Alcatraz Island National Historic Landmark: Cultural Landscape Report, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, National Park Service

Mundus Bishop, Contractor

This document presents the Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) for Alcatraz Island. The report includes detailed documentation of Alcatraz Island’s historical development; an evaluation of existing conditions according to condition (good, fair and poor); an analysis and evaluation of the Island’s cultural landscape characteristics; and treatment recommendations for the cultural landscape. This CLR builds upon the numerous studies, investigations and documentation that have occurred since the establishment of Alcatraz Island as a component of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) in 1972. These include the 1985 National Historic Landmark Nomination (NHL),1 The Rock: A History of Alcatraz Island, 1847-1972,2 The Historical Gardens of Alcatraz Island,3 and Draft Cultural Landscape Report for Alcatraz Island,4 among others. This CLR also builds upon the 2005 Level II Cultural Landscape Inventory (CLI)5 that used secondary sources to establish historic significance. The CLI determined that sufficient extant features existed to convey the property’s historic appearance and function, and provided preliminary identification and analysis of many of the Island’s contributing features. This CLR provides more detailed information than the CLI as well as a greater depth of research, based on readily available primary and secondary source material. In addition, work related to the Island’s archeological resources is included with this CLR. The archeological resources were only partially addressed in the CLI. The additional work is provided by GGNRA and includes archeological investigations and recommendations completed by its network of experts and park staff. This CLR was conducted at a thorough level of investigation and documentation for historical research, existing condition assessment and landscape analysis. The thorough level research methodology, as defined by the National Park Service (NPS), focuses on the use of select documentation of known and presumed relevance, including primary and secondary sources that are easily available.6 A review of all readily available documentation from Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA), Golden Gate National Park Conservancy (GGNPC) and The Garden Conservancy (TGC) was undertaken including review of planning documents such as GGNRA’s 1980 General Management Plan (GMP), administrative reports, technical reports and historical documentation. In addition, limited archival research was undertaken at the GGNRA archives on select topics. The thorough level existing conditions investigation for Alcatraz Island was conducted according to best practices. It utilized existing site information provided by GGNRA, including the 2001 topographic survey and the most current available GIS data, to document the Island’s cultural landscape features; and a series of on-site investigations. The thorough level of research and investigation did not include archeological techniques to locate buried ruins or artifacts; however the CLR provides information on the current archeological site data provided by GGNRA in list and map form. The CLR also includes the use of other materials provided by the GGNRA such as the CLI, geographic information system (GIS) database, National Historic Landmark (NHL) nomination, Archeological Sites Management Information System (ASMIS) data, and relevant planning documents and natural resource studies.

Alcatraz Island National Historic Landmark: Cultural Landscape Report, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, National Park Service

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