Images and Realities of A Nineteenth-Century American Prison

Manufacturing Moral Reform: Images and Realities of a Nineteenth-Century American Prison
Author(s): Elaine Jackson-Retondo

Source: Perspectives in Vernacular Architecture, Vol. 8, People, Power, Places (2000), pp. 117-137
Published by: Vernacular Architecture Forum

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CHAPTER
ElaineJackson-Retondo
ManufacturingMoral Reform:Images
and Realitiesof a Nineteenth-Century
AmericanPrison
On an early summerafternoonin 1831 James mon landscape of casual didactic entertainment.

Whittier, a young banker'sapprenticein Boston, The interestof thetriowas not unusual; had they
set forthwithtwo companionsin searchof enter- been preparedto remitthe fee theywould have
tainment.They venturedfirstto the commons, added to thethousandsof visitorswho touredthe
foundnothingto theirliking,thenproceeded to stateprisonannually.2A varietyofpeople, includ-
thenavyyardin Charlestownto tourtheman-of- ing local citizens and foreign dignitaries like
war Columbia.Stillin wantoffurther distractions, GustaveBeaumontand Alexisde Tocqueville,vis-
thethreeyoungmenwalked down theroad to the itedtheinstitution.
LikeJamesWhittier, manyalso
state prison with the intentionof taking a tour. touredotherlocal attractions.
Upon arrival,theyunexpectedlyencounteredan Guidebooks to thecityof Bostonprovidedthe
entrancefee of twenty-five cents per visitor.Un- potentialprisontouristwithdetaileddescriptions
willingto pay, theyleftwiththeircuriositiesun- and highpointsof prison tours.3R. L. Midgley's
fulfilled,walked across Prison Point Bridge to 1856 Guideto Bostonand Suburbsnotonlytold
LechmerePoint, and concluded theirday at the potentialvisitorswhat theymightsee at the Mas-
Glass House (fig. 7.1).1 The path traveled by sachusettsStatePrison,but also suggestedhow to
Whittierand his friendsduringthisone afternoon interpretwhat theywould experience:"A visitto
unitedfourotherwiseunrelatedplaces intoa com- theworkrooms,comprisingtheshoemaking,whip
118 Elaine Jackson-Retondo
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i'
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".,..,,. ,,.:n."
-
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' ;! ; -
.. . " ,... -- . .
Fig. 7.1. CharlestownPeninsula,1818. Courtesyof AmericanAntiquarianSociety.
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 119
making, cabinet making, stone cutting,black- formtheoryand therealitiesof prisonexperience,

smithing, upholstering and otherdepartments, gen- space, and form.Prisonworkshopsand theways
the
erallypleases visitor, and calls forthencomiums variousactorsinteractedwithand experiencedthe
forthestillness,orderand cleanlinessobserved."4 prisonare at theforefront of the discussion.
But not all visitors,nor thosedirectlyinvolved The most well-knownaccounts of reformed
in theinstitutional routine,interpreted theirprison prisonswere seminalinterpretations writtendur-
experiencesthrough the lens of guidebook boos- ing the 1970s (David Rothman,1971; MichelFou-
terismor reformrhetoric. cault, 1975; Michael Ignatieff,1978).7 In these
BritishauthorJohnRoss Dix, forexample,of- works, the longstandinginterpretive model that
fereda different interpretation ofthemanufactur- had explained nineteenth-century prisons and
ing scene in his book Local Loiteringsand Visits prison reform in terms of humanitarian intentions
in the Vicinityof Boston, which he publishedin "compoundedby unintendedconsequences" was
1845 underthepseudonymof "a looker-on."5 Af- abandoned foran approach gearedtowardanaly-
ter a visitto the MassachusettsStatePrison,Dix sis of the relationshipnineteenth-century prison
wrote: "Here were heaps of furniture in different reforms had to political,economic,and socialstruc-
stagesof manufacture;and ifthe men about had tures.8Buildingupon the social theoriesof Emile
notworntheprisondress,I shouldhave imagined Durkheim,KarlMarx,Max Weber,as wellas other
myselfto have been in a cabinetmaker'swhole- theorists,Rothman,Ignatieff, and Foucault con-
sale establishment. All aroundwereworkshopsof nectedpunishmentpracticesto largersocial pat-
different trades."6Unlayeredwithsymbolicinter- ternsofinteraction, domination,and power.While
pretation,thesceneis presentedforwhat itwas: a the methodologiesof theseworks continueto in-
commercial enterprise operatingwithintheconfines fluenceacademic discourse,the evidencefor the
of a penal institution. threeinterpretations is derivedprimarilyfromex-
The workshopswerearguablythemostdynamic traordinary circumstances and theidealizedforms
spaces withinthe prison.Here reformers'beliefs, and theoriespresentedin reformliterature.Daily
thepublicview of ordinarycitizens,and theinter- practice,actual built environment, and everyday
estsof officials,legislators,convicts,and indepen- of
experience prisons fall through the analytical
dentcontractorsdovetailedto determinethedaily frameworks.
interactionsand practicesof both the workshops The MassachusettsStatePrisonat Charlestown
and theinstitution at large.Yetscholarshipregard- was a physical product of interestsfounded in
ingnineteenth-century prisonsoftenlimitsitselfto prison reformideals, democraticprinciples,cul-
theidealizedformsand thetheoretical relationship tural ethics,public sensibilities,previousefforts,
of the inmateto prisonauthoritypresentedin re- and a capitalisteconomy.9Withinthaticon of so-
formliterature.Beyond these therewere under- cial ordertheseintertwined interestscollided and
represented spaces like the workshops and at timesconflictedwith one another,creatinga
unprescribedexperiences and interactionsthat complexreality.This prisonand otherslikeitwere
playedan importantrolein theconstitution ofthe at once emblemsof a progressivehumanesociety
prison landscape. This chapteranalyzes the dis- and places of manufacturebased upon a regres-
paritybetweenan imageoftheprisonbased in re- For theconvicts,the
sivesystemofpenal slavery.1o
prison was home, workplace,house of worship, Prisonat Charlestowncommencedduringtheearly

and bothbarrierfromand conduitto liberty. Prison stages of European and Americanpenal reform.
officers,too, experienced the institutionas work- Theoreticalunderpinnings and initiativefornine-
place and as home in manycases. To the average teenth-century prisonreformare usuallyidentified
citizen,the prisonwas a cloisteredenvironment, withMilanese juristCesare Beccariaand his brief
experiencedfromafar,althoughforsome,such as yet influentialwork, "An Essay on Crimes and
JamesWhittier, a paid feeopened thecuriosityfor Punishment(1764)," and JohnHoward's Stateof
public view. the Prisons in England and Wales (1777).12 Bec-
The observationsofJohnDix and JamesWhit- caria'streatiseofferedtheoreticalbasis,means,and
tier'sdiaryentryrevealways in whichprisonsex- goals for reform, while Howard's concerns
istedin thenineteenth-century UnitedStates.Dix's identifiedmaterialgoals that would distinguish
descriptionpresentsevidence that structuresof prisons of the past fromthose of the nineteenth
everydaylifepermeatedthe theoretically isolated century.The influenceof thetwo workscould be
specializedlandscapeoftheprison.Whittier's sum- seen in the reformrhetoric,prisondiscipline,and
mary of the eventsof a summer afternoon frames sitingoftheMassachusettsStatePrisonat Charles-
the prisonin a nonpenalrealmof existence.And townas wellas othernineteenth-century penalinsti-
both representthe real life experienceordinary tutions.However,Beccaria'streatiseand Howard's
peoplehad withtheinstitution. Othersexperienced recommendationswould have fallen upon deaf
theprisonthroughindirectmeans:newsaccounts, Americanears ifthecatalystsforchangehad not
which oftenfocusedupon the spectacularevents alreadybeen presentin theculture.
of escape, inmateviolence,and insurrection; nov- More thana decade priorto thecreationof the
els and didacticchildren'sstories;social commen- Charlestownprison,Massachusettsfaced serious
tariessuchas CharlesDickens'sAmericanNotes;11 economic difficulties and a seeminglyuncontrol-
and magazines, including Niles Register and lable increasein antisocialand amoral behavior.
Gleason and Ballou's DrawingRoom Companion. In 1784 statelegislatorsfoundthatit had become
These sourcesgenerallypresentedone-dimensional "necessaryto thesafetyoftheindustriousinhabit-
opaque depictionsoftheinstitution. Althoughthe antsoftheCommonwealth,to providesomeplace
simplisticrepresentations offereda different inter- otherthan common gaols, forthe receptionand
action betweenviewerand subjectthanan actual confinement to hardlabor ofpersonsconvictedof
visitprovided,theydid constitutethe sole means larcenies,and otherinfamouscrimes."The mili-
of prisonexperienceformany.A varietyofpeople taryoutpostknownas CastleIsland,locateda few
encountered theprisonthroughdifferent meansfor milesoffthe South Boston shore,was designated
a varietyof purposes.Their multipleperceptions as the place of confinement forthis new class of
varied in relation to each person's identityand convictsand would become Massachusetts'sfirst
physicalproximityto the prison.The diverseex- stateprison(figs.7.2, 7.3).13
periences,interactions, interpretations,and inter- The use of an activegarrisonto detaincivilian
ests transformedthe prison frombuildingsand prisonerswas notfarremovedfromthelong-stand-
space to complexculturallandscape. ing use of commonjails forprisonersof war.The
The 1797 plans for the Massachusetts State functionof theprisonwas, however,new.14Colo-
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 121
J~ I
TL -2t Fs EN _ _
.Vd__
3>a
Aw,
o 1:z-..',
(~ .q-aZZ
lie
Yk
Mw
ni1
O Dr
4L
4
ICU k
Fig.7.2. "BostonetsesEnvirons,
1780." Courtesy
ofAmerican
Antiquarian
Society.
nial jails had primarilybeen used forthe detain-

mentof those awaitingtrialor sentencing,those
unable to pay theirfeesfordetainment, and debt-
ors. A place, owned and operatedbythestate,for
thereceptionof convictedcriminalshad neverex-
istedin MassachusettsuntilCastle Island."5
Massachusetts'sfirststate prisonwould even-
tuallyprovea short-lived experimentin early-nine-
teenth-century prison reform.Little time passed Fig.7.3. ViewCastleIsland,1789. Courtesy
of
beforethe inadequacies of the ad hoc accommo- American AntiquarianSociety.
dationswere realized.In 1785 a legislativecom-
mitteevisitedthe island prison and declaredthe ventilationand lightbe built,"togetherwithout
"bomb-proof,"16 which served as the prisoners' houses and workshopsas may be necessaryfor
barracks,unhealthful and resolvedthatan appro- accommodationand employmentto the greatest
priatebuildingsufficientlystrongand withproper advantageof said convicts."'7Twelve yearsafter
the firstprisonerswere sentencedto the garrison, sachusettsState was designedto accommodatea

Castle Island was ceded to thefederalgovernment systemof grouplabor duringtheday and solitary
and thestate'sprisoners,who previouslyhad been confinement at nightby providinga free-standing
identifiedas too dangerousand theircrimestoo workshop (for which thereis littleinformation)
infamousforlocal jail detainment, weresentback and layingout the "principalbuilding"withsoli-
to theseplaces of confinement. tarycells.In thisrespecttheproposalclearlyforged
Less thanthreeyearsaftertheclosure,a legisla- ahead ofexistingpractices.Twentyyearslaterthis
tivecommitteewas appointedto "selectand pro- penologicaltheorywould be "codifiedas the'Au-
curea piece of land in Charlestownto erecta State burnsystem."'22
Prisonthereon.""18 As successorto the island ex- While elementsof Bulfinch'sproposal would
periment, the new prisonbecame an opportunity have beenregardedas progressive, theoveralllay-
to not only reestablisha stateprisonin the com- out and massing of the principalbuildingwere
monwealthbut also a chance to incorporatenew older institutionalforms.Bulfinchhad proposed
ideas about criminalcontroland possiblyredeem twothree-story single-loadedwingsofsolitarycells
Massachusetts'seffortsin prisonreform."9 In No- arrangedcolinearly about a centraladministrative
vember1800 the state legislatureapproved pay- pavilion.23The designwas acceptedwithrevisions.
ment of two thousand dollars for a large lot at The widthof thestructure was doubled in a man-
Lynde'sPoint,and CharlesBulfinch was appointed ner thatcreateddouble-loadedcorridorsof cells.
for
"agent building the stateprison"on thismarshy Anotherfloorwas added, and the more progres-
pieceofland thatwould eventuallybecomeknown sive solitarycells,whichbecameprominentin the
as PrisonPoint.20 1820s, wereconstructed onlyon thefirst twofloors
The generalspecificationsforthe prison'sde- with group nightrooms,a spatial divisionremi-
sign,issued by the state legislature,requestedan niscentof older institutions, constructedon the
enclosurelarge enough to include the "principal subsequentlevels.Unfortunately, thewindowson
buildingor prisonin itsfinishedstate,withthedif- the lower two floorswere also eliminatedand
ferentworkshops,& othernecessarybuildings" "small apertures"were insteadprovided,signifi-
and the constructionof "partitionwalls of such cantlyreducingthechanceofescape butalso mini-
materials,& the Rooms of such dimensions,and mizingtheadmittanceoflightand ventilation(fig.
in suchsituations,as willin theirjudgment,be best 7.4 and 7.5).24
adapted to the purposes of safe confinement& The underlyingintentionsof Bulfinch'sdesign
penitentiary reformation." The outsidewalls ofthe werecompromisedbythechanges.He had planned
"principal building or prison" were to be con- theprisonwiththeintentthatitwould make pos-
structedout of stoneand builtsufficiently largeto sible the moral reformation of the state inmates.
house one hundredconvictsand designedin such This goal, theefforts towardachievingit,and the
a mannerto allow foreasy enlargement.21 requisitechanges culminated in a prisonrepresen-
Withinthese parameters,Bulfinchproposed a tativeof both continuityand change in its form,
designthat incorporatedleading penitentiary re- spatialdivisions,and dailypractices.Bulfinchcap-
formtheoryas well as hisown stylistic preferences, turedthischaracteristic, perhapsunintentionally,
whichwererootedin Englishneoclassicism.Mas- he had hopedto have inscribed
withtheinscription
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 123
b-i
,, "-,,
~
IL:
.4 _.
.
Fig. 7.4. Plan of principalbuildingat MassachusettsStatePrison,Charlestown.Courtesyof MassachusettsState

Archives.
*11 -- ", -4
--
ie
,
! -
XF.- A L
L7-
Fig. 7.5. Elevationof principalbuildingat MassachusettsStatePrisonCharlestown,by Samuel Etheridge,1806.

Courtesyof BostonAthenaeum.
above themainentry:"Correction.Reformation." populousand wealthycommunity, will be dis-

Correctionwas a goal that belongedto the past, covereduponsatisfactory evidence,in thepro-
whilereformation and the beliefthatarchitecture of now
gress theexperiment commencing within
could aid the process reflectednew theoriesand thisState... Whathas beenknown,ofthenu-
intentionstowardcrimeand punishment. merous collections
ofdesperate criminals,oftheir
The followingdescriptionoftheMassachusetts dangerousoutragesand insurrections, and of
prison,whichappearedinvariousstatedocuments, otherdistressing
circumstances, which have oc-
providesa senseoftheinstitution'ssituationat the curredintheplacesofconfinement inotherStates,
mouth of the Charles River and the principal wherethepunishment ofdeathhasbeensuddenly
building'soriginalform. and almostindiscriminately abolishedsuggests
many inducements to a more deliberate proce-
TheMassachusetts State-Prison, orPenitentiary, dureon thepresent occasion.26
standson thewesternmost pointof thepenin-
sulaofCharlestown, atLynde's Point,a pleasant Spatialseparationofprisonersbecametheover-
andhealthfulspot,commanding a richvariegated ridingformalsupportto criminalreformation and
andextensive prospect. Thewallwhichencloses secure detainmentthroughoutthe United States.
it,is washedon thewest and northsidesbythe This newclass ofprisoner,
theiralmostinstantlarge
tidewaters.This building[theprincipalbuild- numbers,and reformers' focus on physicalisola-
in1804-05,istwohundred
ing],erected feetlong tionand "moralarchitecture" shapednew prisons
byforty fourwide.Thetwowingsareeachfour that were distinctivephysicalentities.27
Stacked
stories, centre
the fivestories... Theouterwalls rowsofpurpose-built cells
therapeutic surrounded
arefour,and thepartition wallstwofeetthick. by "frowningwalls" stood as both a "silentyet
Eachcellhastwoopenings fortheadmission of
air and light;eachtwo feetin heightand four
incheswide.25
Additional details about the impressivesize,

weightand quantityof stoneworkand ironwere
offeredas assurancethatthenew stateprisonwas
both imperviousand healthy.Officialsfeltcom-
pelled to reassurethe public that concentrating
prisonerswhosecrimespreviously wouldhavebeen
consideredcapitaloffensesin one place would not
pose an increaseddangerto the freepopulation.
These concernsare worthquotingat length:
To whatextentthisindulgence Fig.7.6. ViewofMassachusettsStatePrison,

[abolishing
capi- Charlestown. Illustration
fromtheAmerican
talpunishment
forRobbery, andArson]
Burglary Magazine,Oct.-Dec.,1837. CourtesyofBoston
withthesafety
mayprevail,consistently ofthis Athenaeum.
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 125
impressivemonitor,remindingthe evil doer that thespecifics

oftheshopsforothersto decide:"And
theway of transgression is hard" and as a symbol thesaid Agentsare furtherdirectedto erectwithin
of a well-orderedsocial landscape whereall were thearea aforesaid,a numberofworkshopsofstone
treatedwith humanity.28 The prison'sgeographi- or bricksufficientforthe use and employmentof
cal location and cell size, placementwithinthe the different
kindsoftrades."29
buildingshell,and juxtapositionto theguardroom The structures
neededforblacksmithing, brush-
were the physicalelementsthat gained the most making,cabinetmaking, cordwainery, coopering,
attentionfromreformersand architectsin their stonecutting, weaving,and whipmaking wereestab-
efforts to createtherapeuticenvironments. lishedas utilitarian backdropswithoutspecialreha-
These carefullyplannedfeaturesdid not, how- bilitativeconstruction, space, or form.The shops
ever,exclusivelydefinetheprison.A largeportion were initiallyhoused underone roofwithinterior
of the prison'sphysicalenvironment consistedof partitionsseparatingthetrades.Some of the more
ordinary and residualspace that accommodated con- space-consumingactivitiestook place in the sur-
vict labor and otherdaily activities.A legislative roundingyard.The originalworkshopstructure at
mandaterequiringprisonersto labor fromsunrise MassachusettsStatewas 122 feetlong by 25 feet
to sunsetmeantthatmostMassachusettsstatepris- wideand twostorieshigh,excludingthebasement.30
onersspentthe majorityof theirwakinghoursin Withinten yearsafterthe institution opened, the
thisrealmand not undertheinfluence of thecare- lengthof theworkshopshad expandedto 227 feet
fullyplanned cells.This was common practiceand in length,nearlydoublingthe originalsquarefoot-
prisonerexperiencein mostcongregateprisons. age (fig7.7). It is worthnotingthatinmatehousing
The 1802 legislationthatestablishedtheparam- receivedno increaseduringthesame timeframe.
etersforthe prison'sbuildingswas specificabout Reformers prescribed workshopsas placeswhere
the, size, materials,and spatial divisionsfor the prisoners could learna marketable skilland steady
principalbuildingcontainingthe cells, but it left habitsof industry, thecure fortheirpropensity to
_?
I o1-
!
j
BI I <
?:~~
~ilrul3Pcg tow.
F;. -
Fig.7.7. Elevation
ofworkshops
at Massachusetts
StatePrison,Charlestown. ofMassachusetts
Courtesy State
Archives.
idleness,whichwasthefirst stepdowntheslippery portunity definedby each participant's personal

slopetoward intemperance andfinally crime. Inprac- interest andpositionwithintheprisonapparatus.
tice,however, opportunities forprofit replacedre- Prisonsbecameplacesofopportunity forcontrac-
formtheories. Convicts wererarely giventhetime torsto makemoneythrough theuse ofcheapla-
or instruction to master a skillandinsteadlearned bor.Outsidecontractors wereallowedto setup
patterns ofshiftlessness as they weremovedbetween shopinsidetheprison.Theywereprovidedwith
trades on
depending profit margins andthecontracts convictlaborersfora below-market dailyrateif
thewardenwasabletoobtain.Administrators were thiswas themostprofitable arrangement forthe
open about the motivating economic factors in their prison, such was the case for brushmaking and
decisions.In 1807 thewardenreported thatthe whitesmithing. If an outsidecontractor's opera-
making of screws and augers was not profitable.31 tionprovedespecially lucrative,then the state took
He therefore recommended thattheyno longeren- overthetrade,bought therawmaterials, andover-
gage in this If
activity. the market for a product dried saw production.Stonecutting, which was the
up,suchas nail-making after theWarof1812,then prison'sbiggestprofit-making activity duringthe
theoperation was shutdownand theinmates as- nineteenth century, followed this pattern.
signedto another task. Evidencesoon showedthatmanufacturing ac-
Prisoners who werediligentefficient workers tivities and thecompartmentalized shoparrange-
could,at different pointsinthehistory oftheinsti- mentsallowed prisonersto definetheirown
tution, earna smallshareoftheprofits fromtheir opportunities. Convicts wereroutinely foundwith
labor.Motivating prisoners tomeettheirdailyquo- weapons,falsekeys,and counterfeiting plates
taswasattimesdifficult, andsomeprisoners rushed handmadein theshopsand withcrowbarsand
through theirworkwiththehopeofidlingawaythe othertoolsofescapestolenfromtheshops.33 The
remainder ofthetimesetasidetolabor.Responding congregatearrangement necessary for efficient
witha typical sanction ofsolitary confinement was manufacturing also providedopportunities for
notconducive toproduction. Anincentive was, there- communication, organization, and insurrection.
fore,offered to constructively addresstheseissues. CharlesDickensdescribed thistypeof manufac-
Theprison established accounts foreachconvict who turingenvironment in thefollowing terms:"The
produced moregoodsthanwerenecessary tocover noiseoftheloom,theforge, thecarpenter's ham-
hiscosts.Eachprisoner wassupposedtoreceive the mer,or thestonemason's saw,greatly favor those
moneyfromthisaccountuponreleasefromthein- opportunities ofintercourse-hurried andbrief no
stitution,provided he never required discipline dur- but
doubt, opportunities still-which theseseveral
ing confinement. The numberof prisoners who kindsofwork, byrendering itnecessary formen
actually received all that they earned is not clear.In to be employed very near to each other and often
1807,theBoardofVisitors votedto provideone side bysidewithoutanybarrieror partition be-
prisoner with $8.80 of the $48.80 he had earned. tween them, in their very nature present."34
The Boardkepttherestas profit forthecommon- Officers at theMassachusetts StatePrisonex-
This
wealth.32 particular case seems to be a typical perienced the resultsof such "collaboration" more
one duringtheearlyyearsof theprison. thanonceduringtheprison'shistory. One ofthe
Prison manufacturing
was a landscape of op- more seriousincidentsresultedin the destruction
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 127
of an entireworkshopthroughan act of arson. mentedin theworkshops.However,theopen floor

This nearinsurrection occurredin 1822, thesame plan identifiedbytheDisciplineSocietyas superior
year that Boston mayoralcandidateJosiahQuincy forsurveillance did notcompromisemanufacturing
accused the prisonadministration of obfuscating efficiency.The new work sheds,whichcloselyre-
rehabilitationgoals with an "undue regard for sembledothercontemporary workshopsin overall
profit."35Two yearslatera near insurrection oc- form, were built exclusively for the prison's
curredwithprisoners rushing "from the workshops stonecutting operation.The decisionto use an open
armingthemselveswith clubs, knives,hammers, floorplan forthenew workshedresultedfromthe
chiselsand everyvarietyof weapon withintheir amountof space neededto handlethe ashlarma-
reach."36The wardenquicklyjudgedthe uprising sonry.Theseutilitarian needsdovetailednicelywith
beyondhis abilityto resolveand called in thema- thedesireforvisualsurveillance in determiningthe
rines and theircommander,Major Wainwright, stoneshedlayout(fig7.8). Additionalexisting work-
who were stationedat the navy yard. The rebel- shops forothertrades remained in use uponcomple-
lionwas quelledwithoutbloodshed.However,this tionofthenew stonesheds,resulting in a hybridof
incidentprecipitatedplans to lessenthe opportu- old and newmanufacturing spacetotalingfourtimes
nitiesforrecurrenceof such an incident. thesquarefootageoftheoriginalworkshop.
In 1827 plansto eliminate theunintended oppor- In 1827 an additionalspatial armatureagainst
tunitiesthatconvictsgainedbylaboringintheshops prisonercollaborationwas planned.The individual
were introduced.The focuswas on the builtenvi- cellson thefirstleveloftheoriginalprincipalbuild-
ronment.Insteadofpartitioning laboringprisoners ingwereused forsolitaryconfinement ofnew and
fromone another, as suggestedbyDickens,thewar- refractory The
prisoners. remainingsixty-two cells
denand BoardofInspectors choseto createa work- weresharedbytheotherconvicts,who likelynum-
shop without partitions anyotherphysicalbarrier
or bered more than 250. These conditions were
thatcouldobscurevisualsurveillance. An 88-by-144- thoughtunacceptablefor many reasons, not the
foot,single-storyopen floorplanwas in 1827
selected least of whichwas an inabilityto closelymonitor
as the physicalremedyagainstthe "evils" of the prisonerinteraction.If each prisonerwere physi-
manufacturing environment.37 In theirsecond an- cally isolated from one another,insurrections
nual reportthePrisonDisciplineSocietyof Boston would be moredifficult to plan. A new granitecell
madefurther suggestions towardregulating theshops block, broadly referred to as the new prison,was
throughspatialarticulation. The generalheadingfor constructedwithprisonlabor and readyfortheir
thestrategy, "A place foreveryman and everyman occupationin 1829.
in his place," projectsthegeneraltone of theirap- The legislativeactionnecessaryfortheconstruc-
proach.38Specificrecommendations forthe shops tion of thenew cells occurredat a timewhen two
includedassigningconvictsto thesameplace in the prisonshad risenas paragonsof Americanprison
shopeveryday and notallowingtheconvictsto face reform,the New York State Penitentiary at Au-
one anotherduringtheirwork."39 Whilethesemeth- burnand EasternStatePenitentiary inPhiladelphia,
ods mayhavehelpedtoprevent communication, they still underconstruction.The proponentsof both
were not conduciveto profitableproductionfor theAuburnand Easternsystemsbelievedthatcom-
manyof the tradesand were therefore not imple- municationamong convictswas dangerous,and
,I'. . ?,
t"/"
i~~
."
'-
i j?
.
AiJ
3~
4 AAOj
Well. ,qi3 ,. . .. '.,,
.1 4,. pAA
viewofthestoneshedat Massachusetts
Fig.7.8. Interior StatePrison,Charlestown.
FromBallou'sPictorial
DrawingRoomCompanion. ofAmerican
Courtesy Antiquarian
Society.
they advocated physical separation, labor, and labor duringtheday.Meals weretakenin theiso-
moralinstruction as essentialelementsin thereha- lationofthecell.Duringcongregateactivitiesstrict
bilitationprocess. Each principlewas assigneda silencewas thedisciplinarycode enforcedthrough
different level of importancein the two models. corporal punishment.The U-shape of Auburn's
EasternState'sseparatesystemaimedto keeppris- main building,which resembledthe eighteenth-
onersin physicalisolationduringtheentirelength centuryWalnutStreetJailin Philadelphia,was not
of theirimprisonment. Labor,meals,and worship as unique as EasternState's.40However,the inte-
wereconductedin isolation.Double-loaded corri- riorlayoutat Auburn-a row ofmultitiered back-
dors of cellsradiatedfroma centralcontrolnode, to-back solitarycells frontingupon multistory
creatinga hub-and-spoke Individual
configuration. galleries-was considered innovative and was
exerciseyardswereplaced adjacentto each of the characterizedas a prisonwithina prison.Through
ground-level cells.Auburn'scongregatesystem,as essays,pamphletliterature,and new prisoncon-
it was referredto by reformerssuch as Samuel struction,proponentsofAuburnand EasternState
GridleyHowe, was structured to housetheinmates Penitentiaries
engagedin an extensivedebateabout
in individualcellsat nightwithgroupworshipand each system'srelativemerits.41
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 129
Pressedby the need to providemore housing The chapel, kitchen,and a schoolroomshared a

foritsconvictsand thedesireto improvetheprison's buildinglocated to the northeastof the original
reputationas a reforminstitution, the Massachu- main building.This buildingwas constructedat
settsStateLegislaturemade a decisiveattemptto thesame timeas thenew cell block and lay imme-
emulatethe Auburnmodel by constructing three diatelyadjacentto it.
hundredsolitarynightcells,threeand one-halffeet In the interimtheinternalarrangement of Bul-
wide,sevenfeetlong,and sevenfeethigh.The de- finch's"principalbuilding" had also undergone
cisionto implement theAuburnsystemwas a rela- numerousrenovationsand serveddifferent func-
tivelyeasy one. Bulfinch'soriginalunaltereddesign tions.The east wingwas guttedand refitted with
fortheprisonforeshadoweda congregatesystem the Auburncellulararrangement. The centralpa-
of operationat theprison,and theexistingsystem vilionoftheBulfinchbuildingstillservedadminis-
of prison disciplineat MassachusettsState most trativepurposesand housed officers. The existing
closelyresembledthatat Auburn.The congruen- cells on the firsttwo levels of the west wing were
cies between Auburn and the state prison at still used forthose sentencedto solitaryconfine-
Charlestownwerereinforced by a dependencyon ment.The uppertwo west-winglevelswere used
a certainlevel of profits,not unattainablein an forthehospitaland forthefemaleprisoners, whose
Eastern State separate system. The warden, daily routineand spatialexperience differedgreatly
Gamaliel Bradford,as well as the Boston Disci- fromtheirmale counterparts.
pline Society,advocated fortheAuburnmodel in Like manyothergeneraldiscoursesof theearly
bothphilosophicaland practicalterms:"a man,if nineteenth century,thesubjectsofprisondiscipline
everagain destinedforsociety,shouldnot,by any theorieswere inherentlymale. Americanfemale
punishment, be disqualifiedforenjoyment and use- convictswerean afterthought in theprocess,often
fulnessin it. But a long confinement in total soli- dealt with on an ad hoc basis and commonly
tudemightdestroyhissocial feelings, and produce housed in residualspaces, such as atticsand older
a sortof stupidapathy,whichwould renderhim portionsof the institutionno longerutilizedfor
veryunfitforan usefulor happymemberof soci- men. At MassachusettsState,women,depending
ety.Thereis one otherobjectionto keepinga con- on the year,representedfromless than 1 percent
vict entirelyalone . . . and that is, as it regards to 7 percentoftheprison'spopulation.Massachu-
labor;andthisobjectionwillapplybothto itsmoral setts'sstate femaleconvicts,in essence,lived an
effect,and to thepecuniaryinterestof the institu- eighteenth-century carceral existencewithin an
tionwherehe may be confined."42 institutionthatembracedand incorporatednine-
Withthecompletionofthestoneshedsand new teenth-century reformprinciplesforits male pris-
cell block,in 1829 theoriginalBulfinchbuildings oners.Femaleprisonersat theMassachusettsState
becamedwarfedsecondarystructures. Many ofthe Prisonin Charlestownwerenotaddressedin 1829
daily operations,originally housed in the princi- renovations. Womenalso figured intheprisonland-
pal building,had been parceledout into separate scape as matrons,visitors,and thewivesofofficers.
buildings(fig.7.9). The wardennow livedin a de- The renovationsofthelate 1820s werethefirst
tached house adjacent to a small fencedyard lo- in a series of projects aimed toward improving
cated to the south of the originalmain building. conditionswithintheprison.Duringthenexttwo
',.- ?
Ir' r ... . .
,,
-
t o .
3L1
? :
"I
,. ; ,t ,,
I
t.,t
-0.,
`I
,v:
.2/ i I l 4', o
~1(
ItI
ct
""
.,, .ti' ",. ,
Ki
Fig. 7.9. 1829 SitePlan of MassachusettsStatePrison,Charlestown.FromLaws of the Commonwealthforthe

Governmentof theMassachusettsStatePrison,withtheRules and Regulationsof theBoard of Inspectors
(Charlestown:Stateof Massachusetts,1830). Courtesyof BostonAthenaeum.
decadestheoriginalworkshopwas further engulfed aimedat preventing communicationand werealso

bymoreadditionsand a new one was constructed intendedto block the prisoners'abilityto see an
in thesouthwestcornerofthecompound.Another approachingsentinelby aligningthe cell doors to
significantbuildingcampaignwas initiatedin 1850. theinsideedge of thewall.43A portionofthe new
During this effortthe 1829 cell block was con- wing was identifiedas a good place for a work-
nectedto theoriginalBulfinchbuildingvia an oc- shop and "particularlyadaptedto shoemakersand
tagonal centralhub (fig7.10). This configuration who
tailors, may arrangedon seatsin two rows,
be
was viewed as the most efficient formforvisual withtheirfacestowardsthesouthand theirbacks
surveillance.The new centralpavilion housed a towards the guard room, so thatthe masterme-
kitchen,guardroom,chapel,and hospital. chanic ... may overseethemwithoutbeingover-
A new five-story wing of minutelylargercells, seen bythem."44 The 1850 renovationsresultedin
laid out in accordancewiththeAuburnplan, was a buildingthatDwight and Bryantcharacterized
attachedto the south end of the hub duringthe as "favorableto order."45
1850 expansionproject.The designersof thenew This midcenturyexpansion had been chosen
buildingcomponents,Louis Dwight and Gridley overanothercourseofactionproposedat thesame
Bryant,incorporatedthethicknessofthecellwalls time as the Bryantand Dwight plan. Annual re-
intheprevention of "evilcommunication" between ports show that total profitsfromprison manu-
prisoners.The extraordinarily thickinteriorwalls facturing,especially stonecutting,could prove
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 131
Fig.7.10. Plans,sections,
and elevationsof1850
additionsto Massachu-
fI settsStatePrisonbyLouis
DwightandGridley
Bryant.FromMassachu-
settsStateHouseDoc.
No. 140. Courtesy of
American Antiquarian
Society.
IflstII II
* 9p
,.-,
-n sro r
!
..........:::::::::::
II,..! I
. .......... ................. - ]
i ...[ ... .. ||
significant.46This fact was the drivingforcebe- the peninsula now was encroachedupon by ur-
hindtheotherproposal. In 1850, membersof the ban fabric.In the committeemembers'view,the
StandingCommitteeon Prisons,intenton exploit- close proximityto the "veryheartof a dense city
ingtheprisoners'earningpotential,recommended population" defeatedthe purposesof the institu-
relocatingthe prisonto Quincy or Fitchburgfor tion. "Irreclaimablerogues" visitedtheprisonfor
theexpresspurposeofgaininggreaterprofitsfrom "improperpurposes," and a location away from
the stonecuttingoperation. "At this time about an urbancenterwould makevisitsfrom"thisclass
one-quarterofthenumberofconvictsare engaged of persons" less frequent.48 Unconvincedby the
at the stone cuttingbusiness... If the stone de- proposal, the state legislatureresolvedto main-
partmentwere connectedwith a quarry,at least tain the Charlestownsite as the location forthe
threequartersof theconvictsit is believed,could stateprisonand go forwardwiththe Dwightand
be employed at hammeringand quarrying,by Bryantexpansion.
which a largerevenuewould ensureto the State, By the end of the nineteenthcenturythe con-
iftheinstitutionwerewell conducted... It would finesoftheprisonhad beenexpandedmakingroom
be a good investment, givinggood dividends,with- fora perpendicularadditionto the workshopin
out exhaustingcapital."47Perhapsin an effortto the northpartof the complex.Anothershop was
attractbroadersupportforrelocatingtheinstitu- built in the new southwestcorner;a new school
tion the committee emphasized that the room to the south of the originalmain building
Charlestownsite had lost its originaladvantages and a new administrativewingand wardenshouse
and was actuallydetrimentalto the convicts're- were added to theeast sideoftheoctagonalpavil-
habilitation.What was once an isolatedcornerof ion. Throughoutthe piecemealconstructionthat
transformedthe prison's interiorlandscape, its to obedientpeasantsplaced in theforeground. The

"frowningwalls" remaineda stolid omnipresent imagesconsideredintandemrepresent idealizedver-
symbolof social orderand progress. sions of culturallandscapesand capturea reversal
Symbolicimagerycame to representthe nine- in social spatialordering.
teenth-centuryAmericanprison.Simplifieddepic- The idealized prison image, a potentemblem
tionsofprisonsportrayedpureformsoridealorderly ofprogressiverepublicanism, also became a bour-
landscapes,uncomplicatedby thecollidingrealms geois iconic commodityappearingon ephemera
of experienceand operationthatexistedinsidethe such as dessertplates.Laterin thecentury, photo-
carceralcompound.The bucolicrenderings belied graphic views of theprisonwere brought into the
therealityofthedailyoperationsand physicalcon- realm of parlor entertainment throughnovelties
ditionswithintheprisonbyplacingthewalledcom- like the stereoscope.Using the device,one could
viewofvirtuous
poundas a backdropto a republican get a three-dimensional view of theprison,its in-
order.The compositionsresemblepaintingsof me- mates, and overseers from the comfortof one's
dievallandscapeswherecastlesare thebackground home.The backs oftheviewingcardsoftenserved
' ?.?.. r
1 II!
!-t|:~~:L' Itt I
Fig.7.11. ViewofMassachusetts StatePrison,Charlestown, frominsidethewalledcomplex.The building

inthe
leftbackgroundis thecellblockbuiltin 1829.In theleftforeground
arethechapelandmealhall.Theoriginal
Bulfinchbuildingis located in thecenterbackground.FromLaws of the Commonwealthforthe Governmentof
theMassachusettsStatePrison,withtheRules and Regulationsof theBoard of Inspectors(Charlestown:Stateof
Massachusetts, ofBostonAthenaeum.
1830).Courtesy
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 133
as orderformsforotherimages or were used as plete.Bytheconclusionof thenineteenth century,

advertisement space, thusmergingtheprison,ca- expandedtwo-story versionsoftheremaining origi-
sual entertainment, and nineteenth-century com- nal sevenwingshad beencompletedas well as four
mercialisminto one culturalartifact. additionalwingsthatwerewedgedin betweenthe
The imagesthathavecometo represent theMas- originallongblocksofcells.Nonetheless,theorigi-
sachusettsStatePrisonat Charlestownwere estab- nal symmetrical seven-winged designbythearchi-
lishedearlyintheinstitution's history. The first
rules tect John Haviland and an idealized pastoral
and regulations pamphletfortheprisonwas printed engravingcreated by a prisonerhave dominated
in 1806. Two engravings oftheprisonwereincluded EasternState'shistoricalimage.50Auburn'smulti-
in the document.One is a plan and the otheran storiedU-shapedformreceiveda farmoredrastic
elevationoftheprincipalbuilding. No otherelements simplification.A singularthree-story rectilinear
withinthe prisoncompound are depicted.These structure withthecharacteristic spineofcellsdown
engravings ignoretheworkshopsand naturallyex- themiddlebecametherepresentative architectural
clude the multiplerenovationsthat subsequently formfortheAuburnsystem.
transformed thephysicalenvironment oftheprison. Theseiconsbecametheemblemsofprinciples for
Yet theyhave been used in historicalaccountsto whichnineteenth-century Americanprisonreform
represent theprisonresulting in a staticand incom- wished to be recognized.New Americanprisons,
pletepresentation oftheprisonenvironment.49 A later such as MassachusettsState,adopted sentencesof
morecompletedepictionoftheprisonwas included detainment with hard labor in lieu of many
in the 1829 versionof therulesand regulations.A longstanding sanguinaryand corporalpunishments.
planthatshowstheentireprisoncompoundand an They were intendedby their designers,botharchi-
interior viewoftheprisonthatportrays theinmates tecturaland theoretical,to be viewedprimarily as
in formation marching out ofthe workshopsare in- places of reform and not profit-makingmanufacto-
cludedin the 1829 document(figs.7.9, 7.11). Al- ries.Manyprisonofficials were,nonetheless,preoc-
thoughthelatterimagereinforces theimagery present cupied with themanufacturing of
principles product
inthebucolicrenderings bydepicting a pristine
physi- marketability and profit.
Thisfactproduceda physi-
cal environment inhabitedby orderlyindustrious cal impactupon theprisonenvironment.
convicts,it also capturesa darkominousqualityof Two constantsare presentwhen the landscape
theprisonenvironment. This 1829 plan and view, of MassachusettsStateis viewedin itsentirety and
perhapslessappealingand idealthantheearlierand overtime:theinstitution neverfitintoanyone ideal
simplerimage,fellto thewayside,and the1806 en- formand itwas an amalgamofcompeting,at times
gravingsbecamethepreferred representative image overlapping,interests.In the earlyhistoryof the
oftheprison. prison,both old and new spatial patternsdefined
Similarly,representationsof America'smodel the principalbuilding.The overallformwas that
prisons,Auburnand Eastern,werevisuallyreduced of an older institutionalbuildingthatcontaineda
to geometrically rigidideal plans. EasternState's combinationofprogressivesolitarycells and eigh-
hub-and-spokeconfiguration was, and oftenstill teenth-century groupnightrooms.And,thework-
is, reducedto a pristineuniformstructure.When shopswereordinarybuildingssimilarto structures
Easternopenedin 1829 onlytwo wingswerecom- foundoutsidetheprisoncompound.Bymidcentury
thehousingunitdisplayeda hybridofthetwo com- 2. Thisnumber comesfromtheamountof

peting models of American prison reform.The moneycollected as visitors'
feeslistedinthe
overallformofthehousingunitresembledthehub- prison's1825 and 1826 "ExpenseandIncome
and-spokeconfiguration of EasternStatePeniten- Reports,"reprinted intheSecondAnnual
tiary, while the interior layout was that of an Reportof theBoard of Managersof thePrison
Auburn system.And, the numerousworkshops Discipline Society,Boston (Boston,1828), 60.
In Juneof 1807,theBoardofVisitors
whichnow encircledthehousinguniton two sides
loggedthefollowing comments regarding
competedwiththecellsforphysicaldominanceof visitorsinthemeeting minutes: "Whereasthe
theprisonenvironment. Theseincremental changes inconvenience and has
greatest interruption
and transformations are an historicalrecordofthe arisento theVisitors fromthealmostinces-
builtformexperiencedby the nineteenth-century santapplications forpermits to visitthe
people who visited,worked,and livedat theMas- Prison.Orderedthatexceptin suchcasesas
sachusettsStatePrisonat Charlestown. areexpedient no permits shallbe granted but
Rarelyare the workshoprealmand dailyprac- on Tuesdaysand Saturdays, fromtwoto six
ticespresentedin historicalaccounts,althoughthey o'clockin theafternoon. AndthattheSuper
wereclearlymajordeterminants inthedevelopment be authorized at thosetimeseitherbyper-
of theprisoncomplexand itsculturalidentity. The sonalattendance or permits to personswhose
ad hoc spacesas wellas thoseconsciouslybuilt,daily characters heis satisfied,
to admitthecitizens
ofthisCommonwealth, or othersto viewthe
practicesas wellas theintentions, and theentirebuilt
in
Prison, company with theKeeper,
formas well as thedesiredimagecontribute to the
or an
Underkeeper Assistant"; StatePrison
significance of the in
prison nineteenth-century Records,Massachusetts StatePrison,
Americanculture.The manufacturing realmis one
Charlestown, BoardofVisitors Minutes,
of theoverlookedconstituent elementsin thecom- Massachusetts StateArchives, Dorchester,
plex environmentof intertwinedlandscapes that Mass., 1807,45.
helpeddefinethespatialand experiential realityof GamalielBradford, a wardenat theprison,
this nineteenth-century icon of social reform.An statedthatvisitors were"dailyfrequent (I am
understanding of elements connectedwitha manu- apt to thinktoo frequent)"in Stateof the
facturingpresencewithintheprisonlandscapeand Prisonsand thePenitentiary
SystemVindi-
an understanding oftheway peopleinteracted with cated(Charlestown,
1821),46.
the institutionallows a historicalunderstanding 3. For furtherdiscussionof theprisonas partof
based notonlyin theimagerybutalso in thereality see
tourism, JohnSears,Sacred Places:
AmericanTouristAttractionsin theNine-
of dailypracticeand experienceof theprison.
teenthCentury(New York: OxfordUniv.
Press,1989), 87-100.
Notes 4. R. L. Midgley,Guide to Boston and Suburbs
1. JamesWhittier,
Diary,1830-1831,American (Boston,1856),163.
AntiquarianSociety, Mass., 151-
Worcester, 5. JohnRoss Dix, Local Loiteringsand Visitsin
52. "GlassHouse" referred
to thelargeglass the Vicinityof Boston (Boston,1845). Dix,
factories
thatwerethemainstayoftheEast whose real name was GeorgeSpencerPhillips,
Cambridge economy. was drawntomanyofthesametypesof
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 135
provocativescenesthatattractedhis fellow Adam Hirschin Rise of thePenitentiary

countrymanCharlesDickens. Observationsat places the agencyof themultipleinterestsat
theLowell factories,thepublicinstitutionsin the levelof penal ideologyand identifies the
South Boston,and othercuriositiesfillthe threeideologicalstrainsthatcame togetherto
pages, yethe was trueto theclaim withwhich allow prisonlabor ideologyto become a part
he opens his book-that his interestwas with of reformtheories.Hirschstatesthat "the
"plain matters,withcommonfacts,"and what beautyof hard labor was its capacityto serve
he presentedwere "recordsof every-day simultaneouslyas threatand therapy... and
subjects,and chroniclesof commonthings" fountainof support,"whichworkedforboth
(9). He publishedat least one otherbook on utilitarianand philanthropicreformers.
lifein America,TransatlanticTracings;or 10. For an extensivediscussionof penal slavery
Sketchesof Personsand Scenes in America startingwiththeancientGreeks,see Thorsten
(London, 1853). Sellin,Slaveryand thePenal System(New
6. Dix, Local Loiterings,88. York: Elsevier,1976). In Rise of thePeniten-
7. David Rothman,Discoveryof theAsylum tiary:Prisonsand Punishmentin Early
(Boston:LittleBrownand Co., 1971); Michel America(New Haven: Yale Univ.Press,1992),
Foucault,Disciplineand Punish: The Birthof 79, Adam Hirschremindsus thatthistypeof
thePrison,2d ed., trans.Alan Sheridan(New slaverylaterbecame a protectedpracticeunder
A Just
York: Vintage,1979); Michael Ignatieff, theThirteenth Amendment, whichreads:
in the
Measure of Pain: The Penitentiary "Neitherslaverynor involuntary servitude,
IndustrialRevolution,1750-1850 (New York: exceptas punishmentforcrimewhereofthe
Pantheon,1978). partyshall have been dulyconvicted,shall
8. Ignatieff,A JustMeasure of Pain, 209. existwithintheUnitedStates,or any place
9. The idea of multipleinterestsunderlyingthe subjectto theirjurisdiction."
developmentof nineteenth-century penal 11. CharlesDickens,AmericanNotes forGeneral
practices has been previouslydiscussed by Circulation[18421 (Middlesex,England:
otherauthors.Michel Foucault identifiesthe Penguin,1972).
agencyof multipleinterestsat the level of an 12. Cesare Beccaria,Essay on Crimeand Punish-
overarchingculturalphenomenon.Foucault ment,trans.Mons. de Voltaire,trans.from
locates early-nineteenth-centurypenal reforms French(London, 1767).
withina "new distributionof the power to 13. Stateof Massachusetts,Actsand Resolves,
punish." He assertsthat "manydifferent 1784-1785 (Boston,1886), 163.
interestscame togetherto instigate"thisshift 14. Hirsch,Rise of thePenitentiary,New Haven, 7.
in generalpunishmentpower relationsand 15. Stateof Massachusetts,Actsand Resolves,
identifiesprisoninstitutionsas supporting 1784-85, 163.
tools withinthismorepervasivephysical 16. "Bomb proof" was thenoun used in the
exerciseof punishment.Foucault also ad- eighteenth-centuryliteratureto referto the
dressesmultipleinterest,or the "pluralization subterraneanshelter.Ironically,its location
of causes," in "Questions of Method," an provedadvantageousforpotentialescapees.
interviewin The Foucault Effect,ed. Graham 17. Stateof Massachusetts,Actsand Resolves
Burchell,and Gordon Miller (Chicago: Univ. 1784-85, 928. The recordis unclearas to
of Chicago Press,1991), 73-86. whetherthe structures were everbuilt.
18. Stateof Massachusetts,Actsand Laws of 27. This termhas been commonlyused in refer-
Massachusetts,1799, 558. ence to nineteenth-century focuson
reformers'
19. Accordingto economichistoriansH. Faulkner, architecturalsolutionsforthereformation of
H. Schieber,and H. Vatter,a "spiritof rivalry convicts.Cellularseparationwas viewedby
lay behindmanyof the stateprojectsthattook reformers as theremedyforvariousmoral
the formof public enterprise-undertakings, contagion,includingthe corruptionof novice
financed,plannedand managed bythe states offenders by hardenedcriminals,sodomy,and
themselves."They also statethattheprincipal conspiraciesto escape. See Rothman,Discov-
enterprises in thiscategorywere underway eryof theAsylum,84.
fromthe 1820s throughthe 1840s. However, 28. Gideon Haynes,PicturesfromPrisonLife,an
staterivalryin the area of prisonreformwas HistoricalSketchof theMassachusettsState
clearlyevidentmuchearlier,althoughthe PrisonwithNarrativesand Incidents,and
expenditureforthe projectswas muchless. See Suggestionsof Discipline (Boston,1869),
H. Faulkner,H. Schieber,and H. Vatter, preface.For a moreextensivediscussionof the
AmericanEconomic History,9thed. (New prisonas a model of social order,see
York: Harper and Row, 1976), 102. Rothman,Discoveryof theAsylum,and Sears,
20. Stateof Massachusetts,Actsand Laws, 1802- Sacred Landscapes.
03, 861 29. Stateof Massachusetts,Actsand Laws, 1802,
21. Stateof Massachusetts,Actsand Laws of the 381.
Commonwealthof Massachusetts(Boston, 30. An Accountof theMassachusettsStatePrison
1802), 381. by theBoard of Visitors(Cambridge,Mass.,
22. Harold Kirker,The Architecture of Charles 1806), no pagination.
Bulfinch(Cambridge,Mass.: HarvardUniv. 31. VisitorsRecords 1807: StatePrisonRecords,
Press,1969), 211-15. MassachusettsStatePrison,Charlestown,
23. In 1829 Bulfinchapparentlystatedthe prison Board of VisitorMinutes,MassachusettsState
was plannedwithnine-by-seven-feet cells. Archives,Boston,Mass., 48.
However,the dimensionson the Bulfinchplans 32. Ibid., Dorchester,Mass., 1807, 39.
read twelvefeetby sixteenfeet. 33. Journal,MassachusettsStatePrisonDaily
24. Stateof Massachusetts,Actsand Laws, 1802, Reports,1805-1863, MassachusettsState
381. Archives,Dorchester,Mass., 1805; Journal
25. MassachusettsStatePrisonBoard of Directors, ofTransactionsin theStatePrison,Massachu-
Rules and Regulationsforthe Governmentof settsStatePrisonDaily Reports,1805-63,
theMassachusettsStatePrison(Boston,1806), MassachusettsStateArchives,Dorchester,
iii. It is worthnotingthatJohnRoss Dix Mass., 1807; PrisonDisciplineSociety,First
describedthe prison'slocation as "dismal, AnnualReportof theBoard of Managers,of the
damp and sloppy"; Dix, Local Loiterings,83. Boston DisciplineSociety,Boston,June2, 1826,
26. SamuelSewall,Communication fromtheHon. 5thed. (Boston,1827), 15-16; PrisonDiscipline
SamuelSewall,Esq. and theHon. Nathan Society,SecondAnnualReportof theBoard of
Dane, Esq. AccompaniedwithSeveralBillsfor Managers,of theBostonDisciplineSociety,
theRegulationof theStatePrison,and an Boston,June1, 1827 (Boston,1828), 62.
Alterationof theCriminalCodes of theCom- 34. Dickens,AmericanNotes for General Circu-
monwealth(Boston,1806), no pagination. lation, 100.
Moral Reform
Manufacturing 137
35. JosiahQuincy,Remarkson Some of the tive,provideda means of supportupon

Provisionsof theLaws of Massachusetts, release,was reformatory, and "consonant
Affecting PovertyViceand Crime(Cambridge, withrepublicanprinciples,"Second Annual
Mass., 1822), 21. Report,34.
36. Haynes,PicturesfromPrisonLife, 132-37. 43. Louis Dwightwas a well-knownreformer and
37. BostonDisciplineSociety,Second Annual secretary of the Boston DisciplineSociety.
Report,57. GridleyBryantwas a prisonarchitectrespon-
38. Ibid., 36. sible forthe designof manyinstitutions in
39. Ibid. Massachusetts,includingthe Charles Street
40. The WalnutStreetJaildid not employthe Jail,whichwas completedpriorto thecon-
Auburnsystemof prisondiscipline.A portion structionat the stateprison.The cruciformis
of the prisonwas adapted forsolitaryconfine- foundin boththe jail and prisonas well as
mentin 1791 and was theprecursorfor othersdesignedby Bryant.
EasternStatePenitentiary. 44. Stateof Massachusetts,StandingCommittee
41. For examples fromthe debate, see William on Prisons,House Doc. No. 140, 1850
Roscoe, Esq., Observationson Penal Juris- (Boston,1886), 17.
prudence,and theReformationof Criminals 45. State of Massachusetts,House Doc. No
(London, 1825); Letterson the Comparative 140, 18.
Meritsof thePennsylvaniaand New York 46. In 1825 theprofitsfromprisonmanufacturing
Systemof Penitentiary Discipline,by a at MassachusettsStatetotaled$58,574 with
MassachusettsMan (Boston, 1836); Samuel $51,957 comingfromthe stonesales. In 1826
GridleyHowe, An Essay on Separate and labor profitstotaled$57,351 with$49,717
CongregateSystemsof PrisonDiscipline fromstonesales. It is also worthnotingthat
(Boston, 1846); FrancisLieber,A Vindication thetotal profitfromvisitorfeesexceeded $500
of theSeparate Systemof Prison Discipline forboth 1825 and 1826. This sum represented
fromtheMisrepresentations of the North two thousandvisitorsforthe year,or an
AmericaReview,July,1839 (Philadelphia, averageof thirty-eight visitorsdaily.
1839); FrancisLieber,A Popular Essay on 47. Stateof Massachusetts,House Doc. No. 140,
Subjectsof Penal Law, on Uninterrupted 23-24, 27.
SolitaryConfinement at Labor Contradistin- 48. StateofMassachusetts, House Doc. No. 140,
to
guished SolitaryConfinement at Nightand 28.
JointLabor by Day ... (Philadelphia,1838). 49. Rothman,Discoveryof theAsylum,91.
42. Bradford,State of thePrisonsand the 50. One exceptionto thistrendis Norman
Penitentiary SystemVindicated,19. The Johnston,EasternStatePenitentiary: Crucible
Boston Discipline Societysupportedhard of Good Intentions (Philadelphia:Philadelphia
labor on the basis thatit was healthy,produc- Museum of Art,1994).

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Manufacturing Moral Reform: Images and Realities of a Nineteenth-Century American Prison

Author(s): Elaine Jackson-Retondo

Published by: Vernacular Architecture Forum

On an early summerafternoonin 1831 James mon landscape of casual didactic entertainment.

- ,. c- '- " C' 7 V 1-- ~ ?. . _r

Fig. 7.1. CharlestownPeninsula,1818. Courtesyof AmericanAntiquarianSociety.

making, cabinet making, stone cutting,black- formtheoryand therealitiesof prisonexperience,

prison was home, workplace,house of worship, Prisonat Charlestowncommencedduringtheearly

nial jails had primarilybeen used forthe detain-

the firstprisonerswere sentencedto the garrison, sachusettsState was designedto accommodatea

Fig. 7.4. Plan of principalbuildingat MassachusettsStatePrison,Charlestown.Courtesyof MassachusettsState

Fig. 7.5. Elevationof principalbuildingat MassachusettsStatePrisonCharlestown,by Samuel Etheridge,1806.

above themainentry:"Correction.Reformation." populousand wealthycommunity, will be dis-

Additional details about the impressivesize,

To whatextentthisindulgence Fig.7.6. ViewofMassachusettsStatePrison,

impressivemonitor,remindingthe evil doer that thespecifics

idleness,whichwasthefirst stepdowntheslippery portunity definedby each participant's personal

of an entireworkshopthroughan act of arson. mentedin theworkshops.However,theopen floor

Pressedby the need to providemore housing The chapel, kitchen,and a schoolroomshared a

Fig. 7.9. 1829 SitePlan of MassachusettsStatePrison,Charlestown.FromLaws of the Commonwealthforthe

decadestheoriginalworkshopwas further engulfed aimedat preventing communicationand werealso

transformedthe prison's interiorlandscape, its to obedientpeasantsplaced in theforeground. The

Fig.7.11. ViewofMassachusetts StatePrison,Charlestown, frominsidethewalledcomplex.The building

as orderformsforotherimages or were used as plete.Bytheconclusionof thenineteenth century,

thehousingunitdisplayeda hybridofthetwo com- 2. Thisnumber comesfromtheamountof

provocativescenesthatattractedhis fellow Adam Hirschin Rise of thePenitentiary

35. JosiahQuincy,Remarkson Some of the tive,provideda means of supportupon

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