Arthur McConnell Dollison (October 19, 1909 – May 14, 1983) was an American prison administrator. A graduate of Cambridge High School and

Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio. It was founded in 1842 by methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five – a consortium ...

, he was the son of Frank Dollison, an editor of newspaper ''

The Daily Jeffersonian ''The Daily & Sunday Jeffersonian'' is a daily newspaper published in Cambridge, Ohio, United States, serving Cambridge and the surrounding communities of Guernsey County. ''The Daily Jeffersonian'' was established in 1892. The newspaper is own ...

''. Dollison graduated from the university in 1933, and because of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

only found part-time work until 1938, when he became a guard at the U.S. Penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas. After a stint in the U.S. Army during World War II, Dollison returned to the federal prison system, moved into industries and worked in prisons in Kentucky and Indiana. In January 1954, he was transferred to the U.S. Penitentiary at Alcatraz, where he became the Superintendent of Industries in 1958. Dollison worked on Alcatraz for nine years, eventually becoming the associate warden in late 1961, under Warden Olin G. Blackwell. His was a controversial appointment, in part because his promotion from superintendent of industries to associate warden was unusual but also because the Bureau of Prisons ignored its former custom of promotions with transfer for training purposes. During his term as Associate Warden, the iconic June 1962 dummy mask escape from Alcatraz occurred. Mr. Dollison was Acting Warden while Mr. Blackwell was on vacation. The three escapees, Frank Morris, Clarence and John Anglin, were never seen again. Mr. Dollison was transferred to a Texas federal prison in December 1962 because Alcatraz was closing and retired three years later. He was replaced by Richard J. Willard, who served as the last Associate Warden of the penitentiary. Dollison died in 1983. He was married for over 50 years to Evelyn E. O'Brien. They had three children, Corinne Dollison Edwards, Philip Francis Dollison and Jolene Babyak. Ms Babyak has written several books about Alcatraz, including, ''Eyewitness on Alcatraz'', ''Birdman: the Many Faces of Robert Stroud'', ''Breaking the Rock: The Great Escape from Alcatraz'', and ''Alcatraz Most Wanted'', under a pen name, Cory Kincade. Although some of her source material included her father's papers, her books are also informed by interviews and prison documents.

References

Wardens of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary American prison wardens American prison officials People from Cambridge, Ohio Military personnel from Ohio Ohio Wesleyan University alumni 1909 births 1983 deaths {{US-bio-stub