Folsom State Prison

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Folsom State Prison, sometimes known as Folsom State Prison, Represa, is one of 33 prisons operated by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). Folsom Prison is located in Folsom, California (with a postal address in Represa) in Sacramento County, 20 miles (30 km) from the state capital of Sacramento, California, USA.

As of the United States 2000 Census, Folsom Prison and the California State Prison - Sacramento (the two prisons with addresses in Represa) had a combined inmate population of 7,246 housed at level 1 and 2 security, the two lowest levels of security for prisons operated by the CDC. Level 1 prisoners are housed in open dormitories without a secure perimeter, and Level 2 prisoners may be housed in open dormitories with secure perimeter fences and armed guard coverage. However, there are no dormitories within the Folsom Prison secure perimeter, and prisoners are housed in two-man cells. In 2004 the majority of level 2 prisoners were moved to other prisons and level 3 prisoners took their place. Folsom Prison's population in early 2005 was approximately 3,400.

There are five housing units within the secure perimeter, including the original two-tiered structure. Unit 1 is the most populous cellblock in the United States, with a capacity of nearly 1,200 inmates on four five-tiered sections.

All cells include toilet, sink, bunks, and storage space for inmate possessions. There are two dining halls, a large central prison exercise yard, and two smaller exercise yards. The visiting room includes an attached patio as well as space for non-contact visits.

Folsom Prison is California's second-oldest prison, long known for its harsh conditions in the decades following the California Gold Rush. Prison construction began in 1878 on the site of the Stony Bar mining camp along the American River. The prison officially opened in 1880. Inmates spent most of their time in the dark behind solid boiler plate doors in stone cells measuring 4 feet by 8 feet (1.2 by 2.4 m) with 6 inch (150 mm) eye slots. Air holes were drilled into the cell doors in the 1940s, and the cell doors are still in use today.

Folsom was the first prison in the world to have electric power, which was provided by the first hydroelectric powerhouse in California. The quarry at Folsom Prison provided granite for the foundation of the state capitol and much of the gravel used in the early construction of California's roads.

Although Folsom Prison now houses primarily medium security prisoners, Folsom was one of America's first maximum-security prisons; a total of 93 prisoners were hanged at Folsom Prison between December 13, 1895, and December 3, 1937. After that time executions were carried out in the gas chamber at California's San Quentin Prison.

Folsom Prison was made known to the outside world by country rock music singer Johnny Cash, who narrated a fictional account of an outlaw's incarceration in his song "Folsom Prison Blues" (1956), and who performed a live concert at Folsom Prison in 1968, simultaneously recording the album Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison. Contrary to popular belief, Cash was never himself incarcerated in this or any state or federal prison, although he did spend an occasional night in county jails, including on one occasion for possession of illegal drugs.

Folsom Prison has been the location of a number of feature films, including Riot in Cell Block 11, American Me, The Jericho Mile, Another 48 Hours, Diggstown, parts of Walk the Line (a biopic of Johnny Cash), and Inside the Walls of Folsom Prison, which was the inspiration for Cash's song. The television drama 21 Jump Street also featured Folsom Prison when Johnny Depp's character Tom Hanson was imprisoned for murder.

A warden of Folsom Prison, Clarence Larkin, was stabbed during an escape attempt in 1937 and he died from his wounds, becoming the only California warden to be killed in the line of duty. Violence at the prison peaked during the 1970s and 1980s when the Aryan Brotherhood and other prison gangs made prisons increasingly dangerous. The establishment of Secure Housing Units, first at the California State Prison, Sacramento, and later at Pelican Bay State Prison and California State Prison, Corcoran, did much to control gang-related violence.

California's vehicle license plates have been manufactured at Folsom Prison since the 1930s. Other prison industries include metal fabrication and a print shop.

A museum is located on the prison grounds, which is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is also a shop with inmate-made handicrafts for sale to the public. The gift shop is open five days a week, but it is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Famous men who were incarcerated at Folsom Prison include Charles Manson, musician Rick James, and Death Row Records owner Suge Knight.

[edit] Other Cultural References

Folsom Prison is referred to in the song Walla Walla on their 1998 album Americana by American Punk rock band The Offspring, "Folsom prison is the destination".