The History of the American Prison System - from Bridewells and the Great Law to Modern Prisons - Essay Example

While the United States of America has the largest corrections system in the world, the history of its prisons and jails goes back to the British prison system. However, corporal punishment was largely absent in the old correction system and “bridewells”, as prisons in the UK were called during the 18th century.  The American colonies had a similar correctional system, largely, with the exception of colonial administrators using more corporal punishment in America, than followed by their counterparts in the motherland.

This resulted in more death penalties, during that period. However, William Penn had a different viewpoint, as he adopted “The Great Law” in Pennsylvania in 1682, which restricted the use of torture as a punishment method, while it allowed felons to pay for restitution of property to their victims. While Walnut Street prison became the first penitentiary, Pennsylvania passed legislation, in 1776, which made way for reforming and rehabilitation of offenders, instead of using torture or execution.

However, reformist methods like silence and labor could not help much, as prison authorities were forced to accommodate more than one prisoner in a cell, necessitated by the overcrowding of prisons. The same reason kept many prisoners without work in jails. (Criminal Justice in Action: The Core, Prisons and Jails, pp313) - Great Penitentiary Rivalry After gaining from the experience of the Pennsylvania prison system, many American states tried to implement the concept of silence and labor, while interpreting the same in their own peculiar ways.

In the process, the Pennsylvania Penitentiary and New York prison systems engaged in some sort of debate, over the correct and result-oriented method of the prison administration. This gave birth to two known separate systems. The Pennsylvania Penitentiary system was entirely based on the “separate confinement” concept, as the prison had cells for inmates, built in such a manner that no prisoner could come under the influence of another inmate, during the confinement.