Alcatraz Island 1906 San Francisco earthquake, civilian prisoners were transferred to Alcatraz for safe confinement. On March 21, 1907, Alcatraz was officially designated as the Western U.S. Military Prison, later Pacific Branch, U.S. Disciplinary Barracks, 1915. In 1909 construction began on the huge concrete main cell block, designed by Major Reuben Turner, which remains the island's dominant feature. It was completed in 1912. To accommodate the new cell block, the Citadel, a three-story barracks, was demolished down to the first floor, which was actually below ground level. The building had been constructed in an excavated pit (creating a dry "moat") to enhance
Alcatraz Island "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4" as a playable level, and in the video game "" in a downloadable zombie survival map called "Mob of the Dead". It is also featured as a playable racetrack in the 1996 arcade racing video game "". Alcatraz has also been portrayed often as a safe haven or base of operations in many post-apocalyptic movies, such as "The Book of Eli". Alcatraz even appears in "The Alchemyst" and "The Sorceress" by author "Michael Scott" and is depicted as a prison for the immortal "Perenelle Flamel". Alcatraz is featured in the episode "Bird Mummy of Alcatraz"