Prison
Back Gate Cresson Prison
A few years back I visited Cresson Prison which was abruptly abandoned by the state of Pennsylvania in 2013. The prison’s sudden closure was a surprise to the employees and to the community and was swiftly carried out. So quickly that many of the fixtures and furnishings were left in place, literally right in place. As I walked through the dark cells and long hallways I admit I was creeped out…t’was truly a spooky feeling. Cafeteria tables, beds, chairs, cabinets…all in place. Well, not exactly in place, over the decade plus since its abandonment controlled access has been granted and so lots of stuff had been “repositioned.” But I wondered what it was like.
The place started in 1919 as a tuberculosis (TB) sanatorium on land donated by Andrew Carnegie, hence the resort like buildings that appear quite out of place on a prison campus. The “higher” ground of Cresson, PA, was thought to be beneficial to TB patients. As healthcare progressed (I’m guessing) the need for sanatoriums like Cresson disappeared. But…there was all this real estate with these “magnificent” buildings so in 1987 Pennsylvania jumped in to convert the property to a correctional institute for men and it stayed a prison until it closed in 2013. Newspaper articles say it closed because of the poor facilities and, BTW, a new prison had opened that could take all the Cresson prisoners.
I can’t imagine how the prisoners dealt emotionally and physically with the stark prison…this is one like you see in the movies…and not one of the high tech prisons. No. This was stark. I stood in what was sort of a gatehouse at the back gate and looked around. For heat, a half oil drum with grate, bars on the window. English style Tudor building abutting the 12 foot high fence. Door open to go out and inspect incoming trucks and cars. A pedestrian (prisoner) walkway with orders to “STOP HERE WHEN VEHICLE PRESENT.” And concertina wire everywhere. And just there on the very left, hidden by shadows but close to the door frame, a chest high button labeled, “ALARM.” Just sit with me in this spot and let your imagination talk to mine.