Auburn Prison
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Auburn Prison is a prison located in Auburn, New York, USA. Constructed in 1816, it was the first state prison in New York, the site of the first execution via electric chair, and the namesake of the "Auburn System," a correctional system believed to rehabilitate prisoners. William Kemmler, who murdered his common-law wife, was executed with the new device in 1890. Today, the prison is known as the Auburn Correctional Facility. It is classified as a maximum security facility and is located on State Street in Auburn.
The prison charged a fee for tourists in order to raise funds for the prison. Eventually, to discourage most visitors, the fee was increased.
Besides the history of the place, its best known locally for the statue of a colonial soldier atop the apex. For disputed reasons, this figure is called "Copper John".
[edit] Notable inmates
- Robert Chambers, the "preppy murderer"
[edit] The Auburn system
In contrast with the purely reformatory type prison instituted in Pennsylvania, introduced by the Quakers, the Auburn System modified the schedule of prayer, contemplation, and humane conditions with work.
Prisoners were compelled to work during the day, and the profit of their labor helped to support the prison. Prisoners were segregated by type of criminality into different locations within the prisons and by the use of special clothing. The traditional prison uniform, consisting of horizontal black and white stripes, originated in Auburn. The prisoners had their heads closely cropped and walked in lines, keeping step with their heads bowed. Each prisoner placed a hand on the shoulder of the person in front to maintain a rigid separation.
There was a communal dining room so that the prisoners could gather together for meals, but a code of silence was enforced harshly at all times by the guards. Thus the inmates worked and ate together, but in complete silence. At night the prisoners were kept in individual cells (even though the original plan called for double cells).
For several decades, this system was adopted by other jurisdictions. This system was also called the "Congregate System." Sing Sing Correctional Facility, also in New York, was built using this system under the supervision of former warden of Auburn, Elam Lynds.
[edit] External links
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New York State Department of Correctional Services prisons | |||
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| Drug Treatment Centers Willard | ||||
| Shock Facilities Lakeview | Monterey | Moriah | Summit | ||||
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| Maximum Security Attica | Auburn | Bedford Hills | Clinton | Coxsackie | Downstate | Eastern | Elmira | Five Points | Great Meadow | Green Haven | Shawangunk | Sing Sing | Southport | Sullivan | Upstate | Wende | ||||
