Alcatraz housed the first light house on the west coast built  by John Workman.

    Alcatraz is on an island located in the San Francisco Bay. it is 1.5 miles offshore from San Francisco .  It was originally named “Los Isla de los Alcatraces” which translated to the island of pelicans. The reason it is 1.5 miles offshore is because they had very dangerous criminals that would wreak havoc if they escaped. They often called alcatraz “The Rock” because, obviously, it was built on an island made of rock.