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Walter B. Keane

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Walter B. Keane (WB), and under the nickname "The Barge", was an 168-bed jail barge used to hold inmates for the New York City Department of Corrections. The barge is currently anchored off Staten Island but was previously docked on Rikers Island, near Hunts Point.

History

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Originally called the Cornelius G. Kolff being the last two steam ship ferries along with the Private Joseph F. Merrell for the Staten Island ferry.[1] It was originally an annex of OBCC [2] The Walter Keene was a former Staten Island Ferry that was docked at Rikers Island.[3] The Walter Keane worked for the Staten Island ferry for 36 years prior to being docked on Rikers Island.[1] It was originally an annex of OBCC,[2] and was named after Walter Keane, a correctional officer who died on a job related accident.[4] While the Merrell was renamed VCBC and later Harold A. Wildstein. It was able to hold 162 inmates.[5] As the population on Rikers Island decreased, the use of the Walter Keene declined.[6] In 2002, it was shuttered for inmate use, and was put up for sale.[6] In 2004, it was sold for scrap metal and docked in Staten Island.[6]

See also

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List of jail facilities in New York City

References

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  1. ^ a b "Salvaging the Walter Keane Staten Island Ferry". Olde Good Things. November 14, 2017.
  2. ^ a b Bosworth, Mary (October 11, 2005). Encyclopedia of Prisons and Correctional Facilities. SAGE. ISBN 9780761927310 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ Dey, Sneha (May 10, 2018). "UrbaNerd: The History of the City's Floating Jail". City Limits.
  4. ^ "Ten Jails on Rikers Island List Part 2". www.correctionhistory.org.
  5. ^ Rizzi, Nicholas (June 30, 2017). "6 Things You Didn't Know About the Staten Island Ferry". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on 2017-09-20. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  6. ^ a b c "Rikers floating dorm scrapped (the Walter Keane)". www.correctionhistory.org.