Published by Haunted America
A Division of The History Press
Charleston, SC
www.historypress.com
Copyright 2019 by Bob Davis and Brian Clune
All rights reserved
All images are from the authors collection unless otherwise noted.
First published 2019
e-book edition 2019
ISBN 978.1.43966.812.2
Library of Congress Control Number: 2019943363
print edition ISBN 978.1.46714.387.5
Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the authors or The History Press. The authors and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Ash and Laurel Blackwell were with us that first night we spent on Alcatraz. Ash had one of the most terrifying events any of us have had happen to us while investigating the medical isolation ward, and none of us shall ever forget what occurredor him. For that, we dedicate this book to him and Laurel. They are both family and always will be.
This modern welcome greets visitors when first arriving on Alcatraz.
The public never wanted to know the real Alcatraz. Even today, after the prison has been closed for so many decades, the public just wont let go of the myths.
Philip Bergan, former captain of the guards
FOREWORD
Ask anyone whos ever visited Alcatraz; theres no question that it is haunted. In fact, many people consider it to be one of the most haunted places in the United States. You only have to look at both the islands and the former federal prisons history to find good reason for this. Is it any wonder that there are a number of books about Alcatraz? That said, Ghosts and Legends of Alcatraz is my favorite. There are two reasons for this: it was written by my friends Brian Clune and Bob Davis, and its a damn good book.
Historians/paranormal research investigators Brian Clune and Bob Davis are two of only a very few writers who could have tackled a book such as Ghosts and Legends of Alcatraz. After just a few pages, youll realize that this is not an Alcatraz fluff piece but a thoroughly researched book. Many writers cover history very well. Many writers cover the paranormal very well. Brian and Bob are the rare writers who do both. They skillfully blend the historic with the paranormal aspects of Alcatraz so that one does not overshadow the other. And as a writer, I can tell you that this is no easy task.
As an avid reader of regional ghost/history books, I have read Brian and Bobs other books, Ghosts of the Queen Mary, Haunted San Pedro and Haunted Universal Studios. In Ghosts and Legends of Alcatraz, they again write a book that incorporates the three important components that readers want in a book: it should be informative, accurate and entertaining.
There are no delusions regarding the cons who called Alcatraz home. Brian and Bob set the record straight. In the 1962 film The Birdman of Alcatraz, actor Burt Lancasters portrayal of the Birdman, Robert Stroud, garners sympathy for the kindhearted amateur ornithologist. Nice, but not true. Ghosts and Legends of Alcatraz will enlighten you on the real Robert Stroud, who was nothing like Lancasters character. Admittedly, the Birdman always seemed rather creepy to me, and I was surprised to learn that he had written two books while in Alcatraz. Both books were published posthumously. For some writers, that might be just as well. Having not read Strouds books, I cannot say if this is the case. I can say that while Brian and Bob tell of Strouds, Al Capones and Alvin Creepy Karpiss haunting their old stomping grounds, they admirably step away from trying to answer the old question, Why would someone haunt a place they hated? They eloquently state, I dont know. And what can be more honest than that?
While sharing the ghostly experiences of others, Brian and Bob do not try to analyze those experiences. They present the stories without obtrusively categorizing the ghosts and hauntings as they go along. I like that in a book, and I bet I am not alone in this regard. Tell me the stories; spare me the paranormal psychoanalysis. With apologies, I borrow from the Bard and will ask, whats in a name? That which we call a ghost by any other name would haunt as effectively.
When I read a book about history/hauntings, I dont want to read pretentious hair-splitting categorizing of the ghost in residence. I want to read about the ghosts. How do they appear? What are they doing, saying or not? Inform me, entertain me and be accurate while doing so. In Ghosts and Legends of Alcatraz, Brian and Bob do. I know this because I, too, have visited Alcatraz overnight and experienced its ghosts.
The first time I saw Alcatraz, I was a child, and it was still very much a federal prison. My family and I were on one of the Red and White Fleet boats that skirted the island, careful to keep the legal distance, lest any athletic inmate swim out and commandeer our boat. Of course, that wasnt going to happen. But I allowed myself to believe it possible. Because after all, I knew some very bad men were housed there. I didnt watch Eliot Ness and all those other crime fighters on the familys twenty-one-inch black-andwhite Zenith for nothing.
It would be several years before I was able to actually spend the night on Alcatraz, and it was a streak of luck that put me there. At that time, there was something like a raffle system, and groups could put their name in the hat. Only so many were drawn. If you were the lucky winner, you paid about $1,500 to spend the night on the island with your group. The date you were to do so was written in stone. If you couldnt or wouldnt take your assigned date, you lost out. I was fortunate that a friend won and invited me, Mark and Debby Constantino, Patrick Burns and a group of San Francisco ghost hunters to spend the night. I traveled down to San Francisco with Mark and Debby and was ready for a great investigation. And there I was, in Al Capones cell, calling to the old crime boss to speak into my recorder. He didnt. Neither did the Birdman or any other con. I didnt blame them too much. I was here of my own free will, and they were there through no choice of their own. Unlike the cons, I could walk up to the building assigned for a snack anytime I wanted. Standing on the old worn-out linoleum floor of the cafeteria, I thought of the food served here and the men who either ate it or went hungry. This was not a posh place of penitence. This was a place of punishment. If you did the crime, you were going to do the time. And it wasnt going to be pleasantly spent but rather in a cell no bigger than most peoples linen closet.
