The Jim Blodgett photographs of Washington State Penitentiary collection contains photographic prints and negatives from the years 1930 to 1984. Images depict corrections employees, various locations within the penitentiary, events, and incarcerated individuals. The collection may be of particular use to those interested in the period from 1977 to 1981, including uprisings, administrative changes, and reforms.

The Washington State Penitentiary was established in 1887 in Walla Walla, WA as Washington Territory's first prison. The Washington State Penitentiary records contain publications, reports, photographs, scrapbooks and oral history interviews that document life and administration at the penitentiary.