Alcatraz: The Last Day
From 1934 to 1963, US Penitentiary Alcatraz was a maximum-security federal prison, home to some of the United States' most notorious criminals. Situated prominently in the center of San Francisco Bay and shrouded in secrecy, the mysterious island prison captivated the American public's attention. When the penitentiary's closure was announced in early 1963, news agencies from around the world lined up to cover the event. On March 21, 1963, the editors of Life magazine sent an accomplished California-based photographer named Leigh Wiener to shoot the island's closure. In 2013, in honor of the 50th anniversary of closing day, Alcatraz: The Last Day was installed as a temporary exhibit on the island to showcase some of Weiner's never-before-seen photographs.