<picture class="lw_image"> <source type="image/webp" media="(max-width: 500px)" srcset="/live/image/gid/30/width/500/16379_eastern_state.rev.1490199204.webp 1x"/> <source type="image/webp" media="(min-width: 501px)" srcset="/live/image/gid/30/width/700/16379_eastern_state.rev.1490199204.webp 1x"/> <source type="image/jpeg" media="(max-width: 500px)" srcset="/live/image/gid/30/width/500/16379_eastern_state.rev.1490199204.jpg 1x"/> <source type="image/jpeg" media="(min-width: 501px)" srcset="/live/image/gid/30/width/700/16379_eastern_state.rev.1490199204.jpg 1x"/> <img src="/live/image/gid/30/width/700/16379_eastern_state.rev.1490199204.jpg" width="664" height="521" alt="Eastern State Penitentiary. Eastern State Penitentiary's Board of Commissioners hoped the building's grim facade would instill ..." data-max-w="664" data-max-h="521" loading="lazy"/></picture>
Eastern State Penitentiary. Eastern State Penitentiary's Board of Commissioners hoped the building's grim facade would instill fear in the hearts of lawbreakers. "The exterior of a solitary prison should exhibit, as much as possible, great strength, and convey to the mind...the misery which awaits the unhappy being who enters within its walls..." Book of Minutes of the Board of Commissioners. March 26, 1822.
Students in Contemporary Social Issues visit the Eastern State Penitentiary.
On March 19th, Dr. Margee Kerr and her students in Contemporary Social Issues (SOC 110) visited the Eastern State Penitentiary for an in-depth site visit. Students were met by alum Amy Hollaman ’05, who provided an introduction to the site as well as additional background information. Amy Hollaman is the Assistant Director for Events and Operations for the Penitentiary and the Creative Director for Terror Behind the Walls. Amy also shared her experiences and thoughts on Ursinus with the students. Additional site guides accompanied the students on tour and provided detailed, in-depth information on the history of the site and modern issues of incarceration, starting with the early history of corrections and ending with the tour at the Big Graph, which displays the rising rate of incarceration through 2010. In addition to the “Questions in the age of mass incarceration” exhibit, students were able to observe artist installations throughout the cell blocks, some featuring art created by prisoners–a full list is here: http://www.easternstate.org/explore. After the tour, the students were free to explore on their own. It was a great day; even the weather cooperated.