Facts
- Fact 1: Ball and chain restraints were used in the U.S. prison system from the 1880s through the 1940s.
- Fact 2: Balls weighing anywhere from10 to 30 pounds were attached to 6 foot chains.
- Fact 3: Prisoners wore these up to 8 hours at a time.
- Fact 4: Gangrene and "shackle sores" were a common side-effect of using these restraints.
- Fact 5: Prisoners chained either to each other or to heavy weights in order to do work is known as a "chain gang."