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This article examines the contents of a previously neglected source: the letters that English criminals wrote from prison c.1680–1800. These letters provide us with new insights into the experience of punishment away from the scaffold, and they give us a view of the importance of literacy as a means of communication for many ordinary men and women. Family, friendship and community ties were often strengthened by imprisonment, but could also be challenged. Many writers used letters to obtain practical support while in prison, but they also found writing was a means to reflect upon what they held to be most important. Sentiment and deeply held beliefs were expressed in their letters home. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]