"The
Old Idaho Penitentiary State Historical Site was a functioning prison for 101 years. It was built in 1870 and the first prisoners were brought in 1872. The buildings on the site were
built by inmate laborers. The Old Idaho Penitentiary grew from a single cell house into a
complex of several buildings holding Idaho's most notorious criminals. The
Old Pen received over 13,000 inmates with a maximum population of 603 inmates. There were 222 women inmates (including repeat offenders.) Closed after
riots in 1973,
some say it's
haunted.
posted by bwg
on Mar 9, 2011 -
5 comments
In 1955, at least twelve men in Boise, Idaho were arrested for
"infamous crimes against nature.". In the resulting dragnet, the vice president of the Idaho First National Bank was
sentenced to seven years in prison, while national magazines fomented a McCarthyite
Lavender Scare with headlines such as
Male Pervert Ring Seduces 1,000 Boys. This dark chapter in
Idaho gay history was documented in both John Gerassi's 1966 book,
The Boys of Boise and the recent film,
The Fall of '55, by documentarian
Seth Randal, but neither Gerassi nor Randal could identify
The Queen, a closeted but politically connected homosexual who allegedly used his massive clout to stop the witch hunt.
posted by jonp72
on Aug 28, 2007 -
45 comments
Poor, poor Wiley the dog. One Spring day, she got out of her yard and wandered aimlessly for a while. Wanting to help the lost animal find some direction, some vandals thoughtfully
spray-
painted her. Tragically, poor Wiley has since had to admit her painful secret to the world. She isn't
literate. Forced to admit her shameful problem, hopefully she'll get some
help.
posted by miss lynnster
on May 6, 2007 -
88 comments
"In those days, there wasn't a lot of talk about gay priests. People didn't want to believe it." On Dec. 4, 1982, a deeply suntanned man, about 40 years old, walked into the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Boise, Idaho, and readied himself for confession. As he waited, the man swallowed a cyanide capsule. A few minutes later, he was dead. He had no identification, and a note in his pocket said only that the $1,900 he carried should be used for his burial, with any remainder donated to the church. The note was signed with what turned out to be a false name. To this day, no one has been able to identify the man, nor to determine why he had come to the church to absolve himself of his sins. On the answers to that mystery may hang the fate of
a small, quiet, meticulous man who now lives in South Austin, and who
spent 20 years in a Texas prison for a murder he says he did not commit, but which investigators believe may be connected to the dead man at the Boise Sacred Heart Catholic Church. More inside.
posted by matteo
on Jun 22, 2005 -
25 comments
Claude Dallas: the last outlaw? In 1981, Claude shot two Fish and Game officers who had come to take him to town for being in violation of wildlife laws. Apparently he "lived by the laws of nature; not the laws of man." It took 15 months to finally bring him in and his run from the law inspired
a movie. After being sentenced to 30 years in prison, Claude escaped from the Idaho State Penitentiary and inspired
a song of his exploits. Was Claude "the last outlaw" or just a murderer? What place do outlaws and renegades have in today's society?
posted by Hall
on Oct 23, 2002 -
16 comments
Follow-up on
this thread: the city council of Moscow, Idaho has
banned bare breasted women in response to three roommates who staged a roving topless car wash to raise rent money. A sign declaring, "Sticks and stones may break my bones but breasts will never hurt me," reflected the view of most residents who packed the council chambers. Two women pulled off their shirts after the council approved the ordinance.
I'm thinking a mass protest is in order - thousands of women should converge on Moscow, Idaho and pull their shirts off. Fight the power!
posted by RylandDotNet
on Jul 18, 2002 -
82 comments
Another Cat Killer Wins "As a property owner, you have a right to do as you please and you have the right to protect it" In Coeur d' Alene, ID, accused cat poisoner Dale Crooks Jr. is acquitted of feeding tuna mixed with antifreeze to the neighbor's cats. What seems most remarkable to me, though, is that everyone is calling the plaintiffs' lawyer a publicity seeker and the cats' owners troublemakers. There must be more to the story than is printed here. Either that, or small town dwellers in Idaho REALLY hate cats.
posted by faceonmars
on Jul 12, 2002 -
36 comments
Idaho city council debates proper coverage of areolas , after some entrepreneurial college students open a hugely profitable topless car wash and practically wipe out the competition.
"The latest proposal, to be voted on Monday, sets a minimum of covering the areola with a length of material running in a straight but narrow line across the breast, similar to a pair of suspenders".
posted by brookish
on Jul 11, 2002 -
36 comments
Idaho Standoff Continues and while it may seem easy to view this as another Ruby Ridge, the differences in opinions that are coming up
in the news reports are fairly interesting. The cops claim they are being attacked with guns and dogs while
the lawyer for the children [who is consistently referred to as a man who has defended the Aryan nation] denies most of the allegations. Are they starving and cold, or do they have food and heat? Did their mother abuse them, or just try to homeschool them? And, most importantly, are you allowed to be
poor, weird and paranoid nowadays without being labelled a criminal?
posted by jessamyn
on Jun 1, 2001 -
14 comments
