Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Abandonment
⎯⎯⎯
Prisons Today
Abandonment
View from Eastern State's center guard tower, c. 1987. Photo: courtesy of David Cornelius.
The last State prisoners leave Eastern State Penitentiary, January 1970. Photo: courtesy of Special Collections Research Center, Temple University Libraries, Philadelphia, PA.
Proposal to transform Eastern State Penitentiary into a shopping mall, late 1980s. There were several reuse proposals in the 1980s, including proposed condominiums and houses. None were realized. Image: courtesy of Breslin Realty.
Prisons Today
Number of People in Pennsylvania Prisons
Pennsylvania's population has grown by just 7% since Eastern State closed in 1970. The number of people in prison, however, has grown by 770%.
The expense has also increased. In today's dollars, the prison system in 1970 cost $185 million. Today it costs as Pennsylvanians nearly $2 billion each year.
Pennsylvania is only slightly above average. Nationwide, the prison population has grown by 670% since 1970.
How does the United States compare?
The United States imprisons more of its population than any other nation.
The American system
this page online
Erected by Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Law Enforcement. A significant historical month for this entry is January 1970.
Location. 39° 58.108′ N, 75° 10.29′ W. Marker is in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia County. It is in Eastern State Penitentiary. It can be reached from Fairmount Avenue west of Corinthian Avenue, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2027 Fairmount Ave, Philadelphia PA 19130, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Pennsylvania. It is also in the American Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, New Netherland, and one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker:
Credits. This page was last revised on February 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 24, 2022, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 208 times since then and 10 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 24, 2022, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
