When did prison gangs first originate in the US??
In the days following the Civil War, with no money for prison construction, the state of Georgia adopted the convict lease system. This program began in March 3, 1874, when Federal Governor Ruger signed the bill authorizing state prisoners to be “leased out” to private individuals and companies. Each convict brought the state about $10.00 per year. Prisoners were often the labor sources for mining operations, rock quarries, and the turpentine industry. Amos G. West, the “Iron King of the South, supposedly made his fortune using convict labor. Then in 1897, the General Assembly passed an act to end the lease system in favor of a “reformed” system run by a prison commission. In 1903, the state prison board commissioners once again authorized contracts with individuals and corporations and started the chain gang.. In this new system, counties received a share of the state inmates for public construction of highways, railroads, and other forms of public service. These prisoners were housed
