Fort Madison Penitentiary Records
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Scope and Contents
Fort Madison Penitentiary Records is divided into three series bertillion cards, court records of the prisoners, and mug shots. The mug shot series is a mix of cards with inmates photos and information on the back and cards with just a photo and no additional information. The series containing the court records are the official transcripts and sentencings of the individuals. Most court records also contain the individuals prison number.
Dates
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1866-1965
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright status for collection materials may be unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owner. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility and potential liability based on copyright infringement for any use rests exclusively and solely with the user. Users must properly acknowledge University of Iowa Libraries Special Collections & Archives as the source of the material. For further information, visit https://www.lib.uiowa.edu/sc/services/rights/
Conditions Governing Use
Mug shots were created for prisoner management and to communicate with the public in the event of an escape. Therefore the mug shot is a non-confidential part of the inmate file permanently retained by the State and thus can be shared.
As per professional practice, we request the image is given proper citation when used. Courtesy the State Historical Society of Iowa, State Archives in Des Moines and the University of Iowa Libraries Special Collections & Archives.
Extent
21.0 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The Iowa State Penitentiary was established in 1839, seven years before Iowa became a state. It was remodeled in 1982. In 2005 an escape led to the decision to replace the prison. Mark Fullenkamp, whose mother worked at the prison and who works at the University, visited the prison when he heard they were leaving their old buildings for the new building. He was interested in the glass slide negatives of the prisoner photographs. These were shipped to Des Moines, where they were digitized by women detainees in the Mitchelville Correctional Center before being stored at the State Historical Society. Fullenkamp arranged for other materials described in this finding aid to be deposited at the University of Iowa Libraries.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This collection is property of the State, temporarily loaned to and housed at the University of Iowa Libraries per conversations beginning in 2012. Glass negatives and the majority of the Penitentiary records are housed at the State Archives in Des Moines.
- Title
- Penitentiary at Fort Madison RecordsMsC1019
- Author
- Bailey Adolph-processed and created finding aid for Mug Shots.
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the University of Iowa Special Collections Repository
Special Collections Department
University of Iowa Libraries
Iowa City IA 52242 IaU
319-335-5921
319-335-5900 (Fax)
lib-spec@uiowa.edu