Old Joliet Prison

Old Joliet Prison (also known as the Joliet Correctional Center) is a former penitentiary complex at 1125 Collins Street in Joliet. It opened in 1858 as the Illinois State Penitentiary and remained in operation until 2002, making it one of the longest-running prison sites in the state. The early complex was built in large part from limestone quarried on the property, and the prison expanded over time into a large campus of cell houses, administrative buildings, service structures, and perimeter security features.

After its closure, the site spent years in a state of decay and partial collapse, with access limited while preservation planning and stabilisation work progressed. In 2023, the Old Joliet Prison Historic Site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district. Stewardship and public programming have been tied to local preservation efforts, with tours and visitor access organised through the Joliet Area Historical Museum and related partners.

The prison is widely recognised in popular culture as a filming location. It was used for the opening prison sequence in The Blues Brothers (1980) and has also appeared in productions including Prison Break (as the exterior and setting for “Fox River State Penitentiary”), White Heat (1949), and Let’s Go to Prison (2006). In addition to its architectural presence, the site’s “dark” interest is factual and institutional: a large-scale, long-operating incarceration facility whose surviving structures document historic prison design, confinement infrastructure, and the physical reality of a 19th- to 20th-century penitentiary environment.