Alcatraz Island Juan Manuel Diaz, who charted San Francisco Bay and named one of the three islands he identified as "La Isla de los Alcatraces," which translates as "The Island of the Gannets" but is commonly believed to translate as "The Island of the Pelicans (Spanish for Pelicans is Pelicanos)," from the archaic Spanish "" ("pelican"). Over the years, the Spanish version "Alcatraz" became popular and is now widely used. In August 1827, French Captain Auguste Bernard Duhaut-Cilly wrote "... running past Alcatraze's (Pelicans) Island ... covered with a countless number of these birds. A gun fired over the feathered legions caused
Alcatraz Citadel coves and bay. In 1882, the citadel was enlarged to provide more accommodation for the families of the military officers working on Alcatraz. Between 1873 and 1895, 32 Native Americans were imprisoned at the citadel on Alcatraz, including 19 Hopi men held in captivity there between January and August 1895 after being transferred from Fort Defiance. The island continued to develop in the 1880s and in 1898 the population of Alcatraz increased dramatically from 26 to over 450 due to the Spanish–American War and placed a demand for new buildings. The original barracks evolved into Building 64 in 1905. The