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United States · IL
Joliet Prison
State prisonMedium
Verified
Fresh · 2mo ago
Sources last reviewed on
Data is aggregated from public sources and may be incomplete or out of date. Always verify with primary sources before acting on any figure. See data sources.
For families
How to send mail, money, and visit Joliet Prison
Step-by-step guidance using the United States system — addresses, money services, visit booking, what to bring on your first visit.
Gallery
From Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY-SA where not otherwise stated).
Photo by Joseph Gage from USA via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Photo by Joseph Gage from USA via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Photo by Joseph Gage from USA via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Photo by Joseph Gage from USA via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Photo by Joseph Gage from USA via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Photo by Joseph Gage from USA via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Photo by Joseph Gage from USA via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Photo by Joseph Gage from USA via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Background
Joliet Correctional Center (originally known as Illinois State Penitentiary, colloquially as Joliet Prison, Joliet Penitentiary, the Old Joliet Prison, and the Collins Street Prison) is a former prison in Joliet, Illinois, United States, which operated from 1858 to 2002. Numerous films and television productions have used the prison as a setting or filming location. In the 1980 film The Blues Brothers, character Jake Blues is released from the prison at the beginning of the movie (hence his nickname "Joliet Jake"). Footage of the prison is used for the exterior shots for the Illinois "state prison" in the 1949 film White Heat, and for the location of the first and second season of the series Prison Break, and the 2006 film Let's Go to Prison. In 2018, the decommissioned prison was opened to guided tours.
Source: Wikipedia article lead, CC-BY-SA.
Capacity
—
Current population
—
Occupancy
—
Year opened
1858
Operational
Figures from official sources · verified 31 May 2026 · methodology
Facility profile
Population held
Mixed/unknown
Opened
1858
Region
IL
Security level
—
Death-row facility
No
Conditions
No conditions summary available yet.
Visiting
No visiting information available.
Mailing
No mailing information available.
Practical info
Contact the operator's website for inmate-specific procedures.
Known issues
No major issues documented in our database.
Notable inmates
- Tillie Klimek1877–1936 · serial killer
Ottilie "Tillie" Klimek (born Otylia Gburek; 1876 â November 20, 1936) was a Polish American serial killer, active in Chicago.
Source: Wikidata + Wikipedia.
Contact & address
Joliet, Illinois, United States
Conditions Risk Score
Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated
—
Insufficient data
We don't have enough public data on this facility to score it. Have something to add? Send us a correction.
Related facilities
Same country, matched on type + security level where possible.
- Oakhill Correctional InstitutionOregonMinimumState prison210% occupancy
- Stonewall Jackson Youth Development CenterConcordJuvenileState prison236% occupancy
- Woodman State JailGatesvilleMaximumState prison720% occupancy
- Okaloosa Regional Juvenile Detention CenterCrestviewJuvenileState prison221% occupancy
- Residential Correctional Facility, DavenportDavenportState prison208% occupancy
- Diagnostic And Evaluation CenterLincolnMaximumState prison178% occupancy
Data completeness
38%How many of our profile fields are populated. We surface this so families and researchers know the limits.
Sources
- Wikipedia — Wikimedia Foundation
- Wikipedia category â Prisons in Illinois — Wikimedia Foundation
- Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation
- Wikidata (Q1702652)
- Wikipedia
- Wikimedia Commons
- See /data-sources for our overall methodology.
Cite this page
Under CC-BY-4.0. Include the URL and access date; the site is a living reference and entries can change.
APA
World Prisons. (2026). Joliet Prison. Retrieved July 21, 2026, from https://worldprisons.com/prisons/joliet-correctional-center
Chicago
"Joliet Prison." World Prisons. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://worldprisons.com/prisons/joliet-correctional-center.
BibTeX
@misc{worldprisons-joliet-correctional-center,
author = {{World Prisons}},
title = {Joliet Prison},
year = {2026},
url = {https://worldprisons.com/prisons/joliet-correctional-center},
urldate = {2026-07-21}
}