Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

“Here Is Where Al Capone And A Few Others Are Spending Their Vacations?” : Tracing How Alcatraz Was Portrayed In Postcards, 1924-1971, Franchesica Kidd

Student Projects from the Archives

Between the 1920s and the 1970s and as Alcatraz was decommissioned as a federal prison and bloomed into a booming tourist industry, the Rock saw a change in the way that the postcard industry portrayed it via photos on the back of postcards. As time went on, Alcatraz was depicted more as a tourist hotspot than a warning place to stay out of. Photo postcards of Alcatraz shifted from black and white photos and printed photos toward lively colored photos that had the message “Wish You Were Here!” printed on them, suggesting a cultural shift in attitude toward this notorious …