Cummins Unit - History

History

In 1902 the State of Arkansas purchased about 10,000 acres (4,000 ha) of land for $140,000 to build the Cummins Unit. The prison was established during that year, and prisoners began occupying the site in December. The prison occupied the former Cummins and Maple Grove plantations; the state purchased the land for $140,000.

Then-Governor of Arkansas Jeff Davis wanted the state to buy a farm in Jefferson County owned by Louis Altheimer, a Republican Party leader who was Davis's friend. When the legislature instead purchased the land for Cummins, Davis put up political opposition, trying to force the state to cancel the purchase.

In 1933 Governor Junius Marion Futrell closed the Arkansas State Penitentiary ("The Walls"), and some prisoners moved to Cummins from the former penitentiary. Since the establishment of the prison, it had housed African-American men and women. Beginning in 1936, White male prisoners with disciplinary problems were housed at Cummins. As of 1958, most prisoners worked in farming, producing cotton, livestock, and vegetables. The prison, during that year, housed clothing and lumber manufacturing facilities. In 1951 White female prisoners were moved from the Arkansas State Farm for Women to Cummins.

On September 5, 1966, riots occurred at Cummins. 144 prisoners attempted a strike, and Arkansas State Police ended the strike with tear gas. In 1970 some prisoners asking for segregated housing started a riot, leading to the intervention of state police.

In 1972 Arkansas's first prison rodeo was held at the Cummins Unit. In 1974 death row inmates, previously at the Tucker Unit, were moved to the Cummins Unit. In 1976 female inmates were moved from the Cummins Unit to the Pine Bluff Unit. In 1978 a new execution chamber opened at Cummins Unit. In 1983 the Cummins Modular Unit opened. In 1986 death row inmates were moved to the Maximum Security Unit. In 1991 the vocational technology program moved from the Cummins Unit to the Varner Unit. In 2000 Arkansas's first lethal electrified fence, built with inmate labor, opened at the Cummins Unit.