East Jersey State Prison - The Reformatory Years

The Reformatory Years

When the institution first opened in 1901, the prison held 193 young men. The numbers of inmates had increased to 525 by 1912 and to 745 by 1928. Of the 514 prisoners admitted during 1928, 304 (59%) were under twenty years of age, 164 (32%) were twenty to twenty-four, and 46 (9%) were from twenty-five to twenty-nine years old, with a racial breakdown of 406 (79%) White and 108 (21%) African-American. Rahway was run on a “grading” system that graded the conduct of each inmate. A book of rules and regulations supplied to each inmate when he arrived discussed what was expected of him and the consequences of violating the rules. All inmates entered the prison in the “second grade” and had the opportunity to advance or be demoted depending on their behavior. Inmates in different grades were granted different privileges.

The inmates’ day at Rahway consisted primarily of school and work. They woke at 5:45 a.m. with lights out at 9 p.m. Those who had to attend school went to classes half the day and worked the other half. Vocational training and jobs were offered, including tailoring, cooking, shoemaking, printing, electrical work, farming/gardening, plumbing, and painting.