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Ch. 13: Sing Sing Now
As Sing Sing enters its third century of
continuous operation, it houses more than
2,000 inmates and employs approximately 1,000
people. More than 5,000 visitors pass through
its gates each month. . . . In
1989, the institution was accredited for the
first time by the American Correctional
Association, which established a set of national
standards by which every correctional facility
should be judged. . . .
Films like The Big House(1930), Angels With Dirty
Faces (1938) and 20,000 Years at Sing Sing
(1932) helped to form an image of the prison in
the public mind that exists even today.
Numerous celebrities have visited the facility
and some have become part of the folklore of
the institution. President Abraham Lincoln,
James Cagney, Victor Mature, Mayor Jimmy
Walker, Spencer Tracy and many more have
stood inside Sing Sing's marble walls . . . . New York
Yankees played the New York Giants [at Sing Sing in 1925] and during the game, Ruth blasted a home run
over the right field wall, which was said to be
620 feet . . . .
Sing Sing no longer resembles the
prison constructed by Captain Elam Lynds and
the Auburn inmates in 1825. Though the original
structure still stands, it does not and never will
house prisoners again. Plans are presently
underway to convert the huge structure into a
museum, an idea which may soon become a
reality.
Sing Sing Tower (photo by author)
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An economic study prepared in 2002
indicated a prison museum would bring between
100,000 to 210,000 visitors to the area and
generate $20 million annually to Westchester
County. . . .
Ch. 14: Photo Gallery
Visit Chapter 14 on the the Court TV's Crime Library site for a photo gallery featuring images of Sing Sing prison around 1915, Captain Elam Lynds, the punishment shower bath, a flogging and an electric chair.
Ch. 15: Bibliography
Visit Chapter 15 on the the Court TV's Crime Library site for a list of resources used by author Mark Gado in researching Sing Sing history. First mentioned on the list of 19 entries is Roberta Arminio of the Ossining Historical Society who provided Sing Sing prison records, photographs and newspaper clippings.
Det. Mark Gado.
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Ch. 16: Mark Gado
Mark Gado is a police
detective with the City of
New Rochelle Police
Department in New York
where he has been
employed for nearly 25
years.
He was a federal agent assigned to the
Westchester County D.E.A. Task Force in
WhitePlains, N.Y. from 1997 to 1999. He
received the International Award of Honor
from the Narcotic Enforcement Officers
Association in New Orleans in 1998.
Mark
was also named Investigator of the Year 2000
and received dozens of
other awards and commendations during his
long police career.
He has been a freelance writer for over 20
years and his work has appeared on numerous
websites and in many publications, including
Law Enforcement Journal, Cobblestone, A
History Magazine for Young People and several
cover stories for Strange Days magazine. Mark
holds a Bachelors Degree in Criminal Justice
1998 and a Masters in Criminal Justice from Iona
College 2001.
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NYCHS 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.