Dark cell
by matcrazy1
The only punishments in Yuma Territoral Prison were the "dark cell" (no windows) for inmates who broke prison regulations, and the "ball and chain" for those who tried to escape. Hmm... are the dark cells still allowed nowadays in the USA?
Education for prisoners
by matcrazy1
Schooling was available for convicts, and many learned to read and write in here in prison. The prison housed one of the first "public" libraries in the territory, and the fee charged to visitors for a tour of the institution was used to purchase books.
No wonder you can see some old books inside cells nowadays.
Indian Hill in... California
by matcrazy1
Look at (enlarge) my picture please: It is part of the old Fort Yuma on the California side.
It's well seen from Yuma Territorial Prison Historic Park, just across the Colorado River = California-Arizona interstate border.
Across the Colorado River is "Indian Hill", the site of La Purisma Concepcion Mission. Built in 1780 by Spanish explorers, it was destroyed in 1781 when native Quechans revolted, killing all Europeans males. Nothing is left of that structure. Today you see the St. Thomas Mission, built in 1922, which serves the Quechan Indian Nation.
Behind the mission is Fort Yuma. It was established in 1852 to protect settlers, border survey crews, and gold miners (49'ers) on their way to "boom or bust" in California gold fields.
It took us a little effort to...
by brdwtchr
It took us a little effort to find the Fort Yuma Museum. Once we found it they told us the electricity was off for some problem. We did not want to stumble around in the dark museum so this is all we saw of the Fort Yuma Museum.
Main Cell Block
by matcrazy1
This building - the Main Cell Block as on my picture - originally had a roof which protected the whitewashed cells from the elements. The three-foot-thick granite walls are lined with iron gratings.
Not so easy to dig a whole in such thick walls, am I wrong?