I’m on a trip to New York, staying at a campground in Westchester County. Driving through Ossining I see the name on a map - "Sing Sing Prison".Sing Sing?! The actual Sing Sing Prison? The setting for The Big House and movies starring James Cagney? The origin of the phrase "sent up the river"? The home of "old Sparky" the first electric chair in the USA?
I take a turn off Route 9 onto a quite suburban street. The neighborhood becomes more residential as I approach the Hudson River. The road curves to the right and there is a fence to the left. With concertina wire on the top. I crest a small hill and suddenly a blank concrete wall - 20 feet high - looms ahead.
The road turns right and follows the wall towards a corner with a tower.
I park in a small pull out and walk up the street to the corner. The wall continues for half a mile. I snap a few pictures.
Suddenly, a door clangs above. "Hey you! You can’t take pictures here!" A large, heavily armed guard glares down at me from the wall. "Oh yeah?" I say "Try and stop me!" I run for the car as an alarm wails from somewhere beyond the tower. Spotlights flick on as I open the door and hop in. "Stop! Stop or I’ll shoot!" "You’ll never catch me copper" I yell as I hit the gas and speed off down the street.Later, at the Ossining Quimbaya Coffee Shop, I watch the meter maid check my time. She doesn’t suspect a thing.
