Press Release: August 8, 2007
Central Plains Region
Mugged! A Rogue’s Gallery of Leavenworth Penitentiary Mug Shots
Steve Spence
(816) 268-8016
Mugged! is a photographic exhibit of inmate mug shots taken from the early records of the famed prison. Featuring murderers, thieves, con men, bootleggers, gangsters, white-collar criminals and others, this collection of captivating photographs gives us a window into the criminal underclass of American society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This display is available for viewing from August 8th to November 23rd, Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. at the National Archives - Central Plains Region, 2312 E. Bannister Rd., Kansas City, MO.
About Record Group 129, Records of the Bureau of Prisons: Responsibility for Federal prisoners was transferred from the Department of the Interior to the newly created Department of Justice by acts of June 22, 1870, and March 5, 1872. The Bureau of Prisons was established within the Justice Department by an act of May 14, 1930. The Bureau administers Federal penal and correctional institutions and exercises responsibility for Federal prisoners in non-Federal institutions. The "Three Prisons Act" of March 3, 1891, provided for acquisition of three prison sites, the first being in Leavenworth, Kansas. Construction was authorized in 1896, and the former military prison at the site was replaced by the present structure.
The Central Plains Region is one of 14 facilities nationwide where the public has access to Federal archival records. It is home to more than 43,000 cubic feet of historical records dating from the 1820s to the 1990s created or received by nearly 100 federal agencies. The Central Plains Region houses records from the states of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The facility is located at 2312 E. Bannister Rd., Kansas City, MO 64131. It is open to the public Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call (816) 268-8000 or visit the Central Plains Region web page.
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