GENERAL BACKGROUND

In the mid 1880's penal reformers recognized the need for a Reformatory in Kansas. Between the years of 1876 and 1913 seventeen (17) states copied the first reformatory that was established at Elmira, New York. Elmira claimed to have a rehabilitation rate of 80% where prisons at that time claimed a rehabilitation of only 40%. The main emphasis of the reformatory system was on reforming youths through vocational training and academic education.

Another main difference between prisons and reformatories was the sentencing structure that was used. Prisons during that time set fixed sentences, such as 5 years, 10 years, 20 years. These sentences were reduce by "good time" that was earned, generally one day served for one day "good time". Reformatories introduced the concept of indeterminate sentences, such as 1-10 years, 3-10 years, etc.. Inmates could shorten indeterminate sentences by exhibiting good behavior while in prison.

The reformatory was structured to handle inmates between the ages of 16 and 30 years of age. They had to be new commits having never served time in prison before. The reformatory concept divided the inmates into classes. When an inmate entered the reformatory he was placed into the Intermediate Grade where he remained for six months. If he exhibited good behavior, good working habits and went to school, at the end of the six months period he was promoted to what was called the First Grade. The inmate was in the First Grade for a period of six months and if he had no problems he was eligible for parole at the end of this period of time. If however, the inmate became a disciplinary problem, refused to work or did not meet the criteria of parole he was reduced back to the Third Grade another six months, then promoted to the Second Grade for six months and finally once again to the First Grade six months.

Kansas State Industrial Reformatory

KSIR came into existence in 1885 when Governor John Martin signed a bill that the legislature had passed that authorized the purchase of land to be donated in order to build a reformatory. It is interesting to note that during this same period of time the population in Kansas became concerned that the state institutions were located in the eastern part of the state. Legislation was passed that any new institutions that were built in Kansas had to be built in the western half of the state. The western half of the state was designated as the area west of Highway 81. Several cities and towns in Kansas wanted the Reformatory located in their areas and these towns included: Belleville, McPherson, Newton, Wichita and Hutchinson.

The city of Hutchinson raised $25,000 and offered the state a choice of two sites. One was north and west of Hutchinson and the other was south of Hutchinson on land owned by S.W. Campbell.

A group called the Hutchinson Sewing Circle managed to raise $1,000 which was donated to the fund in order to purchase land for the Reformatory. The Ladies Sewing Circle is not as innocent a group as it appears as these women were a group of prostitutes that were operating in the Hutchinson City Limits at the time. They felt that the Reformatory was a good concept and that youth should be separated from adults in the prison system.

On July 9, 1885 news reached the City of Hutchinson about noon that Hutchinson had been selected as the site for the State's new Reformatory. A holiday was declared and the people of Hutchinson celebrated their good fortune of having the Reformatory located here from noon until late in the evening . The newspaper gives the account that Main Street was crowded with throngs of people, bells were sounded, fireworks were shot off and all celebrated and jollified for the entire day.

The legislature had appropriated $60,000 in order to build the Reformatory. A contract was let to the firm of Evans and Bricker to build one cellblock that would house 100 men. The cellblock was to be 184 feet long by 66 feet wide. On November 19, 1885 the first shovel of dirt was turned and the Reformatory was underway. It was originally projected that the first cellblock would be completed by August 1, 1886. By February of 1886 workmen were on the site, most of them were stonecutters. The Sante Fe Railroad had built a spur to the Reformatory site and over 100 carloads of limestone, ashler and footing had arrived. The limestone was quarried around Florence, Kansas and it came in lengths of 5 feet to 14 feet and approximately 1 foot thick. By March of 1886 approximately 60 stonecutters were working at the site.

The limestone was cut to the size needed. Holes were drilled on each side of the stone and a large device that looked quite a bit like ice tongs was fitted into the holes and tightened up. The stone was then lifted on a lever and set into place. Numerous delays were experienced in building the Reformatory. For the years 1886 and 1887, the legislature failed to appropriate any funds to continue working on the Reformatory. By March 10, 1887 all of the funds that had been appropriated were exhausted and it was estimated that another $300,000 would be needed in order to complete the cellblock. By September 1887 the Hutchinson News announced that it was predicted that it would take another five years to complete the Reformatory and possibly even ten years. On January 6, 1890 S.K. Hawley was appointed Superintendent to supervise the construction work at the Reformatory. Once again the legislature of 1891 and 1892 failed to appropriate any funds for the continuing work on the Reformatory and no work was done for the next four years.

In 1894 Governor Merrill running on the populist ticket in Kansas promised that if he were elected Governor a Reformatory would be completed in 1895. Governor Merrill was elected and held true to his promise. In August 1895 a 50-man brick cellhouse was completed and the first 30 inmates were transferred from the Kansas StatePennitentiary (Lansing) to KSIR. Unfortunately, however, the first cellhouse was constructed of Hutchinson Brick which was made from clay that was dug out of the banks of the Arkansas River. This clay had so much sand in it that most buildings built of Hutchinson Brick deteriorated rapidly.

S.W. Cass became the first Superintendent of the Reformatory and one of his first tasks was to dig a sewage ditch from the Reformatory to Cow Creek. The remnants of this ditch are still visible today out near the kennels. The first inmates that came to the Reformatory worked from sun-up to sun-down and attended school after the supper meal line. Work began in earnest on the first cellhouse in 1895 and was soon completed. The second cellhouse was completed in 1906. Both cellhouses were tied together by the Rotunda which at that time was the Administration Building.

By 1898 there were 185 inmates housed at the Reformatory. 240 inmates had been received from 1895 to 1898 and 270 paroles had been granted. In 1899 Warden Cass was replaced by Mr. Simmons who became the second warden at the State Reformatory. by 1898 the stone shed employed 100 men who were mostly stonecutters. The stone shed was located north and east of the Reformatory and approximately the site of the Work Release facility today. The first occupation that was learned by the inmates at the Reformatory was that of stonecutting. Many of the buildings that were built in Kansas around the turn of the century were built by men who were ex-inmates and had learned the trade of stonecutting here at the Reformatory.

It became evident that a wall was needed and the first wall that was recommended was one make of wooden posts with hog wire and barbed wire strung at the top. This idea was soon abandoned and in June of 1904 the foundation for the wall was laid. In 1905 the legislature approved funds to build the wall and a stand pipe in the east yard. The stand pipe and the wall were completed early in 1907 along with a third cellhouse. The wall itself is 20 feet high, 3 feet across at the top and 15-16 feet at the bottom. It is perpendicular inside but an inmate would have to take a healthy jump in order to clear the bottom of the wall without breaking his leg.

The enabling act, legislation that was passed in 1895, allowed for both sexes to be incarcerated at the Reformatory. From the period of 1898 to 1900 two females were sent by court to KSIR. both of the female offenders were returned to the sentencing court and the law was corrected in 1900. In 1900 it became apparent that there was a need for a parole and transfer officer in order to pick up parole violators that had been released from the Reformatory. In 1901 the legislature passed a law that allowed for the first Parole Officer to be established at KSIR. Once again in its infinite wisdom, the legislature failed to appropriate a salary for the Parole officer and the first years wages were drawn from the inmate sustenance fund. From the time the Reformatory opened until 1900 the Department of Corrections had acted under the assumption that they had the right to transfer inmates from KSIR to KSP. In 1900 one of the inmates took exception to this rule and filed a suit in local court. The lower court ruled that it was unconstitutional for KSIR to transfer recalculant inmates to the State Penitentiary for any reason. KSIR did not except this ruling and appealed it to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court upheld the position of KSIR and handed down a ruling that Department of Corrections does have the right to transfer any inmate to any facility that it sees fit to.

Prior to December 19, 1903 there had never been a successful escape from KSIR. On a dark and dreary night of December 19, 1903 an inmate by the name of Elmer Slider, who was a trustee at the Director's residence, slipped off into the darkness and has never been heard from since. In 1903 the Reformatory adopted the policy of photographing all incoming inmates. Pictures were taken in order to aid the parole and transfer officer and law enforcement agencies in apprehending PV parole violators who had absconded from supervision. A section of grassland north of Hutchinson was purchases by the Reformatory in February of 1903 for grazing cattle. When farming operation was abandoned in 1976 this land was returned to the State and is currently the Sandhills State park north of Hutchinson.

All inmate at KSIR went to school 2 hours every night after a regular 8 hour work day. They also went to school all day on stormy days and on Saturdays. In September 1896 the medical department reported that they had written 800 prescriptions in the first year and that there was much gonorrhea and syphilis that had been noted and treated. The medical department reported that it spent $15.29 per month per inmate. Inmates during this period of time were issued $.10 work of tobacco per month. Those who didn't smoke or use tobacco were awarded $.10 on their account that was issued to them when they were released.

In November of 1901 an inmate William Reedy was admitted to the Reformatory from Leavenworth County. After being here several days he went into the Rotunda, he had a glass jar which he smashed on the floor. He also had a handful of nails which he immediately put into his mouth along with the broken glass and swallowed the entire mess. The security staff thought that the inmate was trying to commit suicide and rushed him to the hospital for fear that the glass and nails would puncture his stomach. Once at the hospital Reedy tried to calm everyone down and told them that he was a professional glass eater and that nothing would happen to him. After several days of observation no ill effects were noted and Reedy was returned to the Reformatory. Upon checking inmate Reedy's records it was found that he had been convicted in Leavenworth County of stealing a cut glass punch bowl and cups worth approximately $500.00 which he reportedly crushed and ate.

After the wall and cellhouses were completed in 1907 the question of what to do with the inmates arose. The staff got together and rated the needs of the inmates as the following: Chaplaincy Services or religious training was rated #1; Physical Health was rated #2; Learning a vocational training was rated #3 and Education was rated #4 on the list. The Education and Chaplaincy staff at the time consisted of 1 Chaplain and 3 teachers. It was noted by the Administration that they needed a Director for the Chaplaincy Services, Education Services and Vocational Training. In 1908 C.A. Richards became the first Director of the Education and Vocational Department and he recruited numerous volunteers to assist him. In 1908 there were 13 trade school benches located at the Reformatory however, most of them were left empty due to poor wages paid to the instructors. The term guards was changed to Correctional Officers in 1907 when it was noted that the men in these positions were more that just guards. It was felt that the term guard indicated that the men stood around all day and guarded inmates. Even in the early days it was noted that Correctional Officers did more than just guard as they had to counsel inmates and help them in various different fields. Most of the best Correctional Officers, it was also noted, left because of low wages.

C.A. Richards, the Director of the Education and School Department, became Superintendent in 1911. He remained in that position less than a year and resigned being replaced by Mr. Amrine. Superintendent Amrine served for a period of 22 months and during his administration a road was completed from the from of the Reformatory to A Street which was appropriately named Reformatory Avenue. Irrigation was started during Mr. Amrine's tour of duty and 4 cuttings of hay were made the first year. J.N. Herr became the Superintendent in 1912 after Mr. Amrine resigned. Superintendent Herr ended the policy of charging people a dime to tour the Reformatory. The tours were continued by the admission charge was dropped. In 1914 Herr did something that probably hadn't been done in the past as he returned $20,000 that had been appropriated for funding the Reformatory to the legislature. A new dairy barn was built at the cost of $4,500 in 1916 to replace an old and deteriorated one. During World War I the count of the Reformatory dropped from 430 to 326 by January of 1918. Most of the inmates that wanted to volunteer for the draft were given that option rather than serving their prison term. A further note indicated that most of the inmates that served in World War I were good soldiers and received honorable discharges. During the years of 1916 to 1918 leaves were granted to inmates from 30 to 90 days in order to assist area farmers who needed it in bringing in the crops.

LEGAL HANGINGS IN KANSAS

*Kansas State Penitentiary gallows used for the execution of military prisoners from the United States Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

NOTE: The above list, less the executions in 1965, was prepared several years ago in the office of the Director of Penal Institutions, Topeka, Kansas. Omitted from this list, we suppose erroneously, were 16 executions by hanging carried out at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Of these, 15 were carried out at the USDB and of this number, 14 were German Prisoners of War, all of whom had been convicted of murder committed while confined in PW camps in the United States. Those executions of Prisoners of War in July and August, 1945, could not be carried out until after the German government had been notified of the sentences through the neutral Swiss government. The names of the U.S. soldiers, one executed by Fort Leavenworth authorities in 1942-43, the other at the USDB, Fort Leavenworth, in 1946-47, and the exact dates of execution are not available in this office (KSP).