All deceased inmates were brought back to the mainland and released to the San Francisco County Coroner. The Island also boasted its own morgue but no autopsies were performed there. Five men committed suicide, and fifteen died from natural illnesses. There were eight people murdered by inmates on Alcatraz.

During its time as a Penitentiary, both inmates and guards reported a wide range of purported ghostly activity in the prison. According to many documentaries, numerous guards and officials who served there until it was shut down by Attorney General Robert Kennedy in the early 1960s, experienced something out of the ordinary and said that park rangers occasionally still reveal supernatural sightings. The Washington Post has also claimed that Alcatraz is a place 'where visitors can sense the dread of past inhabitants still trapped in the atmosphere.' New York Magazine has said that although the penitentiary hasn't been operational since 1963, it 'remains ultra sinister, perversely fascinating, iconic.' A documentary Haunted Alcatraz, broadcast on the Travel Channel, has said 'there is little question that Alcatraz holds a particular place in our collective imagination, consistently evoking feeling, stirring and dark' and that the 'power of the island' still captivates visitors after departure. A 1995 book included Alcatraz as one of The 25 Scariest Places in the World.ĭ-Block is considered by paranormal investigators to have the most activity in the prison. The Los Angeles Times describes Alcatraz as the 'most notorious federal penitentiary this country has ever known. Officials for Alcatraz have dismissed the reports of ghosts at Alcatraz as nonsense and deny their existence. Prisoners, rangers and visitors have reported a wide range of alleged ghostly activity on Alcatraz, from whispering in cells and locked cell doors shutting, to phantom figures in corridors, cold spots and even the sounds of musical instruments and sewing machines. to some modern American prisons Ive read about and seen in documentaries. Mark Twain documented the eerie atmosphere of the island after visiting it, described it as 'being as cold as winter, even in the summer months.” The author and his family moved to Alcatraz Island when he was 8 years old.

Located in the San Francisco Bay, Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary have been cited as one of the most haunted places in America, and also as the most haunted prison in the country. The Native Americans mentioned the evil spirits they purportedly encountered on the island long before it became a federal prison.

Below are photos taken of ghosts inside Alcatraz

Documentaries on alcatraz