Charlestown State Prison
Encyclopedia
Charlestown State Prison was a correctional facility in Charlestown, Boston
, Massachusetts
operated by the Massachusetts Department of Correction
. The facility was located between Austin and Washington Streets and in proximity to the Boston and Maine Railroad
tracks that intersected with the Eastern Freight Railroad tracks. Bunker Hill Community College
occupies the site that the prison once occupied.
In 1803 the Massachusetts General Court
passed an act approving the construction of a prison. The prison opened in 1805. In 1828 the construction of a north wing was underway. The construction of the south wing occurred in 1850. In 1853 the Legislature of Massachusetts voted to build a prison to replace Charlestown. The prison's space increased as time passed. By 1867 the state converted a guardroom into hundreds of prison cells. On the morning of April 10, 1873, an Englishman named William Patterson, who was incarcerated for burglary, stabbed a turnkey named John E. Shaw. Shaw's injuries were so severe that he was not expected to live.
The new prison, MCI Concord, opened in May 1878. Many prisoners were transferred to the new prison. Governor of Massachusetts
George D. Robinson
signed a bill ordering prisoners to be moved back to Charlestown on May 21, 1884. In 1886 the west wing, with nearly 60 cells, was built in Charlestown. In 1890 a prisoner named Moore escaped. During the same year "Chicken" Walsh, another prisoner, made an unsuccessful attempt to escape. At a later point a prison riot occurred. In 19
By 1903, of the prisoners at Charlestown, 75 were in life imprisonment
, 54 had varying terms, and 863 were held under minimum and maximum sentence forms. In 1920 Charlestown began manufacturing and issuing license plates. The prison closed in November 1955, and prisoners were moved to other facilities.
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
operated by the Massachusetts Department of Correction
Massachusetts Department of Correction
The Massachusetts Department of Correction is responsible for operating the prison system of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, US Massachusetts houses over 11,500 inmates throughout 18 correctional facilities and employs over 5,000 employees...
. The facility was located between Austin and Washington Streets and in proximity to the Boston and Maine Railroad
Boston and Maine Railroad
The Boston and Maine Corporation , known as the Boston and Maine Railroad until 1964, was the dominant railroad of the northern New England region of the United States for a century...
tracks that intersected with the Eastern Freight Railroad tracks. Bunker Hill Community College
Bunker Hill Community College
Bunker Hill Community College is a two-year community college located in Charlestown, Boston, Massachusetts. It is an urban campus with over 10,000 students. Six in ten students are people of color and more than half of all students are women. There are 650 international students attending BHCC;...
occupies the site that the prison once occupied.
In 1803 the Massachusetts General Court
Massachusetts General Court
The Massachusetts General Court is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the Colonial Era, when this body also sat in judgment of judicial appeals cases...
passed an act approving the construction of a prison. The prison opened in 1805. In 1828 the construction of a north wing was underway. The construction of the south wing occurred in 1850. In 1853 the Legislature of Massachusetts voted to build a prison to replace Charlestown. The prison's space increased as time passed. By 1867 the state converted a guardroom into hundreds of prison cells. On the morning of April 10, 1873, an Englishman named William Patterson, who was incarcerated for burglary, stabbed a turnkey named John E. Shaw. Shaw's injuries were so severe that he was not expected to live.
The new prison, MCI Concord, opened in May 1878. Many prisoners were transferred to the new prison. Governor of Massachusetts
Governor of Massachusetts
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the executive magistrate of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The current governor is Democrat Deval Patrick.-Constitutional role:...
George D. Robinson
George D. Robinson
George Dexter Robinson -Biography:He was born in Lexington, Massachusetts. He attended Lexington Academy and Hopkins Classical School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and graduated from Harvard University in 1856. While at Harvard he was admitted to the Zeta Psi fraternity...
signed a bill ordering prisoners to be moved back to Charlestown on May 21, 1884. In 1886 the west wing, with nearly 60 cells, was built in Charlestown. In 1890 a prisoner named Moore escaped. During the same year "Chicken" Walsh, another prisoner, made an unsuccessful attempt to escape. At a later point a prison riot occurred. In 19
By 1903, of the prisoners at Charlestown, 75 were in life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
, 54 had varying terms, and 863 were held under minimum and maximum sentence forms. In 1920 Charlestown began manufacturing and issuing license plates. The prison closed in November 1955, and prisoners were moved to other facilities.