This book describes and analyzes the key issues in the history of federal corrections in the United States: the origins and development of the first federal prisons; the role of women in federal corrections; the evolution of inmate rights; inmate classification and rehabilitation programs; prison administration and executive management; and the famous super-maximum security penitentiaries at Alcatraz and Marion. The book also includes a roundtable discussion of the Bureau of Prison’s rehabilitation programs, prisons’ viability as vehicles to help their inmates, and the possible benefits of greater community involvement.