1. Running head: PRISON REFORM GROUPS 1
A Brief Discussion of Early Pennsylvania Prison Reform Groups
Tyson G. Campbell, III
American Intercontinental University
Advanced Topics in Corrections, CRJS450
March 26, 2016

2. PRISON REFORM GROUPS 2
A Brief Discussion of Early Pennsylvania Prison Reform Groups
Before the mid 1800's prisons were not used as a primary form of punishment.
Incarceration was mostly reserved for those awaiting trial and/or sentencing or the mentally
impaired. But after the Revolution things began to slowly change. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
was always on the forefront of prison reform here in the States.
In the early 1770's, the Walnut Street Jail was built in Philadelphia. It was a good facility
for the time, housing the inmates in comparatively large rooms. However, it was a common
custom for jails to serve alcohol for a fee, as well as fees for food, unlocking cells, heat,
etc. This led to great corruption in jails, and this new one was no exception (Johnston, 2015).
One of the first names of note relating to real prison reform in Philadelphia is Richard
Wistar, Sr. In 1776, he began to use his own home to prepare soup for the inmates of the
Philadelphia jails. There were many reports of starvation, suffering, and undue deaths in these
places, so he formed the Philadelphia Society for Assisting Distressed Prisoners, He and other
volunteers did what they could to help, but less than a year later, with the impending war, the
group was disbanded (Johnston, 2015).
After the end of the Revolution, Benjamin Franklin and Benjamin Rush organized a
group of prominent new Americans to change the harsh laws that were in place to bring better
treatment for the incarcerated. Formed in 1787, this group was known as the Philadelphia
Society for Alleviating the Miseries of Public Prisons. (They held this name for over a century,
when it was changed to the Pennsylvania Prison Society, still in existence today.) They were an
effective voice that helped inmates directly, as well as presented alternatives to the state
legislature to ease the appalling conditions in these institutions. This group was successful,
though change would come slowly (Johnston, 2015).

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One of their early successes was their push to have an act passed in 1790 that made
Walnut Street Jail into Pennsylvania's first state prison. A 'penitentiary house' was also built in
the yard of the jail to house the more hardened criminals in solitary confinement. Types and
sorts of prisoners were separated and trade workshops were offered. These reforms became
known as the Pennsylvania System. While it became a showplace institution, it was also getting
more and more overcrowded. And the Pennsylvania System could never work as well as
planned under those conditions. The PSAMPP believed that the corruption and disarray in
prisons could be alleviated by completely separating inmates from each other for their whole
sentence. This had been attempted before in England, but never worked because of the high cost
and the wrong type of building to accomplish it in And so, the PSAMPP pushed for a larger
facility to be built (Johnston, 2015).
Their efforts were rewarded in 1821 with legislation approving a new prison. The design
was to be a revolutionary one. Made by architect, John Haviland, the new Eastern State
Penitentiary consisted of "seven wings of individual cell blocks radiating from a central hub,"
(Woodham, 2008). When it opened, it was praised as a technological wonder. It had such
revolutionary amenities as flush toilets and shower baths in each cell as well as central heating…
features not even yet available in the white house (Woodham, 2008).
This was an incredible victory for the PSAMPP, for with this showplace facility, the
Pennsylvania System of incarceration could be properly implemented. Officials from around the
globe visited the prison and its design was later used in over 300 prisons around the world
(Woodham, 2008). Now renamed as the Pennsylvania Prison Society, their role continued
through three branches: Inmate visits, inmate advocacy and oversight, and assistance to inmates
upon their release. Visiting inmates to discuss their lives and the prison situation overall was

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vital to their well-being, as the visits served to interfere with many abuses. Unique in all the
country, by act of legislature, members of the Pennsylvania Prison Society who sign-up as
visitors have access to all state and county penal facilities (Johnston, 2015).
By the early 20th century, the Pennsylvania Prison Society had to agree that the
Pennsylvania System was being crushed under the weight of its own lofty goals. Keeping an
entire prison in solitary silence pushed many into the depths of insanity, plus overcrowding made
the situation impossible. The prison was designed to hold some three hundred inmates, but by
the 1920s held over two-thousand. Many more cells were built and added on, even ones
underground. These had no plumbing, light, or windows (Woodham, 2008). Certainly, this was
a far cry from what Wistar, Franklin, and Rush had envisioned. Redemption had slipped back
into torture.
While Eastern State Penitentiary was destined to later close and the Pennsylvania System
fell into disuse, the Pennsylvania Prison Society continues to be quite relevant. Some of the
issues they fight for have changed as the times have changed. But, many continue to remain the
same. Official volunteers to do prison visits are so very important. The legislative decisions
which made this a mandate is in force even to the present day. The Society now has some three
hundred visiting members who make more than three thousand penal visits annually. This
citizen connection to the justice administration forms an important layer of prison oversight and
prisoner advocacy (Johnston, 2015).
In modern years, the Society continues to be even stronger prisoner advocates than
ever. They've taken-on issues such as, repealing mandatory sentencing, pushing judges to award
early parole for good behaviour, banning the use of shackles on pregnant inmates, pushing for
wider use of the drug court program, arguing for greater assistance for children of the

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incarcerated. They speak publically to the media, serve on panels at conferences and seminars,
and testify for criminal cases (Johnston, 2015).
For the past 170 years, the Society has published The Prison Journal, to inform the
public on general penal issues, including those of inmate treatment and well-being. They also
publish a quarterly newsletter for the industry called Correctional Forum, and lastly their
monthly newsletter, Greaterfriends is written for the inmate community.
Lastly, the Pennsylvania Prison Society involves themselves with Reentry Service
Programs to assist inmates on their smooth and productive reintegration into society. This is
done in various ways such as, employment placement, updating proper identification, sharpening
life-skills, preparing for the new environment of the workplace (Johnston, 2015).
Conclusion
It took two centuries, but Pennsylvania prison reformers, Wistar, Franklin, and Rush
would be proud of the advancements prisons and inmates have made, even though it is far from
perfect. The Pennsylvania System of incarceration was a grand and moral idea, with parts of it
being of great value. However, keeping all inmates in an institution in solitary confinement,
silent and hooded did not work as well in practice as in design.
Formed in the late 1700's, the Philadelphia Society for Alleviating the Miseries of Public
Prisons which later became the Pennsylvania Prison Society worked hard from the start to be
advocates against the suffering and corruption that was rampant in Philadelphia's Walnut Street
Jail. Their success there led to the development of a prison reform called the Pennsylvania
System, and then the showcase prison, Eastern State Penitentiary.
While the Pennsylvania System had some successes, overcrowding and prevalent mental
issues of the inmates exposed the inflexibility of the system and led to its doom. However, the

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Pennsylvania Prison Society has shown its flexibility by continuing to stay relevant and to thrive,
being a voice of advocacy, reform, and support to the present day.

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References
Johnston, N. (2015, February 1). Prison reform in Pennsylvania. Retrieved from
http://www.craigkirksschooloflaw.org/wp-
content/uploads/2015/02/4c2da0_41bed342ea390827839e1ffa4b3dca97.pdf
Woodham, C. (2008, September 30). Eastern State Penitentiary: A prison with a past. Retrieved
from http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/eastern-state-penitentiary-a-prison-with-a-
past-14274660/?no-ist