Click on the following links. Please note these will open in a new window.

Journal Article Link 1.1: Johnston, Norman (2010). Early Philadelphia Prisons, Amour, Alcohol, and Other Forbidden Pleasures. The Prison Journal, 90(1): 12-23.

Philadelphia from the end of the Revolution until the mid-19th century was known worldwide for its innovations and ideals in the treatment of offenders. This article examines conditions, albeit for limited time periods, when the iconic Walnut Street Jail and Eastern State Penitentiary were sites for parties, drinking, and sexual escapades, which were a far cry from the image projected by officials and reformers. Although in each case the accusations were acutely embarrassing and serious, both institutions weathered them. At Eastern State Penitentiary, a low-ranking woman on the staff was well qualified by her behavior to be the scapegoat and the unsavory facts concerning the warden and others soon dissipated, with little discernable damage to the image of the prison as an ideal of a new form of treatment for criminals.

1. While it is unlikely that modern prisons are sites for parties, this article reveals how it is difficult for the public to know what is going on inside prisons. Why is it important for there to be oversight of prisons by external monitors? 

Journal Article Link 1.2: Johnston, Norman (2009). Evolving Function: Early Use of Imprisonment as Punishment. The Prison Journal, 89(1): 10S-34S.

This article explores the usages of imprisonment, both de facto and de jure, from its earliest recorded use 3,000 years ago down to recent times. Early scattered use, unreflected in the statutes, was followed by houses of correction for minor offenders and later, displacing capital punishment, for major crimes. Serious reform in England and Pennsylvania and the subsequent battle between two systems developed in Pennsylvania and New York states and their ultimate demise are described. The origins of special prisons for women, youth, and other categories are traced, and early prison labor and schooling are described.

1. What underlying functions does imprisonment serve today?
2. Should we have different treatment for various categories of prisoners including women and youth?