"Escape from the ordinary and break into Alcatraz, America's most famous prison! The island of Alcatraz has always been a place that's fascinated visitors, from the Native American tribes who believed it was home to evil spirits to the Spanish explorers who discovered the island. In modern times, it was a federal prison for only 29 years, but now draws over a million visitors each year. Learn the history of America's most famous prison, from its initial...

In 1962, three prisoners escaped from Alcatraz, a prison surrounded on all sides by the waters of San Francisco Bay, and disappeared. The fates of the three men have remained unknown to the present day. In this program, three scientists from the Netherlands employ 3D modeling technology to reconstruct the water currents of the day of the prison break in an attempt to uncover whether or not it was possible for the men to have survived.

"On November 20, 1969, a group of 89 Native Americans-most of them young activists in their twenties, led by Richard Oakes, LaNada Means, and others-crossed San Francisco Bay under the cover of darkness. They called themselves the "Indians of All Tribes." Their objective was to occupy the abandoned prison on Alcatraz Island ("The Rock"), a mile and a half across the treacherous waters. Under the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie between the U.S. and the...

As one of America's most notorious prisons, Alcatraz has been a significant part of California's history for over 155 years. The small, lonely rock, known in sea charts by its Spanish name "Isla de los Alcatraces," or "Island of Pelicans," lay essentially dormant until the 1850s, when the military converted the island into a fortress to protect the booming San Francisco region. Alcatraz served as a pivotal military position until the early 20th century...