NYCHS logo Court TV's Crime Library logoNYCHS is honored to be permitted to post this excerpts presentation of Mark Gado's Stone Upon Stone: Sing Sing Prison appearing on Court TV's Crime Library web site that retains all rights under its copyright. Visit Court TV's Crime Library web site to view the complete 16-chapter article, including more historical images, a useful bibliography and the full long list of New Rochelle Detective Gado's other articles on that site. Thanks also to the Ossining Historical Society for use of images from its archives.
NYCHS excerpts: Mark Gado's Stone Upon Stone: Sing Sing Prison

Ch. 7: The Winds of Change

On August 9, 1900, the hated lock-step method of walking in the prison was discontinued. ". . . The men are cheerful and appreciative. . . " Other reforms quickly followed. More windows were installed, letting in daylight where no light had ever shone before. Baseball was introduced. Inmates were allowed freer access to the yard and more time outdoors. . . . But not everyone was happy.

An investigative committee in the state legislature voiced its objections in a report that was released to the press. . . . Despite political efforts to stop it, penology reform continued.

From the period 1900 through 1919, 10 different wardens were put in charge of the beleaguered prison. . . . It was a thankless, pressure-filled job. . . .

The lock step method of walking in Sing Sing. (Ossining Historical Society)

In 1919, an enlightened administrator from upstate New York agreed to take over the reins of Sing Sing. . . . . His name was Lewis E. Lawes and a new era was about to begin.

Ch. 8: Lewis E. Lawes

Unlike many of his predecessors, Lawes was a correction officer. He had worked in Clinton Prison at Dannemora and also Auburn Prison for years and was familiar with the problems associated with controlling an inmate population. Lawes grew up in the shadow of Elmira state prison where his father was employed as a guard. He later took the same position and rose quickly through the ranks. . . .

In 1916, he was chosen to head the New York City Reformatory for male delinquents where he established a firm but fair system of discipline. Lawes also had a talent for self-promotion, which enabled him to derail a great deal of political opposition to his reforms. . . . . . .

. . . on January 1, 1920, he took over the reigns of [Sing Sing,] a demoralized institution. . . . Records indicated that there should have been 795 male prisoners at Sing Sing. An actual head count turned up only 762. Female inmates should have been 102. The count revealed only 82 actually present. . .

Lawes found more than $30,000 in cash missing from prison bank accounts and no clue as to where the money went. Documented inmate punishments were shocking to say the least and existing records described a long history of brutality by prison guards and wardens alike. . . .

He instituted reforms and new methods of discipline, which avoided physical punishment. . . .During the next few years, several new buildings were constructed including a chapel, a mess hall, two administration centers, a hospital and a library. A new system of admissions was perfected that allowed prison officials to classify prisoners, something which had never been done before. The grounds of Sing Sing were vastly improved. . . .

Lawes . . . became an outspoken opponent of capital punishment despite his responsibilities as the overseer of the state's execution chamber. . . He remained on the job as the warden until he retired in 1941.

The Bird House of Sing Sing in 1929, (Courtesy of Ossining Historical Society)

In 1943, the old cellblock was finally closed. Interestingly, its metal bars and doors, of which there were many, were donated to America's war effort. The 1825 structure was later listed in the National Registry of Historic Sites and can never again be used as a detention facility.

Ch. 9: The Rose Man

. . . Charles E. Chapin, 60, a former editor of one of New York City's largest newspapers, The World . . . was convicted in Manhattan Supreme Court of the murder of his wife. He received a sentence of 20 years to life at Sing Sing. . . .

When he arrived at the prison in 1919, he was already thin, fragile and in poor health. . . . Lawes made Chapin editor of Sing Sing's newspaper, The Bulletin. But budgetary restrictions forced the discontinuance of the paper . . . Chapin requested and received permission to plant a small flower garden in a neglected area of the prison yard . . . He recruited other prisoners to assist him . . . Lawes agreed to truck in a quantity of dirt and fertilizer . . . .

MORE ON 'ROSE MAN'
Other NYCHS web pages with information and images related to the Rose Man Charles E. Chapin:

Chapin ordered rose bushes, peonies, petunias . . . . . . small trees sprouted up and the prison grounds became alive with the welcome sound of singing birds . . . . Chapin asked the warden for permission to build a birdhouse . . .for hundreds of birds with room for prisoners to sit and admire their beauty . . . .

Chapin contacted his newspaper friends . . . for money to finance the construction and materials, since the state . . . would provide nothing for the project. . . .. He solicited the aid of other inmates . . . After three arduous years, Chapin . . . had a built a magnificent structure [with] a huge dome at the top, plenty of glass and hundreds of flowers and bushes where birds could gather and rest . . . just yards away from America's busiest death chamber . . . .

But in the summer of 1930 . . . Chapin's gardens had to be destroyed to make way for a new drainage system . . . . it affected him deeply . . . That winter, Chapin contracted pneumonia and died on December 13, 1930 at the age of 72. Before Lawes left Sing Sing, he had the gardens rebuilt as a tribute to the spirit of their builder, Charles E. Chapin, The Rose Man.

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NYCHS excerpts: Mark Gado's Stone Upon Stone: Sing Sing Prison
NYCHS logo Court TV's Crime Library logoNYCHS is honored to be permitted to post this excerpts presentation of Mark Gado's Stone Upon Stone: Sing Sing Prison appearing on Court TV's Crime Library web site that retains all rights under its copyright. Visit Court TV's Crime Library web site to view the complete 16-chapter article, including more historical images, a useful bibliography and the full long list of New Rochelle Detective Gado's other articles on that site. Thanks also to the Ossining Historical Society for use of images from its archives.