Angola's Location In Louisiana: Exploring The Crossroads

Angola, also known as the Louisiana State Penitentiary, is a maximum-security prison in Louisiana. It is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States, with 6,300 prisoners and 1,800 staff. The prison is located on a sprawling 18,000-acre site in West Feliciana Parish, bordered on three sides by the Mississippi River and swamp land. Angola was opened in 1901 on former plantation land and is named after a cotton plantation that once occupied the territory. The plantation, in turn, was named after the African country that was the origin of many enslaved Africans brought to Louisiana.

Angola is located in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana

Angola, also known as the Louisiana State Penitentiary, is located in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. It is a sprawling maximum-security prison on an 18,000-acre site, bordered on three sides by the Mississippi River and swamp land. Angola is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States, with approximately 6,300 prisoners and 1,800 staff members.

The prison gets its name from the former cotton plantation that once occupied the territory. The plantation, in turn, was named after the country of Angola, from which many enslaved Africans brought to Louisiana originated. The prison is situated in a remote area north of Baton Rouge and is often referred to as the "Alcatraz of the South."

Angola has a long and troubled history, having been a slave plantation before becoming a prison in 1901. During the 20th century, it was known as one of the hardest places to be incarcerated, with harsh conditions and a high mortality rate among inmates. Even today, over 90% of inmates who are sent to Angola die within the prison premises, many of whom are buried in the allocated graveyard within the prison grounds.

The prison has been the subject of numerous lawsuits and media exposés due to its brutal conditions, including the use of inmate labour in extreme heat and the treatment of inmates in the maximum-security wing. Despite some reforms and improvements, Angola still faces challenges and has a high rate of inmate deaths and violence.

Angola is accessible by road, with Highway 66 leading directly to its front gate. It is about 22 miles northwest of the town of St. Francisville and approximately 50 miles northwest of Baton Rouge. The prison also has its own airstrip, used for transporting prisoners and officials.

It is named after the country of Angola, from which many enslaved people brought to Louisiana originated

The Louisiana State Penitentiary, also known as Angola, is a maximum-security prison in Louisiana. It is named after the country of Angola, from which many enslaved people brought to Louisiana originated.

Before the American Civil War, the territory that the prison now occupies was known as the Angola Plantations, a slave plantation owned by slave trader Isaac Franklin. The plantation was named after the country of Angola, from which many enslaved people brought to Louisiana originated.

The Angola Plantations were purchased in the 1830s by Franklin and Armfield, a slave trading firm based in Virginia and Mississippi. After Franklin's death in 1846, his widow, Adelicia Cheatham, sold the plantations, including Angola, to Samuel Lawrence James, a former Confederate major, in 1880.

Under the convict lease system, Major James ran his plantation using convicts leased from the state. He was responsible for their room and board and had total authority over them. The state passed laws directed at African Americans, requiring payment of minor fees and fines as punishment for infractions. This led to many cash-poor men in the agricultural economy being forced into jail and convict labor.

The Louisiana State Penitentiary opened as a state prison in 1901, and the state began transferring prison facilities out of the old penitentiary into Angola. The old penitentiary continued to be used for various purposes until it closed in 1917.

It is the largest maximum-security prison in the US

The Louisiana State Penitentiary, known as Angola, is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States. Located in West Feliciana Parish, the prison is set between oxbow lakes on the east side of a bend in the Mississippi River and is therefore surrounded by water on three sides. It is around 22 miles (35 km) northwest of St. Francisville, 50 miles (80 km) northwest of Baton Rouge, and 135 miles (217 km) northwest of New Orleans.

The prison sits on 28 square miles (73 square kilometres) of land, which was once the site of the Angola Plantations, a slave plantation owned by slave trader Isaac Franklin. The plantation was named after the country of Angola, from which many enslaved people originated before arriving in Louisiana.

Angola is the largest maximum-security prison in the US, with 6,300 prisoners and 1,800 staff, including corrections officers, janitors, maintenance workers, and wardens. It is the state's oldest and only maximum-security prison.

The prison has a long and troubled history, having been nicknamed the "Alcatraz of the South" and the "bloodiest prison in America". It was once known for its extreme violence, with guards brutalizing inmates and inmates beating, raping, and murdering one another. In more recent years, Angola has been referred to as a monument to mass incarceration, filled with aging, medically fragile inmates, most of whom are serving life sentences without the possibility of parole.

The prison has been the subject of widespread criticism and litigation over its conditions and treatment of inmates, particularly regarding its medical care, which has been described as "egregiously poor". Inmates have reported being denied medical attention, delayed diagnoses, and inadequate treatment. The prison's medical staff has also been criticized for their mistrust of inmate medical complaints, which has resulted in truly sick inmates being examined inadequately or ignored.

Despite the issues surrounding Angola, efforts have been made to improve conditions and offer rehabilitative opportunities for inmates. The prison offers various educational programs and vocational training, and has implemented faith-based initiatives to support inmate mental health. Additionally, Angola hosts a rodeo every April and October, which attracts thousands of visitors, and publishes an inmate-produced newsmagazine, The Angolite, which has won numerous awards.

Angola is bordered by the Mississippi River and sits on 18,000 acres of land

The Louisiana State Penitentiary, also known as 'Angola', is a sprawling maximum-security prison located on 18,000 acres of land in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. The prison is bordered on three sides by the Mississippi River and sits on land that was once the Angola Plantation, a former slave plantation named after the country in Southern Africa from which many enslaved people were brought to Louisiana.

Angola is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States, with a population of approximately 6,300 prisoners and 1,800 staff members, including corrections officers, janitors, maintenance workers, and wardens. The prison is located about 22 miles northwest of St. Francisville, Louisiana, and is accessible via Highway 66, which ends at the penitentiary's front gate.

The history of the prison dates back to the early 1900s when it was known as "The Walls" and was located in downtown Baton Rouge. In 1901, the state resumed control of the prison and implemented various reforms to improve conditions for inmates. However, it gained a reputation as one of the hardest places to be incarcerated and was nicknamed the "Alcatraz of the South".

Today, Angola continues to be a maximum-security facility, known for its large size and strict security measures. The prison grounds include various facilities such as the Main Prison Complex, Camp C, Camp D, and Camp F, as well as agricultural areas where inmates work. The perimeter of the prison is not fenced, but the individual prisoner camps and recreational areas are secured. Angola's unique location, bordered by the Mississippi River and situated on a vast expanse of land, makes it a challenging place for inmates to escape from.

Over 90% of inmates who are convicted and sent to Angola will die on the premises

The Louisiana State Penitentiary, also known as Angola, is a maximum-security prison in Louisiana. It is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States, with 6,300 prisoners and 1,800 staff. It is located on an 18,000-acre site, surrounded on three sides by swampland and the Mississippi River, making it difficult to escape.

Angola was opened in 1901 on former plantation land. It was named after the former cotton plantation that occupied the territory, which was, in turn, named after the African country that was the origin of many enslaved Africans brought to Louisiana. The prison has a long and dark history, and it was known throughout much of the 20th century as one of the hardest places to be incarcerated.

Angola is unique in that it functions as a self-sufficient miniature community with a canning factory, a dairy, a mail system, a small ranch, repair shops, and a sugar mill. Prisoners raise food staples and cash crops, and they also breed and train the horses used for fieldwork.

Angola is also known for its inmate-led initiatives, such as the inmate-produced newsmagazine, 'The Angolite', and the country's only inmate-operated radio station, KLSP. The prison also has several educational and vocational programs for inmates, including literacy and GED classes, as well as vocational training in automotive technology, carpentry, culinary arts, and horticulture, among others.

However, Angola has a high rate of inmate deaths, with over 90% of inmates who are convicted and sent to Angola dying on the premises. Many inmates are buried in the allocated graveyard within the prison grounds. The prison has a dedicated inmate cemetery, Point Lookout, located on the north side of the Angola property.

Angola has a long and troubled history, and while efforts have been made to improve conditions, it still struggles with issues such as inmate deaths, escapes, and staff criminal allegations.

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