On Saturday April 9th, 2011, people in over 80 cities on all 7 continents got together for Obscura Day 2011, a global event organized by the steadfast and industrious staff at Atlas Obscura. Obscura Day meandered through its second successful year this past weekend taking groups of the inquisitive to locations of interest in their relative towns, places they had either never seen or had seen all their lives but could never truly explain.
Obscura Day 2011 in San Francisco brought a handful of these adventurers to the famous Alcatraz Island in the middle of San Francisco Bay. It was a surly day bringing bright sunshine along with a penetrating wind that reduced us to a huddled mass of sunglasses and spring jackets on the ferry’s main deck.
The ranger gave away education for free
A special tour had been arranged that would be taking us to areas of the park mostly untrodden by the normal tourist horde, past signs that read “Area closed for your safety”, down dark stairways and threading through jealous onlookers. The ranger brandished a flower of antique keys, unlocking antechambers and cell-blocks long closed to the average wandering tourist. We were thrilled.
It was pretty obvious from the start the ranger harbored a greater passion for the older, arguably more attractive, definitely more historic Fort Alcatraz, the 19th century structure the prison complex sits upon. His opinion was manifest – the “overblown” reputation of the prison overshadowed the forgotten Fort underneath, continually forsaken by the crowds as they clamored and elbowed for a view of the cells of Al Capone and the “Birdman”. While it was a sad fact for us, it was a downright travesty to the rangers forced to witness that blasphemy every day. We paid our respects.
Our first stops took us up through the former soldier barracks, into rooms under renovation and we were bluntly told to not touch the walls, not for fear that we’d damage something but because of the danger of exposure to lead paint and asbestos. It was our first hint that we were doing something really special that day.
The original name of Alcatraz long before it became a prison. This mantle topped the original entrance to the Fort, now buried under the second story of the shooting gallery on the island's north slope.
Later we were treated to the shooting gallery, a side house on the island’s north slope where the old soldiers practiced their marksmanship. The building is visible to the passing crowds but disallowed by signs warning of safety hazards. We giddily passed right under those signs and into the structure which in 1957 held the Fort’s original entrance, along with a mantle modestly displaying its original name: Alcatrases Island. It’s sad more people aren’t able to see that engraved stone for its history, but after standing a while inside that rickety hundred-year-old building held aloft by posts 100 feet above the rocky shore of Alcatraz, feeling the windy gusts rattle the entire structure we quickly understood why.
Inside the shooting gallery. The targets are above our heads.
But the the Obscura Tour treated us well, replete with esoteric delights: a trip inside the off-limits mugshot studio and a first-hand demonstration of the multi-cell door opening mechanism, a conglomeration of levers and gears that answered any questions how the term “The Slammer” came about.
The following are shots were taken at Obscura Day’s Secrets of Alcatraz tour on Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, California, 2011.
The “landmark status” plaque. Near the main ferry dock.
The way up, through the Fort Tunnel.
Soldier barracks, under “renovations”. Here be lead paint.
Original cornerstone of the present day Alcatraz prison complex.
Completion date of the original Alcatraz Fort.
“Broadway,” the prison complex’s main drag.
Underneath the prison complex in the bowels of the old Fort were “storerooms” used for storage, and often, beatings. Above is the oldest graffiti found on the island, circa 1881, found in one of these chambers.
Evidence of the presence of women at the old Fort. This pretty signature is graffiti on a subterranean wall.
“The Yard”…
…home to great views and wind that chills the bones.
Alcatraz: US National Park, Historic Army Fort, minister of legend and lore.
The Obscura Day group was really rewarding to work with and stimulated my efforts to seek the hidden truths of the Rock.
Thanks a lot Jayeson. It was a pleasure to be on your tour. It really shows how much respect you have for the history and the cultural stature of Alcatraz. I hope it rubs off on others that the Rock is not just about the prison but also that which came before it.
Beutiful pictures and story. Now i don’t have to go. Thanks.