Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site Inc

EASTERN STATE PENITENTIARY HISTORIC SITE INTERPRETS THE LEGACY OF AMERICAN CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM, FROM THE NATION'S FOUNDING THROUGH TO THE PRESENT DAY, WITHIN THE LONG-ABANDONED CELLBLOCKS OF THE NATION'S MOST HISTORIC PRISON.

DAYTIME TOUR PROGRAM:ESPHS OFFERS A VARIETY OF DAYTIME HISTORIC TOURS AND EXHIBITS TO THE PUBLIC INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, AUDIO TOURS, GUIDED TOURS, HISTORY AND HISTORICAL EXHIBITS AND ARTIST INSTALLATIONS. PRIOR TO THE SHUTDOWN (3/14/2020-8/7/2020 AND AGAIN 11/16/2020-3/12/2021), THESE TOURS WERE OFFERED SEVEN DAYS A WEEK, TWELVE MONTHS A YEAR. UPON REOPENING, ESPHS REDUCED ITS SCHEDULE TO WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY, WITH ADDED VIRTUAL GROUP PROGRAMMING AND NIGHT TOURS. ATTENDANCE FOR ALL THE VARIOUS DAYTIME TOURS IN 2021 WAS 136,776 COMPARED TO 73,616 IN 2020 A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE BECAUSE OF THE COVID-19 REDUCED RESTRICTIONS. NIGHT TOURS ADDED 3,055 PARTICIPANTS, AND VIRTUAL CLASSROOMS ATTRACTED 2,879 PARTICIPANTS.

HISTORIC PRESERVATION:AFTER THE LAST PRISONERS LEFT EASTERN STATE PENITENTIARY IN 1971, THE PRISON STOOD FOR OVER TWENTY YEARS, UNTOUCHED, WITH NO MAINTENANCE OR CARE, CAUSING THE BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES OF THIS NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK TO FALL INTO A STATE OF SEVERE DETERIORATION. THE SITE'S CONDITION THREATENED BOTH ITS STRUCTURAL AND EDUCATIONAL FUTURE, PREVENTED OR DRASTICALLY HINDERED PUBLIC TOURS OF THE GROUNDS AND PROHIBITED INTERPRETATION OF THE SITE'S PLACE IN AMERICAN HISTORY; THUS, STABILIZATION AND PRESERVATION OF THE ENTIRE SITE AND ALL OF ITS STRUCTURES WAS, AND CONTINUES TO BE, OF VITAL IMPORTANCE. ESPHS'S RESTORATION ACTIVITIES PROVIDE VISITORS WITH A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING OF THE PRISON'S HISTORY, ITS DESIGN AND USE, AND HOW THE SITE CHANGED AND EVOLVED OVER TIME. IN 2021, IN ADDITION TO THE $416,456 OF EXPENSES SPENT ON GENERAL MAINTENANCE, AND THE ALLOCATION OF $690,203 OF DEPRECIATION, ESPHS COMPLETED $294,323 OF LEASEHOLD IMPROVEMENTS. LEASEHOLD IMPROVEMENTS INCLUDED THE COMPLETION OF UPGRADES TO THE FOLLOWING AREAS: PHASE 1 OF THE MULTI-PHASE VISITOR CENTER PROJECT, ELECTRICAL UPGRADES, OFFICE FLOORING AND BLACKTOP FOR THE INDUSTRIAL COURTYARD.

EXHIBITS:IN 2021 ESPHS PRESENTED A MIX OF HISTORY EXHIBITS AND CONTEMPORARY EXHIBITS FOCUSING ON CONTEMPORARY U.S. PRISON POLICY, AS WELL AS FOURTEEN ART INSTALLATIONS.HISTORY AND CONTEMPORARY INSTALLATIONS INCLUDE: "PRISONS TODAY: QUESTIONS IN THE AGE OF MASS INCARCERATION AND "THE BIG GRAPH." THROUGHOUT THE SITE THERE WERE SMALL EXHIBITS ILLUSTRATING OR EXPANDING UPON ASPECTS OF ESPHS'S HISTORY. THESE INCLUDE AL CAPONE'S CELL, WHICH PORTRAYS CAPONE'S SPECIAL TREATMENT DURING HIS INCARCERATION. ANOTHER EXHIBIT PORTRAYS A TYPICAL CELL FROM THE 1830S, PROVIDING VISITORS WITH THE ABILITY TO VISUALIZE THE INMATE'S ACCOMMODATIONS IN ESPHS'S EARLY YEARS. AN EXHIBIT ON JEWISH LIFE ADJOINS THE SYNAGOGUE AND 23 INMATE PAINTED MURALS ARE INTERPRETED IN THE CATHOLIC CHAPLAIN'S OFFICE.TWO NEW ARTIST INSTALLATION, DEADLY WEAPONS (LINDA BOND) AND TRANSIENT ROOM (ANN REICHLIN) JOINED TWELVE OTHER SITE-SPECIFIC ARTIST INSTALLATIONS: SOLITARY WATCH'S (JEAN CASELLA, JEANNE OLESON AND LAURIE JO REYNOLDS) "PHOTO REQUESTS FROM SOLITARY; RACHEL LIVEDALEN'S "DORIS JEAN; PROVISIONAL ISLAND'S "AN ELECTRIC KITE; JARED SCOTT OWENS' "SEPULTURE; JESSE KRIMES' "APOKALUPTEIN:16389067 II", JESS PERLITZ'S "CHORUS; GREG COWPER'S "SPECIMEN; MICHELLE HANDELMAN'S "BEWARE THE LILY LAW; WILLIAM CROMAR'S "GTMO; TYLER HELD'S "IDENTITY CONTROL; "ALEX ROSENBERG'S "A CLIMBER'S GUIDE TO EASTERN STATE PENITENTIARY OR, EASTERN STATE'S ARCHITECTURE, AND HOW TO ESCAPE IT; AND DEHANZA ROGERS'S "#BLACKGIRLHOOD"

MERCHANDISE SALES AND GENEALOGY FEES