AZ-6 — Clyde F. Hicks

One of the Original Federal Prisoners of Alcatraz

Alcatraz Register Number: AZ-6
Full name: Clyde Findal Hicks
Born: September 5, 1910 — Granville County, North Carolina
Died: December 5, 1993 — Durham, North Carolina
Occupation before imprisonment: U.S. Army soldier
Arrived at Alcatraz: June 19, 1934
Released from Alcatraz: August 6, 1935
Status: Discharged

Clyde F. Hicks occupies an unusual place in Alcatraz history. Although he is largely unknown compared with later prisoners such as Al Capone or Robert Stroud, Hicks was assigned Alcatraz inmate number 6, making him one of the earliest men entered into the federal penitentiary's numbering system. The National Archives' official inmate index confirms HICKS, CLYDE F. — Register Number 6. (National Archives)

Early Life

Available genealogical research identifies him as Clyde Findal Hicks, born September 5, 1910, in Granville County, North Carolina. His parents are reported as Robert Lennis Hicks and Sallie Ann Crabtree Hicks. Robert Hicks was recorded as a farm worker in Durham County, North Carolina, during Clyde's childhood. (The Sheldon Institute)

By 1930, Hicks had entered the United States Army. Census research places the 19-year-old soldier at Schofield Barracks on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, where he was living in Barracks No. 158 on April 13, 1930. (The Sheldon Institute)

Military Conviction

On August 7, 1931, Hicks was reportedly sentenced to a six-year term following a military conviction for sodomy. The historical source documenting his case gives an original parole date of August 7, 1933, although he evidently remained in military custody afterward. (The Sheldon Institute)

It is important to understand the historical setting. Hicks was not originally the type of civilian federal prisoner for whom the famous maximum-security Alcatraz penitentiary was created. He was a military prisoner during the final years of the Army's operation of Alcatraz.

Transfer to Alcatraz

Hicks was transferred to Alcatraz on June 19, 1934, shortly before the island formally began operating as the federal penitentiary remembered today. (Gay History)

His arrival date is significant because the first large contingent of federal prisoners from another federal penitentiary did not arrive until August 11, 1934. National Park Service records explain that when the Army relinquished its prison, 32 military prisoners were retained and transferred into Bureau of Prisons custody. Those men became the nucleus of the new federal penitentiary population. (National Park Service)

Hicks appears to have belonged to this group of military holdovers.

That helps explain his extraordinarily low register number:

AZ-6

The National Park Service describes the 32 men left behind by the Army as the first penitentiary inmates before prisoners began arriving from institutions such as McNeil Island. (National Park Service)

Life at Federal Alcatraz

Once the Bureau of Prisons assumed control, Hicks lived under the developing regime of Warden James A. Johnston.

Federal Alcatraz was deliberately designed as a highly controlled institution for prisoners whom officials considered difficult to manage elsewhere. Communication was restricted, privileges were limited, and inmate behavior was closely monitored. (National Park Service)

Hicks does not appear to have developed the extensive disciplinary record associated with many later Alcatraz inmates.

One documented incident occurred in December 1934.

According to research based on Alcatraz prisoner records, Hicks was placed in Lower Solitary on December 3 and December 4, 1934 for:

“conveying a note from one prisoner to another.”

Two other inmates reportedly received punishment at approximately the same time in connection with disturbances and discussion of an escape. One secondary source has suggested that Hicks's note might have concerned those plans, but no evidence presently available establishes that conclusion. It therefore should not be stated that Hicks participated in an escape plot. (The Sheldon Institute)

His documented violation was passing a note.

Was Clyde Hicks an Escape Attempt Inmate?

There is presently no reliable evidence that Clyde F. Hicks attempted to escape from Alcatraz.

The December 1934 disciplinary episode sometimes creates confusion because other inmates were reportedly being punished around the same time for escape-related activity. Hicks's punishment, however, was specifically associated with passing a note.

Unless his complete inmate file reveals additional evidence, he should not be included among Alcatraz's documented escape participants.

Release From Alcatraz

Hicks was discharged from Alcatraz on August 6, 1935. A separate historical listing of the early military prisoners likewise records:

Clyde Hicks — Arrived June 19, 1934 — Released August 6, 1935 — Discharged. (Gay History)

One secondary biography contains an internal date error: it describes his minimum sentence date as August 6, 1937 but simultaneously states that he was discharged August 6, 1935. Because another independent listing gives the 1935 discharge date as well, August 6, 1935 is the better-supported release date. (Gay History)

This discrepancy is worth noting rather than silently repeating the erroneous 1937 date.

Life After Alcatraz

Information about Hicks after imprisonment is considerably more limited.

Genealogical research has identified a Clyde Hicks of Boonville, North Carolina, who married Mary Wolfe of Mount Airy, North Carolina, on December 19, 1936. The ceremony was reportedly performed by minister C. W. Russell.

Because common names can create identification problems, I would phrase this carefully on the website as a probable rather than absolutely proven identification unless we obtain Hicks's complete federal inmate file or the original marriage record. (The Sheldon Institute)

The same research associates Clyde Findal Hicks with a Social Security death record showing that he died in Durham, North Carolina, on December 5, 1993, at the age of 83. (The Sheldon Institute)

Why Clyde Hicks Matters in Alcatraz History

Hicks is historically interesting primarily because he represents the transition between two completely different eras of imprisonment on Alcatraz Island.

For decades Alcatraz had been operated by the U.S. Army. In 1907 it became the Pacific Branch, U.S. Military Prison, and in 1915 it was renamed the Pacific Branch, U.S. Disciplinary Barracks. The Army's emphasis increasingly included training and rehabilitation for some military prisoners. (National Park Service)

During the early 1930s, budget pressures contributed to the Army's decision to leave Alcatraz. The Department of Justice and Bureau of Prisons then converted the island into a maximum-security civilian federal penitentiary. (National Park Service)

Most Army prisoners were sent elsewhere.

Thirty-two remained.

Clyde Hicks was apparently among those men, and when the federal register was established he became:

Alcatraz Inmate AZ-6

Only five inmates preceded him numerically.

That makes Hicks part of the small bridge population between the military Alcatraz of the early twentieth century and the notorious Federal Penitentiary Alcatraz of 1934–1963.

Clyde F. Hicks — Quick Facts

InformationDetail

Alcatraz numberAZ-6

Full nameClyde Findal Hicks

BornSeptember 5, 1910

BirthplaceGranville County, North Carolina

FatherRobert Lennis Hicks

MotherSallie Ann Crabtree

OccupationU.S. Army soldier

StationedSchofield Barracks, Hawaii

ConvictedAugust 7, 1931

SentenceSix years

Transferred to AlcatrazJune 19, 1934

Federal Alcatraz number6Known disciplineLower Solitary, Dec. 3–4, 1934

Reason for solitaryPassing a note between prisoners

ReleasedAugust 6, 1935

Release typeDischarged

Known escape attemptNone documentedDiedDecember 5, 1993

Place of deathDurham, North Carolin