This past weekend, I visited the nation’s first penitentiary, Eastern State Penitentiary, located in the Fairmount neighborhood of Philadelphia. The prison is known for its Terror Behind the Walls haunted house attraction that runs every year from the end of September to early November, but it also features Winter Adventure Tours from December through March that focus more on the history of the prison rather than its spookiness.

We did a guided tour and “The Voices of Eastern State” audio tour narrated by actor Steve Buscemi and explored the prison’s cellblocks and yards. Open from 1829 until 1971, Eastern State was the world’s first “penitentiary,” a prison designed to inspire true regret in the minds of prisoners rather than punish them. Though the cellblocks stand in ruin today, with paint chipping off the walls and doors coming off their hinges, the narrated tour painted an accurate picture of the prison back when it was in operation.

In their original construction, the cells were made of concrete with a skylight above each and housed one convict. Outside each cell was an individual area prisoners were allowed to use for exercise and gardening for two half-hour blocks a day. The prison’s system of incarceration, called the Pennsylvania System, focused on separate confinement, and inmates were not permitted to speak or work with each other. So during sentences that typically lasted one to two years, prisoners lived in silence. The prison also had two amenities advanced for its time: flushing toilets and central heat.

Over the years, its operational methods changed, and cells started housing more than one inmate as more prisoners were incarcerated each year. It closed officially in 1971 due to overcrowding. The prison was home to several famous convicts including gangster Al Capone, who was arrested in Philadelphia for carrying a concealed weapon.

During the tour, we were able to check out a restored version of his rather luxurious cell. Including oriental rugs, nice furniture and a radio playing waltzes he enjoyed listening to, his cell is located in an area of the prison referred to as “Park Avenue.”

I highly recommend visiting this fascinating piece of history if you’re looking for attractions to see in Philadelphia other than Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell and the Constitution Center. From checking out Al Capone’s quarters to stepping inside and walking around other cells, the tour is the perfect combination of a history lesson and entertainment. Be sure to bundle up; the grounds are huge and the cellblocks are unheated!

— Monique Barrett, advertising and editorial coordinator