In 1775 a Spanish explorer named Juan Manuel de Ayala sailed the bay of California and named one of the three islands Alcatraces later renamed Alcatraz (BOP: Alcatraz).

In 1850 the president placed a presidential order to be put aside for military reservations (BOP: Alcatraz).

Early in the 1850s, the U.S. Army constructed a fortress, at the summit of the island as a result of the California Gold Rush, resulting in the rising in San Francisco's population, and the necessity to defend San Francisco Bay (BOP: Alcatraz).

In the late 1850s, the island started housing the very first military convicts. Not fully aware that its use as a Federal; penitentiary would last for more than a century (BOP: Alcatraz).

in 1909 the fortress was demolished by the Army, leaving the basement level remaining as the base for a new military penitentiary (BOP: Alcatraz).

From 1850 to 1933, the island was administered by the U.S. Army before being turned over to the U.S. Department of Justice for the Federal Bureau of Prisons' utilization (BOP: Alcatraz).

From the 1920s to the 1930s, the Federal Government chose to construct a maximum-security, minimal-privilege jail. To confront the most irredeemable criminals in Federal prisons and to establish to the public that it was serious about bringing an end to the uncontrolled crime of the 1920s and 1930s (BOP:Alcatraz).

 on March 21, 1963, after 29 years of operation, USP Alcatraz shut down. The institution was closed for financial purposes more than because the disappearance of Morris Frank and the Anglin brothers; the decision to shut the prison was taken many years well before three prisoners went missing (BOP:Alcatraz).

 In June 1971 Federal Marshals evicted the last of the island's Native Americans the tiny Native American leadership group was powerless to stop the destruction, which included vandalism, graffiti, and a fire that burned the homes of the lighthouse keeper, the warden, and the officers' club (BOP:Alcatraz).

In 1972,Alcatraz Island became a component of the new National Park Service unit when Congress established the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (BOP: Alcatraz)​​​​​​​.

in the fall of 1973 the island welcomed visitors and has since grown to be one of the most well-liked Park Service destinations (BOP:Alcatraz)​​​​​​​.