Eastern State Penitentiary
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
In July, 2006, I visited the Eastern State Penitentiary in downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The penitentiary has a unique history and shape. You can find more information about it at its official web site (www.EasternState.org).
For more information about my photo project, see "Constructed Photos."
Click on a picture to get a larger picture.
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Single Photos
Eastern State Penitentiary was designed so that one guard at the center of the facility could look down the eight hallways of the prison. With this plan, one guard could see all the doors of the cells, which held prisoners in solitary confinement.
After the initial design was completed, additional hallways were added, which required the addition of mirrors, such as the one shown above, to see down the hallways.
Some of the later hallways also had a second floor, which were serviced by a transport car that rolled between the two sides of the catwalks.
Constructed Photos
By combining a series of photos, you can see three of the original hallways that a guard looked down from the center of the "panopticon."
These are two of the orginal towers on the wall around the perimeter.
This is a tower, a prison wall, and -- within a couple of blocks -- downtown Philadelphia.