A significant chapter in the history of American social reform
is traced in this skillful account of the rise of the New York
penitentiary system at a time when the United States was garnering
international acclaim for its penal methods. Beginning with
Newgate, an ill-fated institution built in New York City and named
after the famous British prison, W. David Lewis describes the
development of such well-known institutions as Auburn Prison and
Sing Sing, and ends with the establishment of Clinton Prison at
Dannemora. In the process, he analyzes the activities and motives
of such penal reformers as Thomas Eddy, the Quaker merchant who was
chiefly responsible for the founding of the penitentiary system in
New York; Elam Lynds, whose unsparing use of the lash made him one
of the most famous wardens in American history; and Eliza W.
Farnham, who attempted to base the treatment of convicts upon the
pseudoscience of phrenology.
The history of the Auburn penal system copied throughout the
world in the nineteenth century is the central topic of Lewis's
study. Harsh and repressive discipline was the rule at Auburn; by
night, the inmates were kept in solitary confinement and by day
they were compelled to maintain absolute silence while working
together in penitentiary shops. Moreover, the proceeds of their
labor were expected to cover the full cost of institutional
maintenance, turning the prison into a factory. (Indeed, Auburn
Prison became a leading center of silk manufacture for a time.)
Lewis shows how the rise and decline of the Auburn system
reflected broad social and intellectual trends during the period.
Conceived in the 1820s, a time of considerable public anxiety, the
methods used at Auburn were seriously challenged twenty years
later, when a feeling of social optimism was in the air. The Auburn
system survived the challenge, however, and its methods, only
slightly modified, continued to be used in dealing with most of the
state's adult criminals to the end of the century.
First published in 1965, From Newgate to Dannemora was the first
in-depth treatment of American prison reform that took into account
the broader context of political, economic, and cultural trends in
the early national and Jacksonian period. With its clear prose and
appealing narrative approach, this paperback edition will appeal to
a new generation of readers interested in penology, the history of
New York State, and the broader history of American social
reform."
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