Alcatraz Island - New Industries Building

On Alcatraz, work was a privilege. One possible reward for good behavior was a job in the New Industries Building (NIB), which opened in 1941. Workers here did laundry for military bases all over the Bay Area and manufactured clothing, gloves, shoes, brushes, and furniture for government use. During World War II, prisoners also made cargo nets for the Navy and repaired the buoys that secured the submarine net across San Francisco Bay. For some prisoners, work was more than a chance to earn a shortened sentence and a small wage; it was also an escape from the boredom and isolation of the cellhouse and for others, it was tge value of being useful. For some, though, it was just another punishing routine, an exploitation of prison labor. Former inmate Jim Quillen remembered his job here as “the most frustrating and boring work I have ever done—before, during, or after my release from prison.” Now, the NIB offers a space for installations and exhibitions.