Preston James, 12-year-old Inmate at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary
This mugshot comes from the inmate case file for Preston James, a 12-year-old orphaned boy from Jacksonville, FL. He was convicted by the U.S. District Court of Jacksonville for embezzling a letter with an unknown article of value. He was sentenced to three years of hard labor at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary beginning December 13, 1905, but was released April 9, 1908, at the age of approximately 14 or 15. The case file not only demonstrates the harshness of the federal justice system at the time, but also shows the reality for a child in such an environment. Learn more about each of the inmates at the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary by viewing our inmate case file index.
Photograph of Preston James Affixed to Bertillon Measurement Card, dated December 13, 1905. National Archives Identifier: 646376
View and download the Preston James Bertillon Measurement Card in the National Archives Catalog. This mugshot is one example of the many records held at the National Archives at Atlanta, GA. You can explore more of our holdings by visiting our online Catalog or by visiting the National Archives at Atlanta. This record is located within Record Group 129: Bureau of Prisons, Series: Inmate Case Files, 1902–1922. Many of the records in this collection have yet to be digitized. We encourage researchers to visit us onsite to explore these records and learn more about the archival collections held in the National Archives at Atlanta.