Guide to U.S. Prisons Real and Fictional Quiz

Answer: Joliet

The Joliet State Prison was regarded as one of the worst in the U.S. It eventually closed in 2002 when the prisoners were moved to another nearby Statesville Prison. During its heyday the prison held Leopold and Loeb, the killers of Bobby Franks, in what had been regarded as the crime of the century.

East Chicago is actually in the state of Indiana. Peoria is regarded as the typical American small town. An earlier phrase, "How will it play in Peoria?", was used to ask how the typical American town would react to an idea.

Answer: Johnny Cash

Johhny Cash relished his outlaw image. Although beset by serious drug addiction issues throughout most of his life, his jail time consisted of a limited night of overnight stays for minor offenses. Nevertheless he seemed to have a great affinity and sympathy for the imprisoned. The Folsom Prison Blues was one of his favorite songs and generally was the opening song of his concerts.

His first well-received prison concert was performed at San Quentin Prison. Later he also had one at Folsom Prison.

Answer: California

Folsom Prison is about 20 miles from the California state capital of Sacramento. It's the second oldest prison in the state after San Quentin. Some of its prisoners included Eldridge Cleaver, Suge Knight, Timothy Leary, and Erik Menendez.

Answer: Washington

Walla Walla is in the southeastern part of the state of Washington. The city and its surrounding environs have about 45,000 residents. The primary products of the area is now wheat and the Walla Walla sweet onion. Originally it was one of the first area of the state to have a large settlement, established by missionary pioneer Marcus Whitman.

After a gold rush in neighboring Idaho, it was for a while one of the largest cities in the eventual state and thought to be a candidate for state capital.

The actor Adam West of Batman fame and General Jonathon Wainwright are two former residents of the city.

Answer: Attica

Attica is located in western New York. The riot occurred when approximately 1000 of the 2200 inmates seized the guards. Negotiations ensued and some of the prisoners' demands were met, but the governor would not give amnesty for the riot nor did he remove the prison superintendent. He eventually ordered troops to regain control and in the ensuing battle 43 people including 10 guards were killed.

Some of the Attica residents over the years included bank robber Willie Sutton, David Berkowitz (Son Of Sam), and Mark David Chapman (killer of John Lennon).

Answer: Fort Jefferson in the Florida Keys

Fort Jefferson is located on the Dry Torugas, a group of keys near Key West. It has no fresh water source, hence the use of the word "dry". The U.S. Navy determined that this area had excellent protected harbors that could be used to control Gulf of Mexico shipping. Fort Jefferson was constructed for military forces. During the Civil War the fort was also used to hold Northern prisoners, mainly deserters. Mudd provided support during a local yellow fever outbreak and was eventually pardoned by Andrew Johnson.

Answer: being a prisoner of war

Gartner served in the German Afrika Corps, was captured in 1943 near Tunis, and sent to a POW camp in New Mexico. After the war all German prisoners were to be repatriated to their hometowns. For Gartner this meant a return to an area ceded to Poland after the war and controlled by the Russians. So he escaped and lived a quiet life for 40 years, marrying an American woman. He wrote about his experiences in the book "Hitler's Last Soldier".

After his surrender U.S. authorities couldn't decide what crime to charge him for and solved the problem by giving him citizenship. During WWII, over 400,000 German prisoners were held in over 70 camps in the U.S. For the most part, the POWs were allowed to discipline themselves; however, there were cases of fervent Nazis murdering less enthusiastic POWs.

Answer: Lompoc

San Quentin and Pelican Bay are high security prisons and Helen Lacy is a women's prison. Lompoc is one of the prisons that held non-violent and more well-behaved prisoners. They were afforded more privileges than the typical prisoners, hence the nickname of country club prisons.

Boyce escaped from Lompoc and after several weeks was recaptured in Port Angeles, Washington. The Boyce and Lee crime was captured in the book and movie "The Falcon and the Snowman".

Answer: Riker's Island

Riker's Island is located in the East River of New York City. The city jail has about 100,000 admissions per year and typically holds about 10,000 prisoners at a time. It is considered one of the most dangerous jails to work, since numerous assaults against the guards have occurred.

The Cloisters is an adjunct to the Metropolitan Art Museum, holding much of its medieval artworks.
Battery Park is the area in southern tip of Manhattan near the World Trade Center and Wall Street.
Roosevelt Island is the former location of the New York City Jail.

Answer: Littering

"Alice's Restaurant" is a 15-minute long song, based on Guthrie's experience with a generous amount of hyperbole. Many U.S. classic rock stations traditionally play it extensively on Thanksgiving (when the incident supposedly occurred), and Guthrie produces an updated version every 10 years. (One version uses the song as an explanation for the gap in the Watergate tapes).

The two antiheroes were arrested by Officer Obie for littering. At his draft examination he admits to his crime and is sent to a special room with other felons. He is told he needs a moral waiver to be accepted by the army and wonders if littering makes him moral enough to burn villages and people.