Prison Museums Are Becoming More Popular

<p><em></p><p>A sign that "dark tourism" is really taking hold: Prison museums are proliferating around the U.S.</p><p>In fact, now, when you visit Pigeon Forge, Tenn., to take in Dollywood, the Hollywood Wax Museum and the Titanic Museum, the family will also be able to tour Alcatraz East - a new crime museum that will be home to OJ's white Ford Bronco, Al Capone's rosary and John Dillinger's death mask. It will also have a prison-like facade, reports <a href="http://fortune.com/2016/08/17/prison-tourism-museums/" target="_blank">Fortune.com</a>. </p><p>"Since the 1990s, as the U.S. prison population exploded, new, bigger prisons were built -and states looked for a way to repurpose older ones," writes Erik Sherman. </p><p>According to Fortune, "many old prisons were converted into museums or recreational sites catering to tourists. Twenty-nine states have an average of at least two prison museums each, according to Fortune's review of multiple compilation listings - they're run by either governments or non-profits. Some old prisons have seen new life as hotels and 'haunted houses.'"</p><p><strong>[READMORE]READ MORE: <a href="http://www.travelpulse.com/news/features/4-underrated-things-to-do-in-ocean-city-maryland.html" target="_blank">4 Underrated Things to Do in Ocean City, Maryland</a> [/READMORE] </strong></p><p>Other popular prison museums are Alcatraz and Philadelphia's Eastern State Penetentiary. Boston's old Charles Street Jail is now the Liberty Hotel and is part of Starwood's Luxury Collection. </p><p>Get to know America's best prison museums <a href="http://fortune.com/2016/08/17/prison-tourism-museums/" target="_blank">here</a>. </p>

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