| Name:
Also Known As: Rank/Status: State of Origin: Date of Birth: Date of Death: Plot Number: A.I. Grave #: Comments: |
Tom
Tom, Piute Indian Prisoner - - 6/7/1873 E 335 50 The military prison on Alcatraz was not only used to punish disobedient soldiers. The late 1800's are often known as the "Indian Wars" as the US Army endeavored to destroy the traditional way of life of indigenous tribes across the West. During this time Alcatraz and Angel Island were both used to isolate and incarcerate Native Americans the army viewed as dangerous. The first Native American held on Alcatraz was "Tom," a Piute from Nevada. He arrived on Alcatraz only two days before he was shot to death by a guard while trying to escape. Unlike the graves of Alcatraz's soldier prisoners, though, Tom was given a cross emblem on his tombstone. The VA database (as of April 2004) records that Tom was originally buried in grave 50 in the Angel Island Cemetery. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
