Fort+Madison

Original Author: Megan Miller, ENG299 FL10 Revision Author:
 * Fort Madison **

Iowa State Penitentiary was established on January 25, 1839, this is just one year after Iowa became a territory. Seven years later Iowa became an actual state. It’s located in Lee County, in Fort Madison. This is Iowa’s one and only state penitentiary for male repeat offenders. This penitentiary was originally based on another prison in Auburn, New York. It was not reconstructed for nearly 150 years when they introduced unitization. It can hold up to 500 inmates at one time. It is the oldest prison west of the Mississippi River. The original cell block is still up and in use today, and there are many areas in the prison that date back to the civil war. It is even said that there is a ghost that haunts the original cells, and many employees refuse to go there when it’s dark.

Fort Madison has had many famous prisoners. Before the abolishment of executions was stopped in the state of Iowa, many were performed at Fort Madison. Victor Feguer was the last person in the state of Iowa to be executed in this prison. He was also the last inmate to be put to death in 40 years until Timothy McVeigh. Feguer was a native of Michigan. In 1960 he came to Dubuque, Iowa. Soon after arriving in Dubuque he called local doctor, Edward Bartels. He told Bartels that a woman he was with needed immediate medical attention. When he arrived Feguer kidnapped and killed him with a single gunshot to the head. A couple days later Feguer was arrested in Alabama trying to sell Bartels car. It was believed he did this to gain access the drugs that the doctor may have had. He was later sentenced to death by hanging, he appealed this and it then went to John F. Kennedy, the current president. Kennedy thought the crime was so cruel that he denied the request for an appeal. On March 15, 1963 Feguer was hung. Although Feguer is buried in a cemetery, the ones executed before him were buried in the yard of the prison.

There was also another unusual inmate in this prison. On July 17, 1889 on a farm in Clayton County, Iowa there was a murder. John Elkins and his wife were murdered in the morning hours. John was short with a rifle which was in the household; it was hung back up after the shooting. Mrs. Elkins was beaten with a stick and her body was horrible disfigured. They had to sons and a nephew that were being questioned about the killings. On July 26, 1889 the 11 year old son Wesley was taken to jail on suspicions of the murder of his parents. While in jail he admits that he did commit the crime, then drove him and his infant sister 4 miles to the nearest neighbors and reported the he discovered their bodies. On the night of the murder Wesley had gotten into an argument with his father, and decided to sleep in the barn. The newspaper article’s story said this,

“I placed the muzzle of the rifle near my father's head," [Wesley] said, "and sent a bullet through his brain. This frightened my mother and she arose and I, knowing that I was discovered, wont into the kitchen, seized a club, went back into the bedroom, and killed my mother. I staid around the house about thirty minutes then decided to arouse the neighbors. I took the baby from the bed, whore it lay between its dead mother and father, took it into the adjoining bedroom, removed its blood-stained clothing, ana with it in my arms went to a neighbor's and related tho crime that had been committed, but shielded myself. I am guilty of the crime.”(Pocahontas)

He was sentenced to life and was sent to Iowa State Penitentiary. He spent 12 years in the prison, and then the governor of Iowa issued parole papers, after a 48-39 vote granted the privilege. He walked out on a life sentence in 1902. He later became a farmer and died in California.

Charles Knox Polk Wells, also known as just Polk Wells, had run ins with Kit Carson, Jesse James, and other famous characters from the wild west. Wells was a famous robber in Missouri, Kansas, and Iowa. Many detectives in the late 1800’s knew of Wells. After a shootout at a saloon in Wisconsin, wells was taken into custody and brought to Fort Madison Penitentiary. While serving time here he poisoned and officer and escaped. He was later caught and sentenced to prison. He died only a few months later.

At this time many inmates work with wood furniture and other textiles. Programs at this prison have returned $ 10 million to state revenues. The Education Department through Kirkwood Community College is on contract with the institution to maintain classes from primary level to second-year college level. There are daily tasks that each inmate must do. There has only been record of two inmate escapes in 2005, they were captured two days later.

Cedar Rapids Gazette [Cedar Rapids] 2 Mar. 1962. Print. "A Grave Mistake." Index. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. [] "Iowa State Penitentiary." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. [] The Oxford Mirror [Oxford Junction] 16 Aug. 1894. Print. Pocahontas County Sun [Laurens] 1 Aug. 1889. Print. "Untitled Document." Inside Prison - inside Prison Life, Prison Stories, Prison Conditions. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. []
 * Works Cited **

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