Alcatraz Island

Cell Locking Sign
Made by Stewart Iron Works Company, Cincinnati, Ohio
c 1934
Instructions for a cell locking device that was installed at Alcatraz, ca. 1934. Inmates could not tamper with locks in cell doors because cell doors did not have individual locks. Instead, all doors for an entire row of approximately 20 cells were operated by a locking device at the end of the row – entirely out of any inmate’s reach. Using the various levers, officers could open or close one cell door at a time, or all the doors in the row.
Metal. L 26, W 18 cm
Golden Gate National Recreation Area, GOGA 100



Cell Locking Sign Made by Stewart Iron Works Company, Cincinnati, Ohio c 1934 Instructions for a cell locking device that was installed at Alcatraz, ca. 1934. Inmates could not tamper with locks in cell doors because cell doors did not have individual locks. Instead, all doors for an entire row of approximately 20 cells were operated by a locking device at the end of the row – entirely out of any inmate’s reach. Using the various levers, officers could open or close one cell door at a time, or all the doors in the row. Metal. L 26, W 18 cm Golden Gate National Recreation Area, GOGA 100
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