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Description
A line of Folsom Prison inmates make their way toward the lower-yard rock quarry in this circa-1910 photograph. Prisoners who worked the quarries toiled daily for 7 1/2 hours and without a lunch. Starting in 1884, the prison resolved to use convict labor to build its own granite walls. By 1922, the task was complete – the facility’s 41 acres were enclosed by 30-foot-high walls, with another 15 feet reaching underground to discourage tunneling. To accomplish as much, prisoners were forced to extract nearly 150,000 tons of granite from the surrounding area. Prior to 1913, all of Folsom’s convicts were issued striped pants and shirts to be worn at all times, but were permitted to keep the coat, vest and hat they wore upon arrival.
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