CDCR History
CDCR California prison history explores the stories of the people, places and programs that shaped the current state penal system. Within the CDCR History category, there are two sub-categories. The Unlocking History series uses extensive research culled from historical records while CDCR Time Capsule republishes historical documents as originally written.
(Editor’s note: This story on the slaying of Howell Burchfield at San Quentin was published in 1985 in Correction News,...
Read More About 1985: Howell Burchfield slain at San Quentin
California Institution for Men (CIM) was created in 1941, becoming the fourth state facility to house inmates. CIM was designed...
Pine Grove Youth Conservation Camp was established in 1945 but the original camp began a decade earlier as part of...
Thousands of women fill the ranks of CDCR custody staff at every level, from officers to wardens and executive leadership. CDCR...
The first female correctional officers maintained public safety while overcoming challenges from leaders, coworkers and incarcerated.
Read More About First female Correctional Officers opened doors
San Quentin State Prison is well known today but during its early days, the prison was known by a different...
Read More About San Quentin wasn’t always known by current name
A correctional system established in the California Gold Rush was upended by an unlikely source – the infamous Yacht Bandit...
Read More About 1940s Yacht Bandit scandal shaped today’s CDCR
A 1938 mural at Folsom State Prison is beginning to show its age but behind the scenes, volunteers are trying...
Read More About Retired Folsom Prison staff try to restore historic chapel mural
Nearly 70 California Department of Corrections (CDC) employees from throughout the state gathered on May 20, 2005, on the West...