Smithsonian Magazine - 11.2019

p rologue

THE PAST IS

November 2019 | SMITHSONIAN.COM 9

Alcatraz Island, home to the nation’s most notorious pen, was the site of a crucial civil rights battle 50 years ago.

By

Ben Crair

SHUTTERSTOCK

Captivated

The old prison in San

Francisco Bay and its peculiar

hold on our imagination

AMERICAN ICON