A Letter from the Editor
Dear Reader,
Ever since I first saw Clint Eastwood’s Escape from Alcatraz, the legend of Frank Morris and the Anglin Brother’s escape from one of the most heavily secured prisons in America has captivated me. The general amazement I have towards the level of thriftiness and ingenuity these so called “degenerates” possessed in planning and executing such a daring escape plan is without end. To have the patience, stealth, and bravery to tunnel out of a prison cell, build an escape vessel and then cross an open body of freezing water is something that I admire regardless of the character of the individual. I chose to focus my project on their escape in the hopes of learning more about the steps it took to escape and to preserve the aura of excitement I've had since I first heard of the escape.
As stated previously, I first learned of Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers after watching Clint Eastwood star in the movie Escape from Alcatraz, a movie based off of the actual escape. Though the movie heavily suggests that the men survived their escape, I was intrigued enough by the film to investigate further the true story behind the movie. Though their were some discrepancies within the movie, what I learned was that most of the film was an accurate depiction of how the escape took place. After seeing the film, I also watched a Mythbuster special that tested whether an escape from the island with a raft made of raincoats was even possible. When the Mythbuster team concluded that such an escape method was certainly plausible, my curiosity in the legend only intensified.
When I began research, my question was simple; How did three men escape one of America's most secure prison completely undetected and disappear without a trace? What mishaps occurred that could have allowed for such an escape? Was it even possible that these men could have survived a trip across the San Francisco Bay? Through in depth research, I hoped to answer all of these questions and any more that might arise.
As one might have expected, I am not alone in my curiosity of this unsolved mystery. There was an abundance of research resources from the internet ranging from BBC and NPR news articles to devoted fan-made websites commenting on the daring escape. This made investigation of the escape easier as I had multiple source from which to gather my facts and form opinions.
Something I did not expect to learn from my research was the number of conspiracy theories that vow that there was some government involvement or a previously unknown third party that assisted the men in escaping from the island. Because these rumors are backed by almost completely nothing, I didn’t give much thought to them. What I did manage to learn through my research were the subtle details of this case that make it such an interesting and exciting story of how the men escaped. Such as the fact that the prison guards allowed Allen West to hang blankets atop the prisoners cell block to “keep dust from falling on the inmates” as he swept there and how this allowed the men to work there and create a virtual workshop to build their escape tools. Details like this only help add to the already grandiose fashion in which the prisoners escaped.
My research, I hope, will help inform people about an interesting historical event and introduce a popular unsolved mystery to those who have never heard of it before. Since there has been very little headway in discovering the fates of the three escapees’ since the late 60's, my research will do nothing but add to the legend that the men’s escape created. My ultimate hope is that through some groundbreaking emergence of evidence, we can one day hope to discover the fate of Frank Morris and the Anglin Brothers and final close the chapter on one of the most exciting breakouts of all time.
Sincerely,
Logan Taylor
Ever since I first saw Clint Eastwood’s Escape from Alcatraz, the legend of Frank Morris and the Anglin Brother’s escape from one of the most heavily secured prisons in America has captivated me. The general amazement I have towards the level of thriftiness and ingenuity these so called “degenerates” possessed in planning and executing such a daring escape plan is without end. To have the patience, stealth, and bravery to tunnel out of a prison cell, build an escape vessel and then cross an open body of freezing water is something that I admire regardless of the character of the individual. I chose to focus my project on their escape in the hopes of learning more about the steps it took to escape and to preserve the aura of excitement I've had since I first heard of the escape.
As stated previously, I first learned of Frank Morris and the Anglin brothers after watching Clint Eastwood star in the movie Escape from Alcatraz, a movie based off of the actual escape. Though the movie heavily suggests that the men survived their escape, I was intrigued enough by the film to investigate further the true story behind the movie. Though their were some discrepancies within the movie, what I learned was that most of the film was an accurate depiction of how the escape took place. After seeing the film, I also watched a Mythbuster special that tested whether an escape from the island with a raft made of raincoats was even possible. When the Mythbuster team concluded that such an escape method was certainly plausible, my curiosity in the legend only intensified.
When I began research, my question was simple; How did three men escape one of America's most secure prison completely undetected and disappear without a trace? What mishaps occurred that could have allowed for such an escape? Was it even possible that these men could have survived a trip across the San Francisco Bay? Through in depth research, I hoped to answer all of these questions and any more that might arise.
As one might have expected, I am not alone in my curiosity of this unsolved mystery. There was an abundance of research resources from the internet ranging from BBC and NPR news articles to devoted fan-made websites commenting on the daring escape. This made investigation of the escape easier as I had multiple source from which to gather my facts and form opinions.
Something I did not expect to learn from my research was the number of conspiracy theories that vow that there was some government involvement or a previously unknown third party that assisted the men in escaping from the island. Because these rumors are backed by almost completely nothing, I didn’t give much thought to them. What I did manage to learn through my research were the subtle details of this case that make it such an interesting and exciting story of how the men escaped. Such as the fact that the prison guards allowed Allen West to hang blankets atop the prisoners cell block to “keep dust from falling on the inmates” as he swept there and how this allowed the men to work there and create a virtual workshop to build their escape tools. Details like this only help add to the already grandiose fashion in which the prisoners escaped.
My research, I hope, will help inform people about an interesting historical event and introduce a popular unsolved mystery to those who have never heard of it before. Since there has been very little headway in discovering the fates of the three escapees’ since the late 60's, my research will do nothing but add to the legend that the men’s escape created. My ultimate hope is that through some groundbreaking emergence of evidence, we can one day hope to discover the fate of Frank Morris and the Anglin Brothers and final close the chapter on one of the most exciting breakouts of all time.
Sincerely,
Logan Taylor