Eastern State Penitentiary Tours and Activities

As you approach the Eastern State Penitentiary, with its thick stone walls and stark exterior, you could be forgiven for having to suppress a shudder or for feeling sorry for the lost souls once trapped within its walls. However, a tour of the interior and grounds show this prison for what it was meant to be – a rehabilitation centre way ahead of its time. Built in 1829, you may find the penitentiary surprisingly less grim than you would expect for a structure of its type and time. Skylights are littered throughout, allowing natural light to filter into the cells, while there were also gardens here and even pets were allowed at times. The overarching aim of the prison was not just to punish those sent here to serve time, but also to encourage them to atone for their respective sins.Initially, the plan was for inmates to be isolated, and not interact with each other. As such, it was one person only to each cell with rehabilitation encouraged by means of physical labour and guard supervision. By 1913 this methodology would be abandoned for reasons of overcrowding.In the 20s, the penitentiary was home to a series of famous gangsters such as Al Capone and Slick Willie Sutton. Head to their cells to learn a little more about their lives in and outside of the prison walls.The Eastern State Penitentiary closed in 1971 and has not been altered to any great degree since. This means that visitors to the prison today get to see conditions much as they were then. Guided tours are conducted throughout the winter and last for about an hour, while the audio tours are your best bet for the rest of the year. The prison sometimes houses special exhibits, so keep an eye out for these. They usually consist of some pretty intriguing prison-based artwork. For those who like to live on the edge, try to time your visit to fall between the months of September and November. This is when the Terror Behind the Walls tours run full of tales of ghosts and eerie events, these tours run after dark and are based around a Halloween theme.The Eastern State Penitentiary is situated on Fairmount Avenue, just five blocks from the Philadelphia Museum of Art and is open every day during most of the year. There is free parking available nearby, as well as paid parking next door, though probably the easiest way to get here is on one of the Phlash buses that run regularly between the city's many tourist attractions.