Alcatraz Library

Alcatraz Library was the inmate library located at the end of D-Block of the federal penitentiary. Every new prisoner received a library card and catalog; books were ordered by placing a slip in a box at the dining hall entrance before breakfast, and a librarian delivered them to cells. The closed-stack system held 10,000 to 15,000 books, mostly left over from the army days. Inmates could have three books plus up to twelve textbooks, a Bible, and a dictionary. Crime-related content was banned, and a chaplain enforced wholesome reading. Today visitors can see the library and a sign displaying a 1960 Federal Bureau of Prisons extract: "These men read more serious literature than does the ordinary person in the community. Philosophers such as Kant, Schopenhauer, Hegel, etc. are especially popular." Along with authors like Jack London and Sinclair Lewis, the display gives a unique glimpse into prison censorship and the unexpected intellectual life behind bars.