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A Brief History Of The Pennsylvania System Vs Auburn System

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The Pennsylvania system and the Auburn system were the building blocks for the prisons and jails we have today. Virtually every prison built in the nineteenth century was based off of either the Pennsylvania or Auburn system. These two systems are ones that are rich in history and over their years of operation have managed to show many things that the systems have done correctly and the many faults within each system. In this essay I shall discuss with you, the history of these two systems; along with, the pros and cons of each system, and discuss why I felt that Auburn prison system was substantially better. The Pennsylvania system originated in Philadelphia and came to fruition after a group of Quakers formed the reformist Society for Alleviating …show more content…

The penitentiary house is where they would keep the worst of the offenders but due to overcrowding, legislation needed to approve of another two prisons. These prisons were the Western Penitentiary; located in Pittsburgh, and the Easter State Penitentiary, which was located in Cherry Hill, near Philadelphia (Clear 2013). With the opening of the Eastern State Penitentiary in 1829, it marked a true beginning to an era of prisons based completely on separate confinement. Eastern State Penitentiary, at that time, was considered to be the most imposing prison in the United States; this was all attributed to the creator of the prison; John Haviland, who designed each cell to be dark and dingy, with little to no visibility of other inmates. Each cell measured 12 by 8 by 10 feet and had a personal 18 -foot-long exercise yard. Cells were furnished with a fold-up metal bed, a toilet, a workbench, and a small 8-inch window to allow natural light into each cell (Clear 2013). Inmates had little to no human contact, getting only an occasional visit from a clergyman or prison official. The Pennsylvania system was very religious and its officials saw the solitary …show more content…

Many of the aspects used in both systems are still in used today, such as, lock step, solitary confinement and prison labor. Although they both helped shape the correctional system of today’s world, the Auburn system was far superior for many reasons. The prison was able to sustain its self and with the help of their free laborers they could experience a rise in prison population and still be able to pay for itself, unlike the Pennsylvania system. The Fact that inmates could see one another and be around other human beings was huge for the mental sanity of the inmates and was a huge reason that there was such a drop in the amount of mentally ill inmates, compared to the Pennsylvania system. All in all the Auburn system was not just better for the state, but also for the

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