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Prison building efforts in the United States came in three major waves. The first began during the Jacksonian Era and led to the widespread use of imprisonment and rehabilitative labor as the primary penalty for most crimes in nearly all states by the time of the American Civil War.
The roots of correctional systems in the United States trace back to the early forms of punishment in colonial America. During this era, punishment predominantly manifested through corporal penalties and public shaming, reflecting a society where physical retribution served as a deterrent.
Brief History of the Federal Prison System. The United States government established the prison system in 1891. The Three Prison Act established funding for Leavenworth, McNeil Island and UPS Atlanta. It appears the first Federal prison was Leavenworth in Kansas.
The first maximum security prison, USP Alcatraz, opens housing the most violent, disruptive, and escape-prone inmates in the Federal system. USP Alcatraz was the precursor to USP Marion and ADX Florence, as well as the many maximum security prisons now operated nationwide.
1838 Debtors’ prisons, where people could be incarcerated for failing to pay their debts, banned under federal law. Bankruptcy law subsequently replaces debtors’ prisons. 1866 Convict leasing—the practice of leasing out incarcerated people (usually black men) to work for private individuals—begins. 54
U.S. Prison System Timeline. Chronology of Major Events. 1891 — Federal Prison System is Established. Congress passes the “Three Prisons Act,” establishing the Federal Prison System (FPS).
The federal prison system had already existed for nearly 40 years under the Three Prisons Act (1891), which authorized the first three federal penitentiaries: United States Penitentiary (USP) Leavenworth, USP Atlanta and USP McNeil Island, and had since grown to 11 federal prisons by 1930.
