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Eastern State Penitentiary
Mixed in with modern buildings, cars parked in the street, and Fairmount Hardware Store, East Pen sticks out like a sore thumb in the Philly cityscape.
You may not think a prison is a prime stop to take on your family trip to Philadelphia but I think it is one of the most interesting landmarks on the east coast. The Eastern Penitentiary was a marvel at the time of its construction in 1829. It was the first “penitentiary,” a chance for rehabilitation, a chance for a new life after repentance, a chance for the Quakers to make a mark on American history. The construction was approved in 1821 but the concept of individual separation was not fully explored.
Prisons at this time were either in the labor model or solitary model. East Penn would be both. It was not only unique for it’s modern ideology, the technology and construction was also revolutionary. Inmates had toilets, actual flushing toilets. They were served three meals a day and some even had skylights in their cells. However, this new system put in place a method of solitary that had not been seen since the dungeons of the middle ages. Prisoners were not allowed to interact at all. Before you say ‘ah that sounds nice’. This meant at all. No talking. They had guards deliver their food and take them outside if they were getting their hour of exercise, but they were not allowed to speak to them. Their heads were covered in a hood when being transported. The only reading material provided was the bible. This quiet and seclusion that was meant to be inspirational for repentance actually aided to the insanity of many of the inmates.
Although East Pen is well known for hauntings, creepy inmates, and other lore, there are some revolutionary things like a bakery, Christmas parties, indoor plumbing at opening, a synagogue added in 1920’s.
Lore of East Penn
In 2013, NPR published an “Is Eastern State Penn Really Haunted?” article, which if nothing else just shows how infamous these tales are, at least locally. According to the article, East Penn has been featured on Ghost Adventures, Ghost Hunters, and MTV’s Fear just to name a few. However, one thing to note in the article that was interesting is that the staff quoted claim they do not want to exploit the “dark” side. Bascially that they know they run a “haunted attraction” but do not necessarily believe it to be so, they are more interested in the facility because of it’s history. One fun story of historical note as well as lore is that of Al Capone and the spirit of “Jimmy”. It is claimed that during Capone’s eight month stay at East Penn he would yell out for Jimmy to leave him alone in the night when he was indeed, alone. Some believe Jimmy was a victim of Capone. Whoever he was, Capone seemed to think upon release Jimmy would stay in Philadelphia but apparently he did not. Capone tried going to a medium to get rid of his new ghost buddy, which did not resolve the problem. Capone’s time in East Penn almost assuredly contributed to his last days being lived out in an asylum. Whether or not it was because of the spirit of Jimmy is up for debate.
"That's a 'no' from me dog."- Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens published American Notes in 1842, which included his opinions on Eastern State Penitentiary. In Chapter 7, he let everyone know how he really felt. “The system here, is rigid, strict, and hopeless solitary confinement. I believe it, in its effects, to be cruel and wrong.” He does make note that the rest of Philadelphia was perfectly splendid.
In a very modern day way of thinking, Dickens was able to see that despite the good intentions of the prison, there was a lot of harm being done to those imprisoned there. “I believe that very few men are capable of estimating the immense amount of torture and agony which this dreadful punishment, prolonged for years, inflicts upon the sufferers; and in guessing at it myself, and in reasoning from what I have seen written upon their faces, and what to my certain knowledge they feel within, I am only the more convinced that there is a depth of terrible endurance in it which none but the sufferers themselves can fathom, and which no man has a right to inflict upon his fellow-creature. “
East Pen Today
The Penitentiary closed in 1971, when it was being used to house prisoners from the county prison after a riot. Until the mid 1980’s the penitentiary was used for storage and vandalism was common on the grounds. The East Penitentiary site makes mention that during this time, a city caretaker named Dan McCloud still visited the facility to feed a family of stray cats. In the mid 90’s, it was listed as one of the most endangered landmarks in the U.S. and now it is a tourist attraction for the city.
The Halloween tour is definitely some sort of masochistic form of tourism, but 100% worth the line and money. If nighttime terror is not your thing or crowds (because it is crowded), you can go visit and get the audio tour, which usually are not my favorite but the one at East Penn is very good and narrated by Steve Buscemi.
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