How did it come to pass that in the United States that we imprison more people than any nation in the world? That’s right – the US comprises 5% of the world’s population, but it holds 25% of the world’s prison population. That’s more people in US prisons than Russia, China, Iran — you name it. How did it come to pass that we’ve put 2.3 million of our fellow Americans in prisons? Well, in this first of a two-part exploration of the origins of mass incarceration, I visit the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA. It’s a famous prison built in the 1820s that closed in the 1970s and then later was turned into a museum. I take a tour of this fascinating institution with staff guide Lauren Bennett. I took A LOT of photographs so you’ll want to check them out below. And keep in mind, this is part 1 of a deep dive into the history of prisons and criminal justice in American history. In part 2, I speak with historian Elizabeth Hinton about her book, From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime: The Making of Mass Incarceration in America (Harvard University Press). You won’t want to miss it!
Further Reading
Scott Christianson, With Liberty for Some: 500 Years of Imprisonment in America (1998)
John DuMond, Under the Wall: The True Story of the 1945 Tunnel Escape from Eastern State Penitentiary (2014)
Norman Bruce Johnston, Eastern State Penitentiary: Crucible of Good Intentions (1994)
Paul Kahan, Eastern State Penitentiary: A History (2008)
Mark E. Kann, Punishment, Prisons, and Patriarchy: Liberty and Power in the Early American Republic (2005)
Rebecca M. McLennan, The Crisis of Imprisonment: Protest, Politics, and the Making of the American Penal State, 1776-1941 (2008)
The Big Graph showing the explosion of the US prison population since the 1970s, part of the exhibition, “Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration,” at Eastern State Penitentiary, 2016
Eastern State Penitentiary
Website http://www.easternstate.org/
Prisons Today, an exhibition on mass incarceration at the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA http://www.easternstate.org/prisons-today
The Big Graph http://www.easternstate.org/visit/regular-season/history-artist-installations/big-graph
Panel from the exhibition, “Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration,” at Eastern State Penitentiary, 2016
Music for this Episode
Jay Graham, ITPL Intro (courtesy, JayGMusic.com)
Kevin McCleod, “Impact Moderato” (Free Music Archive)
Lee Rosevere, Going Home (Free Music Archive)
Philipp Weigl, Even When We Fall (Free Music Archive)
Jason Shaw, “Acoustic Meditation” (Free Music Archive)
The Bell, “I Am History” (Free Music Archive)
An aerial view of Eastern State Penitentiary, ca. 1954
View down one of Eastern State Penitentiary’s cell blocks, 2016
Production Credits
Executive Producer: Lulu Spencer
Associate Producer, Devyn McHugh
Technical Advisors: Holly Hunt and Jesse Anderson
Podcasting Consultant: Darrell Darnell of Pro Podcast Solutions
Photographer: John Buckingham
Graphic Designer: Maggie Cellucci
Website by: ERI Design
Legal services: Tippecanoe and Tyler Too
Social Media management: The Pony Express
Risk Assessment: Little Big Horn Associates
Growth strategies: 54 40 or Fight
Snoring Beagle International, Ltd
Typical solitary cell at Eastern State Penitentiary, now a ruin. Note: the skylight was the only source of light for inmates (2016)
The view from the center of the “wagon wheel” – from which all the cell blocks radiate – at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA
View down a cell block at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016)
As the numbers of prisoners grew at Eastern State Penitentiary, prison officials added a second level to several of the cell blocks.
View down one of Eastern State Penitentiary’s cell blocks, 2016
Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016)
Single cell (now a ruin), Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016)
Remains of a medical facility, now a ruin, Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016)
Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016)
Prison yard, Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016)
Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016)
Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016)
Contemporary exhibition at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016) – “Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration”
The Big Graph, showing the explosion of incarceration since 1970. NOTE: The small orange bar is 1970; the tall one is 2010. Contemporary exhibition at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016) – “Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration”
The graph shows how exceptional the US is when it comes to incarceration. Today the US imprisons 730 people per 100,000 of its population. In the European Union the average is about 150/100,000. Contemporary exhibition at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016) – “Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration”
Contemporary exhibition at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016) – “Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration”
Contemporary exhibition at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016) – “Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration”
One of the MANY thought-provoking questions posed at the exhibition at Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, PA (2016) – “Prisons Today: Questions in the Age of Mass Incarceration”