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Stitch in time: A look at California prison uniforms through the years
Uniforms have evolved since the first prison was founded in the 1850s. From left are representations from 1900, the 1920s and the 1970s with Joyce Zink working at Folsom State Prison.
California prison uniforms have evolved for staff and the incarcerated population since the first person was convicted of a crime.
In the beginning, there was little difference between clothing worn by custody staff and the incarcerated during the 1850s.
Over the decades, that changed, mostly at the urging of the prison directors.
As part of our Unlocking History series, Inside CDCR has compiled photos from the prison’s beginnings through more modern times.
1850s and 1860s: The first two decades
San Quentin, circa 1859. (California State Library.)
When inmates were housed aboard ships and later in cell blocks at San Quentin, they wore the same clothing as when they were arrested. This caused confusion during escape attempts and made it much easier for inmates to simply walk away from their job assignments. According to reports at the time, it was difficult to tell the difference between inmates and staff since neither wore uniforms.
1870s and 1880s: San Quentin passes quarter-century mark
San Quentin officers stand in front of their new quarters, circa 1870s.Lining up for dinner at San Quentin, circa 1870s.San Quentin staff stop for a photo, circa 1877. (Photo by CSU Chico.)Early San Quentin prison staff in the 1880s. (William B. Secrest Collection.)
1890s: Dapper duds for staff
The first seven youth offenders arrive at Preston School of Industry. Staff can be seen around them on the stairs, some sporting military style uniforms, circa 1894. (Division of Juvenile Justice file photo.)Folsom Prison cells, circa 1890. According to the caption, staff are Turnkey A. Cassidy, Assistant Turnkey G. Hagerty and Guard O. Lewis. (Photo from California State Library.)Folsom Prison staff and cell blocks, 1890s. (Photo from California State Library.)Guards in the mess hall at Folsom State Prison, circa 1894. They carried walking sticks for defense and to tap the floor as warnings.Whittier State School staff oversee youth offenders at a Catalina Island summer camp in 1895. Whittier was later renamed the Fred C. Nelles Youth Correctional Facility. It was founded in 1891 and closed in 2004. (Photo: Whittier Public Library.)
Other than the styles changing, clothing worn by correctional staff appeared much as it did 40 years earlier. The incarcerated population now wore prison stripes, modeled after the prison system in New York. Meanwhile, incarcerated youth wore military-style uniforms.
1900s: A new century
Folsom State Prison guard and Gatling gun, circa 1900. (Photo: Sacramento Public Library.)San Quentin Women’s Ward Matron Genevieve Smith, circa 1912. (Photo: Marin Public Library Anne T. Kent California Room.)
Technology began to play a larger role in the two states prisons at San Quentin and Folsom. Everything from transportation to kitchen appliances saw major overhauls. Female inmates were still housed at San Quentin, overseen by a matron, while the state’s two youth facilities continued to focus on a military style of rehabilitation.
1920s and 1930s: The beginning of standards
The quarry guard at San Quentin sports a more professional style uniform than earlier decades, circa late 1920s. (Photo from UC Berkeley Bancroft Library.)Uniforms varied depending on the job at hand such as what’s worn by this guard, right, who was overseeing inmates on a highway construction crew in the 1920s. Salvation Army Major Cleve Stairs visited the site to meet with the inmates as part of his chaplain work at San Quentin. (Photo: Salvation Army Museum of the West.)Matron Alva M. Brittain shows off the new cottage concept in this 1933 newspaper photo taken at the California Institution for Women at Tehachapi. (Photo: UCLA.)
Road construction honor camps were the start of today’s fire camps. At the time, inmates constructed highways in the mountains and along the coast. Under the direction of reform minded wardens and state officials, a separate prison was opened in Tehachapi to house female offenders.
1940s and 1950s: Department overhaul
California Institution for Men, circa early 1950s. Guards were reclassified as Correctional Officers during the 1944 founding of the Department of Corrections.Officers learn about inmate transport, circa 1950.New officers are trained on how to use the information boards, circa 1950.Correctional Sgt. Frank Patton keeps an eye on the meal line at the California Institution for Men, 1951. (Photo by University of Southern California Digital Library.)
With the return of soldiers after World War II, and the 1944 reorganization of the Department of Corrections, more professional standards were put in place. The Guard classification was changed to Correctional Officer and more extensive training was emphasized.
1960s: Enhancing the fire camp program
An inmate firefighter demonstrates chainsaw skills at Sierra Conservation Center, circa 1965.
The 1960s saw the activation of two new facilities specifically designed to train offenders for conservation camps. California Correctional Center opened in 1963 while Sierra Conservation Center activated two years later.
1970s: Women and men work side-by-side in prison
California Medical Facility staff, circa early 1970s.Wilma Schneider, left, and Ilene Williams were two of the early female correctional officers in the 1970s. They worked at San Quentin State Prison.California Institution for Men front gate officer, circa 1974.
With women going to work in men’s prisons, new California prison staff uniforms were needed. Some versions included skirts while other female uniforms had slacks.
1980s and 1990s: California prison uniforms updated
Correctional officers at California Medical Facility, circa 1980s. According to staff, the officers shown are Robert Trimble, Ken Kinder, and Tim Horton.California Medical Facility Honor Guard, front group, circa 1988, during an exercise at the R.A. McGee Correctional Training Center.Correctional cadets at the academy circa 1980s.Women correctional officers at Folsom State Prison, 1988.
California Medical Facility Honor Guard, front group, circa 1988, during an exercise at the R.A. McGee Correctional Training Center.
2000s and 2010s: New name for overhauled department
Parole agents, 2007.CDCR peace officers help maintain public safety. To reflect the mission of the department, the word Rehabilitation was added to its name during Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s administration in 2004.Mule Creek State Prison Honor Guard, Sept. 11 ceremony in 2019.
With the new millennium, the department changed its name to CDCR, adding Rehabilitation. There was also a major reorganization, including making the department its own agency. CDCR’s patches were redesigned to reflect the name change. Over the course of roughly 170 years, the California prison system has evolved, and so have the uniforms.
