Alcatraz Historic Gardens Program restores and maintains key gardens on Alcatraz. The gardens were created by those who lived on the island during its military and prison eras.
Alcatraz Historic Gardens
Parks
Among the surviving ornmental plants are daffodils, fuchsias, agapanthus, pelargoniums, various succulents, fig trees, apple trees, walnut trees, artichokes, scented bearded iris and roses.
Our Work
Resident families introduced roses to Alcatraz during the military era, between 1850 and 1934. Surprisingly, roses thrived under these conditions and soon filled Alcatraz’s first gardens.
Our Work
For more than a century, gardens were an important part of everyday life for officers, families, and prisoners confined to Alcatraz by sentence or duty. Alcatraz’s current visitors experience an island that is alive with colorful plants gathered decades ago from around the world, and complemented by newly introduced plants.
Our Work
Learn more about visiting the historic gardens of Alcatraz.
Our Work
Alcatraz gardeners needed tough plants that could survive with little water or care. The first ornamental plants that arrived to Alcatraz in the mid 1860s were typically favorite garden plants brought by soldier's families that called Alcatraz home. These plants were Victorian in fashion - roses and vines trained on...
Parks
Learn more about our sustainable gardening practices at Alcatraz Historic Gardens.
Stories
Albert Smith, found guilty of four counts of robbery, was sentenced to serve 10 to 24 years in prison. He was sent to Alcatraz in 1945 after an attempted escape, and began work duties as a gardener the following year.
Stories
Richard Franseen was sentenced to Alcatraz from 1937 to 1946 for counterfeiting. By 1940, he was assigned to yard duties, tending to a greenhouse and a little garden.
Stories
After being sentenced for counterfeiting in 1941, Elliott Michener was involved in an escape plot from Leavenworth Prison and then sent to Alcatraz. He spent years on the island's west side creating cottage-style gardens.
