Who was the Birdman of Alcatraz?
A quick perusal of our very own Alcatraz Island category yielded some interesting biographical facts about the world’s most famous incarcerated ornithologist. Curiously enough, Robert Stroud was never allowed to own birds during his 17 years on Alcatraz. He made his reputation during the 30 years he previously spent at Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary in Kansas. Robert Stroud was a career prisoner; he was sentenced to 12 years after he killed a bartender in 1909, then, seven years later, sentenced to life for killing a prison guard. He was considered a dangerous inmate, capable of instigating violence at a moment’s notice, and was kept in relative isolation. At Leavenworth, Stroud developed a keen interest in birds, and eventually h
