Prisoners - The Last Years of Saint-Lazare Prison (1919-1932)

In 1932, the locks of Saint-Lazare creaked for the last time, marking the end of a century of female confinement. The Françoise Sagan Media Library, located on the very site of this former penitentiary institution, unearths the stories of those who were imprisoned there during the interwar period. The route sheds light on the daily lives of these women—prostitutes, indigent individuals, or common criminals—whose lives shattered against these stone walls. Thanks to previously unpublished archival documents and photographs from the era, visitors grasp the brutal reality of a system seeking to discipline bodies and minds. This historical journey restores dignity to these forgotten women while questioning the evolution of social control methods. A powerful patrimonial testimony presented in a building whose architecture still echoes this singular past.