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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 3 |
| 1858 | 1 |
| 1860 | 1 |
| 1863 | 1 |
| 1864 | 3 |
| 1865 | 2 |
| 1872 | 5 |
| 1876 | 19 |
| 1877 | 22 |
| 1878 | 12 |
| 1879 | 3 |
| 1880 | 2 |
| 1882 | 6 |
| 1883 | 30 |
| 1884 | 14 |
| 1885 | 15 |
| 1886 | 15 |
| 1887 | 31 |
| 1888 | 16 |
| 1889 | 38 |
| 1890 | 3 |
| 1891 | 40 |
| 1892 | 79 |
| 1893 | 81 |
| 1894 | 97 |
| 1895 | 97 |
| 1898 | 4 |
| 1899 | 10 |
| 1900 | 7 |
| 1902 | 4 |
| 1903 | 51 |
| 1904 | 22 |
| 1905 | 2 |
| 1908 | 5 |
| 1909 | 49 |
| 1910 | 9 |
| 1911 | 1 |
| 1912 | 2 |
| 1914 | 3 |
| 1916 | 7 |
| 1917 | 2 |
| 1918 | 1 |
| 1923 | 5 |
| 1928 | 1 |
821 stories matching prison
- Six Men Break Out of Kitsap County Jail—and the Sheriff Wants Them Badly
A recent escape from the Kitsap County jail has lawmen posting rewards from $250 to $350 for Ah Tuck, Thomas McLean, and four other prisoners.
- A Violent Prison Break in Early Seattle
A brutal struggle erupts in the King County jail as desperate inmates ambush the jailer in a failed escape attempt.
- Locking Down the County Jail
Walla Walla’s City Council moves to secure the jail with a high fence to stop well-meaning citizens from helping prisoners escape.
- The Dungeon Behind the Standard Theater: Inside Seattle’s Terrifying Jail
A reporter’s inspection of Marshal Hamilton’s holding cells reveals prisoners sleeping on straw in a damp basement, fed by a restaurant manager who claims their diet is 'wholesome' and identical to his paying customers'.
- A Jailbreak in the County Seat
Three prisoners escaped the county jail by cutting through a door and scaling the fence, leaving behind only one inmate who was too portly to fit through the hole.
- Ten Inmates Crawl Through City Jail Roof
A dozen prisoners rip the roof off the city jail, leading to a night of escapes, returns for more whiskey, and public mockery of the facility.
- The Great Ellensburg Prison Break
Three territorial prisoners pull off a daring escape from the Ellensburg jail, triggering a county-wide manhunt.
- Kennewick Equips for Chain-Gang Labor
The city council implements a new ordinance requiring prisoners to serve their sentences performing hard labor on the streets.
- The Most Decisive Juror in Seattle History
A disheveled, reluctant man is pulled from the street to serve on a murder jury, and he reaches a verdict before the trial even begins.
- The Great Jailbreak of 1889
In 1889, fifteen of 31 prisoners escaped a city jail through a sawed hole in the wall; none were recaptured.
- A Daring Prison Break Nearly Becomes a Tragedy
A Walla Walla prisoner’s attempt to squeeze through a barred window leaves him trapped and nearly hanging by his own neck.
- The Governor’s Dilemma: The Hand-Me-Down Prison
When Washington became a state, the federal government tried to offload the McNeil Island Penitentiary and its prisoners to state control—but Governor Elisha Ferry wasn't having it.
- Jailer Accused of Aiding Prisoner’s Escape in Tacoma
A jail cook alleges that a jailer pressured him to flee during an administrative transition, raising questions about a recent high-profile escape.
- The Underground Prison Ring
Warden Catron uncovers a secret society of convicts at the Walla Walla prison, suspected of plotting to smuggle in opium.
- The Pen Hits Capacity
Walla Walla's state penitentiary reaches a historic high in inmate population as a new group of prisoners arrives.
- The Jailhouse Drinker of Tenino
A clever prisoner manages to steal a gallon of whiskey while locked in a closet by using a funnel and his own fingers.
- The Jail That Wasn't: A Tour of Port Madison’s Fortress
While Seattle’s own jails were often little more than wooden rooms with locks, the new facility on Port Madison was built like a fortress—iron spikes, windlass doors, and a view of the sound. But its warden faces a grim reality: no work for his prisoners.
- The Bishop, the Convicts, and the Sparring Match
Bishop Wells insists a prisoner-run entertainment at the penitentiary was decorous and proper—not the prizefight rumor made it out to be.
- The Acid Plot in the Tacoma Jail
Prisoners used acid to soften steel bars in a desperate attempt to break out, but were thwarted by a suspicious jailer.
- A Convict’s Homecoming
A former prisoner returns to Seattle, reflecting on life at the Territorial Penitentiary and the realities of incarceration.
- The Great Snohomish Jailbreak
Four prisoners, including one Indigenous man, successfully flee the Snohomish County jail, leaving authorities scrambling.
- The Unmarked Death of Bi Lee
A Chinese man, imprisoned in Seattle, is found dead in his jail cell, leaving behind only questions and a community left to claim his remains.
- The Jailbreak at the Center of Town
After four prisoners escaped the local lockup, the Sheriff sounds the alarm on the failing state of the city's crumbling jail.
- The Unlucky Look-Alike
A case of mistaken identity in a Seattle courtroom saw an innocent man nearly extradited for a Pennsylvania forgery because he looked exactly like his cousin.
- The Contract Prison of the Skookum Chuck
A look inside the privatized territorial penitentiary of 1879, where convict labor was auctioned off to pay for a sheriff's enterprise.
Also about this, in other words
- The Sad State of McNeil Island
A former inmate calls for books to replace the monotony of prison life.
- The Brutality of the Walla Walla Penitentiary
A critical look at the failing 'cell system' and the questionable state industries in Washington’s state prison.
- The Inhumanity of the City Jail
A plea for the humane treatment of women in Seattle's overcrowded, mixed-gender prison system.
- Four Shirts, Soft Hands, and Ten Years: Olympia Sends a Window-Smasher to the Penitentiary
A burglar who broke into two downtown jewelry stores and made off with a watch and some plated ware gets the maximum from Judge Robinson — and nearly faints when he hears it.
- Violence Erupts at Walla Walla Penitentiary Jute Mill
A violent confrontation among prisoners leaves one man hospitalized after a stabbing incident behind the walls.
- The Unlikely Bond Between a Convict and His Keeper
A rare glimpse of humanity inside the grim walls of a frontier jail, where a long-term prisoner and the man paid to guard him found a surprising connection.
- The Great Escape at Steilacoom
Five convicts at the state penitentiary staged a daring, daylight breakout, leading to a desperate shootout in the woods.
- The Man Who Tried to Break Out of Jail (And Failed)
Chester Collins, a convict serving time for assault, was caught trying to escape the Thurston County jail in January. He escaped, fled to Shelton, and immediately got into trouble again—landing him back in the Walla Walla Penitentiary.