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The Criminal Justice System, 2nd Edition

Walnut Street Jail

Identification: Historic U.S. penal institution

Date: Opened in 1773

Place: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Criminal justice issues: Prisons; rehabilitation

Significance: The Walnut Street Jail promoted the rehabilitation of criminals and was the forerunner of the modern prison system in the United States.

Designed by architect and builder Robert Smith, the Walnut Street Jail was constructed in Philadelphia in 1773. At the time, deplorable conditions existed in U.S. penal institutions. It was commonplace for men, women, and children to be incarcerated in a common locked area, where aggression and sexual exploitation frequently occurred. Encouraged by the Philadelphia Society for Alleviating the Miseries of Public Prisons, administrators of the Walnut Street Jail eventually used that jail as a model for improving the imprisonment system.

Starting during the late 1780’s, instead of using the Walnut Street Jail strictly as a place for punishment of prisoners, it was redesigned to reform inmates and help prevent them from committing crimes after they were released. Men, women, and children were separated from one another in clean, solitary cells. Prisoners received basic education and religious instruction and were encouraged to treat one another humanely. Highlights of the new approach included the use of solitary confinement, special times for prisoner meditation and reflection, and training of inmates for future employment. The discipline system employed at the Walnut Street Jail became known as the Pennsylvania System.

Because of overcrowding, the Walnut Street Jail was remodeled and converted into the Walnut Street Prison in 1790, the first state prison in Pennsylvania and the birthplace of the modern U.S. prison system. Several new ideas were implemented to help rehabilitate criminals, particularly an increased focus on a variety of prison industries which included making nails, sawing rocks, weaving, and making shoes. The more hardened criminals were sentenced to hard labor during the day and at nighttime.

Alvin K. Benson

Further Reading

1 

Blomberg, Thomas G. American Penology: A History of Control. New York: Aldine de Gruyter, 2000.

2 

Peterson, Charles E. Robert Smith: Architect, Builder, Patriot, 1722-1777. Philadelphia: Athenaeum, 2000.

See also Criminal justice in U.S. history; Prison and jail systems; Prison health care; Prison industries; Prison overcrowding; Prison violence.

Citation Types

Type
Format
MLA 9th
"Walnut Street Jail." The Criminal Justice System, 2nd Edition, edited by Hooper Michael K., Salem Press, 2017. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=CJ2E_0545.
APA 7th
Walnut Street Jail. The Criminal Justice System, 2nd Edition, In H. Michael K. (Ed.), Salem Press, 2017. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=CJ2E_0545.
CMOS 17th
"Walnut Street Jail." The Criminal Justice System, 2nd Edition, Edited by Hooper Michael K.. Salem Press, 2017. Salem Online, online.salempress.com/articleDetails.do?articleName=CJ2E_0545.