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Hope Abandoned: Eastern State Penitentiary

2000

Synopsis

Eastern State Penitentiary, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, opened in 1829 to international acclaim. Architect John Haviland designed this landmark experiment in architecture and building technology to embody Quaker ideals about institutional reform, civic responsibility, and criminal behavior. The Penitentiary was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1965; it closed in 1971, and was abandoned for over twenty years. The Penitentiary has found renewed life as a historic site and educational facility under the management of the newly created Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site, Inc. Hope Abandoned features photographs and quotes taken long after the last door was locked and sealed. According to Perrott, his images of the decrepit and decayed prison depict the "awful beauty of this mostly dark and profoundly disturbing place."

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Is Eastern State Penitentiary Really Haunted?

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