United States Prison Admission Registers, Escapees (National Institute)

Admission Registers
Admission registers are similar to prisoner registers. Admission registers are often more detailed than prisoner registers, giving information not only about the inmate, but also his parents, siblings, education, and upbringing. Because admission registers are so similar to prisoner registers, the terms are sometimes used interchangeably. Another term you will see used is “historical conduct record.”

The image below shows the admission register/historical conduct record entry for Charles Archer, admitted to the Ohio State Reformatory in 1897. Like Samuel Rogers’ prison register, Charles Archer’s admission record give a lot of information and a lot of clues:

Figure: Example Register from the Ohio State Reformatory 1897



List of Escapees
The lure of the outside world proves too much for some inmates. Lists of escapees are just that—lists of prisoners who made a break for it. These records include information about the original crime, method of escape, whether the escape was successful. Some give information on punishment meted out to prison guards or administrators.

Figure: List of Escapees from Ohio Penitentiary