Levenworth Prison Gift Shop

Why would anyone want to visit a penitentiary? Unless it is an imprisonment facility for political reasons, such as the gulags all over Eastern Europe, Cambodia, Rwanda, Chile and many others, or it is a place where atrocities were committed against ethnic groups, such as those during the WWII, I find it hard to understand why would someone go to visit a jail? Would it be because it is a constant reminder of how precious freedom is and why we should live in accordance with the law?

Anyway, these days television made heroes of various felons in the history. As time goes by and movies grow in number, many people want to see the place where their “hero” was incarcerated.

It the case of Leavenworth Prison. The facility is located in the state of Kansas, and is a federal prison where the sentences of the Federal Court are being carried out. Between the years 1903-2005 it was the largest maximum security federal prison in the United States. Nowadays, it is a medium security facility, accommodating only male population.

Very many notorious criminals were imprisoned there over the years. Thomas James Holden made it first  place on the FBI Most Wanted Fugitives in 1950. He had been convicted for murder, incarcerated in Leavenworth where he managed to break out. Quite a performance, if we remember it was a maximum security penitentiary at the time.

Orba Elmer Jackson made it #7 on the same list. He escaped prison and robbed a post office. Robert Stroud was taken to Leavenworth before he made a name for himself at Alcatraz (the “name” was “The Bird Man in Alcatraz”). Frankie Cavanaugh served 20 years until 2007 for murder. He was a well-known Irish-American gangster. Ricardo Flores-Magon, a Mexican intellectual anarchist, came to the USA during the Mexican Revolution, continued his activity, was imprisoned at Leavenworth, where he died in the ’20, allegedly due to a health condition that deteriorated during imprisonment years.

We could go on with presenting the “stars” of this penitentiary. We picked up the most renowned, leaving out “personalities” such of those of an Indian American leader or of the last fugitive executed before T. McVeigh.

A place such this would have, no doubt, a gift shop, scary as it may seem at a first glance. If you’re expecting a pair of shackles or a striped outfit, think again! We are living in a civilized world.

Let’s take a look at the T-shirts and jackets we can buy as gifts. For the price of $24 we can purchase a T-shirt with a logo on it that says: “Leavenworth Penitentiary 457885 A Gated Community”.

A very special yellow T-shirt, costing $20 has a logo on it that says: “Shawshank”. Remember Shawshank Redemption? The great movie that brings up a very delicate question: How many inmates in prisons are there because of judicial errors?

$24 can buy you a “Solitary Confinement” dark T-shirt. The idea of prison is used to illustrate a conspiracy theory. Thus, for $29 you can buy a T-shirt that says: “They are trying to build a prison for you and me to live in”. Some constant reminder, ha?

For $22 you may buy a “Beware” funny T-shirt that says: “Came to Kansas on vacation left on probation”.

You can also choose a license plate with the  inscription “I made this in Leavenworth prison” or  a great post card of the prison.

Bottom line is that if you don’t want to report periodically to your probation officer, try the Leavenworth prison gifts website shops.

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