Alcatraz Prison-The Gaurd's Experiences
Oddly, the tour guides were not the only ones to have strange experiences in that particular cell. A number of former guards from the prisons also spoke of some pretty terrifying incidents that took place near the "holes" and in particular, Cell 14D. During the guard's stint in the middle 1940's, an inmate was locked in the cell for some forgotten infraction. According to the officer, the inmate began screaming within seconds of being locked in. He claimed that some creature with "glowing eyes" was locked in with him. As tales of a ghostly presence wandering the nearby corridor were a continual source of practical jokes among the guards, no one took the convict's cries of being "attacked" very seriously.
The man's screaming continued on into the night until finally, there was silence. The following day, guards inspected the cell and they found the convict dead. A horrible expression had been frozen onto the man's face and there were clear marks of hands around his throat! The autopsy revealed that the strangulation could not have been self-inflicted. Some inmates believed that he might have been choked by one of the guards, who had been fed up, with the man's screaming, but no one ever admitted it.
A few of the officers blamed something else for the man's death. They believed that the killer had been the spirit of a former inmate. To add to the mystery, on the day following the tragedy, several guards who were performing a head count noticed that there were too many men in the lineup. Then, at the end of the line, they saw the face of the convict who had recently been strangled in the "hole"! As they all looked on in stunned silence, the figure abruptly vanished.
Sometimes the old lighthouse (See Image 1) which has long since been demolished, appears out of a dense fog, accompanied by a ghostly whistling sound, and a great flashing light which passed slowly around the entire island, just as if the Lighthouse was still active. The spectacle would then vanish before the startled eyes of guards and visitors.
Phantom cannon shots, gun shots, and screams oftentimes sent seasoned guards falling flat on their stomachs thinking that prisoners had escaped and obtained weapons. Each time, there was no explanation. A deserted laundry room would sometimes emanate a strong scent of smoke, as if something was on fire. The sensation of the choking smoke would drive guards out of the room, only to return a few minutes later, the area now completely smoke free the phantom smoke occurred many times over the years.
Even Warden Johnston, who did not believe in ghosts, once encountered the unmistakable sound of a person sobbing while he accompanied some guests on a tour of the prison. He swore that the sounds came from inside of the dungeon walls. The strange sounds were followed by an ice-cold wind that swirled through the entire group. He could offer no explanation for the weird events.
Read More:
Alcatraz Prison-The Early YearsAlcatraz Prison-The Cells
Alcatraz Prison-Al Capone and other Famous Prisoners
Alcatraz Prison-Experiences of the Night Watchmen
Alcatraz Prison-The Gaurd's Experiences
Alcatraz Prison-The Ghost Hunters
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