The National Park Service marked the 50th anniversary of the closure of the Alcatraz federal penitentiary on Thursday with an exhibit of recently discovered photographs of the prison's final day on March 21, 1963.

Once known as "The Rock," Alcatraz became a national park in 1972 and is one of California's most popular tourist attractions with about 1.5 million visitors a year. What was America's premier maximum-security prison is now home to stunning fauna and flora and sanctuary for numerous seabird colonies and tide pools.

The island was first a fort and later became an Army disciplinary barracks before being taken over by the Bureau of Prisons in 1934. It was the last stop for one of the nation's most notorious inmate, Al Capone.

The new exhibit features striking images snapped by freelance Life Magazine photographer Leigh Wiener. According to The Associated Press, Wiener's son found the negatives in an envelope named "Alcatraz Prison's Closing Day March 21, 1963" in his father's archive. One of Wiener's photos can be seen above in a gallery featuring images from Alcatraz's past and present.

The will be on display until the end of June.

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