Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary The Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary or United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island (often just referred to as Alcatraz or The Rock) was a maximum high-security federal prison on Alcatraz Island, off the coast of San Francisco, California, which operated from August 11, 1934, until March 21, 1963. The main prison building was built in 1910–1912 during its time as a United States Army military prison; Alcatraz had been the site of a citadel since the 1860s. The United States Disciplinary Barracks, Pacific Branch on Alcatraz had been acquired by the United States Department of Justice on October 12, 1933,
Recreation Yard (Alcatraz) Alcatraz" including a violent fight; it was parodied in the 1994 Leslie Nielsen film, "". Recreation Yard (Alcatraz) The Recreation Yard was the yard used by inmates of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary between 1934 and 1963. It is located opposite the Dining Hall south of the end of D-Block on a raised level surrounded by a high wall and fence above it. Guard Tower #3 lay just to the west of the yard. The gun gallery was situated in the yard, mounted on one of the dining hall's exterior walls. The recreation yard faced the mainland. In 1936, the previously dirt-covered