What Did People Hear During the Alcatraz Listening Experiment vs. What Was Really Said?

A cell at Alcatraz showing the mechanics of how the doors opened and closed
If you look above the cell you’ll see the Plexiglas that shows the mechanics of how the levers operate to open and close the cells –which was done without electricity!

No one commented on the Alcatraz Listening Experiment post here on the blog, but people weighed in on social media. All of the comments reflected what I thought I initially heard, or that I heard others around me on the tour say they thought it sounded like. Curiously, no one heard the actual answer, though.

The Guesses

On the Instagram post, here’s what people thought they heard:

  1. Right now
  2. Lights out
  3. Break down
  4. Ringo

Here’s what people guessed when I shared it on Facebook:

  1. Wake up
  2. Right now
  3. Break down

There were no comments on the YouTube posting and just one on Twitter, which was a vote for “Wake up,” but that same person also said it sounded like it could’ve been “Wacko.”

The Answer

“Rack ’em!”

The volunteer explained some guards would shout that phrase to let prisoners know when the cells were about to be opened or closed. It has to do with the way the way opening and closing the cells are operated. They’re “racked” using a lever system.

I was blown away. I thought he was either saying “Right now!” or “Break down!”

The Silence

The “Sounds of the Slammer” demonstration was very interesting and something they hadn’t done the first time I jaunted to Alcatraz. Or maybe they had but we’d missed it. We got there later in the day the first trip. I went earlier this time.

The thing that really struck me was how silent touring the prison is –because I had to take off my audio tour head phones to listen to the demonstration. Even when others took off their headphones to listen, the silence persisted. That was something I hadn’t noticed before. How the prison is almost library quiet even with a bunch of tourists walking around.

The Demonstration

And until I saw the doors being opened and closed, I never noticed they didn’t have locks on the individual cell doors. I never wondered, “How do they open these things anyway?”

This trip I did notice boxes along each row of cells, though. I didn’t know what they were for –until I attended the “Sounds of the Slammer” demonstration.

Two people walking down Broadway at Alcatraz with view of cell locking and operating box on wall
The long box on the left with the numbers on it is the locking and operating device to open the cell doors on this level and side of the Broadway block.
Stweart's Patent Jail Locking and Operating Device emblem
Close up of the manufacturer’s emblem
Volunteer showing the open box that controls the cell doors at Alcatraz
Here’s the volunteer showing the open box that controls the cell doors.
Volunteer at Alcatraz shining flashlight into box that opens cell doors.
The flashlight is shining on a spot in the back of the box. Sadly I couldn’t get a better photo of the “pins” behind the lever that corresponded with each cell. That’s how they selected which cell(s) to open.

I also never wondered, “What do the doors sound like when they’re opened and closed?” (Well, I probably never would’ve thought about them having a sound being opened as much as being closed. Which turns out to be a scarier sound anyway. Or at least louder.)

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:  U.K. ETA: Why Visiting Haunted Places in Britain Will Cost More

Until that moment, even with the various jails I’ve toured, I don’t think I’ve ever heard “the slammer” slam in real life. Only on TV shows or in the movies. It was louder than I expected and reverberated off the walls. I can imagine with cells full of men, Alcatraz was not the silent, peaceful place it is to tour.

Watch “The Sounds of the Slammer”

You can watch some of the demonstration and hear for yourself when the volunteer explains what he’s saying, why he’s saying it and when the most dangerous time was for the guards. And of course see the doors opening and closing, of course!

The Experiment

What was the “experiment” all about? That’s to come in another post, which for now I’m titling, “What Can We Learn about EVPs from the Alcatraz Listening Experiment?”

Stay tuned…

Check-In

Have you ever heard prison doors shut in real life? Either from touring a former prison and seeing a similar demonstration, or from personal experience behind bars? (No judgment here. #ShitHappens)

Please note: This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

1 Comment

  1. I have heard prison doors close. I worked an inventory job one time inside a prison. They sounded like dread to me. In your video, the image of the doors closing at once made me feel claustrophobic even though everyone was standing in the middle under a high ceiling. Just the thought of being locked up, I guess.

Check-In

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.