Alcatraz Island Lighthouse island (they collected eggs from the large flock of birds that regularly gathered there), Alcatraz got its name in 1775 only when Juan de Ayala, a Spaniard was engaged to survey the harbor and the San Francisco Bay. Since he observed pelicans in large numbers on the island he named the island as "Isla de los Alcatraces" meaning the "Island of Pelicans". The island is separated from the main land by more than . The gold rush and the inherent risk of the choppy waters of the west coast prompted the urgent need for establishing lighthouses. Congress recognized the need
Experiment Alcatraz Experiment Alcatraz Experiment Alcatraz is a 1950 American crime film directed by Edward L. Cahn and written by Orville H. Hampton. The film stars John Howard, Joan Dixon, Walter Kingsford and Robert Shayne. The film was released on November 21, 1950, by RKO Pictures. A number of Alcatraz prisoners have volunteered to take an experimental serum that could cure a fatal blood disease, promised a parole if they take part. During the experiments, notorious racketeer Barry Morgan steals one of lieutenant nurse Joan McKenna's scissors and stabs convict Eddie Ganz to death, then escapes. The medical tests are abandoned, the