06: The occupation of Alcatraz

Frank Morris

Clarence Anglin

“Some inmates managed to flee !” Everyone got woken up by some shouting about three prisoners who apparently tried to escape on this day of June 1962 : the Anglin brothers, John and Clarence, and their friend Frank Morris.

Indeed, three inmates managed to flee and have never been found. However, even on this day, no one is sure whether they survived or not. They are the only group who succeeded to escape out of the 1576 Prisoners who went through Alcatraz.

On one hand, it is said that they drowned. It has been the official explanation ever since: their bodies were swept out by the treacherous waters. On the other hand, some believe that they succeeded to escape since there is a letter from John saying that he was 83 years old with cancer.

Surprise test on the previous passage point!

00:10

05 : Alcatraz inmates survived escape

Next Room ???

06 : The Occupation of Alcatraz

Now that we've done the tour, you can enter the cell to take a closer look at the hole (which has been filled in) ! Yes, yes, come in, come in!

*The cell door closes violently*

BOOM

You are now alone, left to your own devices on this island. You only have a few hours left before the prison doors close on you. I hope you've paid attention to the different words and especially the different capital letters during your visit if you want to be able to escape. Assemble the first letter of each word to open the padlock on this cell. Without it, you'll never see the sunlight again.

Map

01:00

Run fast they're going to catch us !

3 days later....

I can't forget what would have happened to us if we'd answered the quiz wrong, I still have nightmares about it.

DING DONG.

I'll answer that.

DING DONG

Yes?

John Anglin?

END.

1861

The fort became a military prison. It became a legendary lockup ever since, with the most infamous criminals of the country.

1969

Native Americans claimed the Island and occupied it. This occupation was led by the Native American group called Indians of All Tribes.

1973

Alcatraz has opened as a museum and this cursed island is now visited by thousands of people every single day.

1848

This date marked the end of the Mexican-American war which started in 1846. After that, the US governement decided to build a fort on Alcatraz island to guard the port of San Francisco.

3 prisoners, Frank Morris and the brothers Clarence Anglin and John Anglin, managed to escape the walls of the prison. However, we can't really say that they suceeded giving that they have never been found, dead or alive.

1962

As a prisoner, daily life was not so different from other prisons except the high Security and the feeling of being surrounded by particularly dangerous criminals, according to Robert, a former prisoner who got arrested for a bank robbery.

Furthermore, Jim Albright, a former guard who was only 24 when he started and who knew Robert, believes that working there was not a bad experience, albeit intimidating at first. Since the goal was not to harass or hit the prisoners, the relations between guards and convicts were pretty good. Overall, living as a guard in Alcatraz wasn’t very special, as some might think.

Failure of the misson Now, run for your life. (Refresh)

1963

The prison was closed down and became a federal property on the 21st of March because the overall costs. The maintenance and the import of food and drinkable water were just too pricy. More than 3 times as much as other prisons ! This was the main reason for its closure.

It all started on the 9th of November, 1969 : Native Americans occupied the Island in order to claim it by right of discovery as well as to challenge the federal government. Beforehand, the Bureau of Indian affairs’ mission, which consisted on the relocalisation of the Native Americans out of the reservation and on the integration of them in the American society, did not succeed. There were several people explaining the right of Natives to occupy Alcatraz, such as an activist, Belva Cottier, who said that Natives were entitled to claim the island since it was unoccupied and that it was a possibility offered by the treaty of Fort Laramie. In the end, the 20,000 Natives, who were from many different tribes, didn’t obtain the deed for the island and money. Yet it is a symbol of resistance and it brought Natives together.