This database contains the prison registers of inmates housed in the Seatco Prison from 1877 – 1888 and the Washington State Penitentiary from 1950 - 1956. Seatco was a privately-run prison in the town of Budoca which operated from 1877 until 1888, when the new Territorial Penitentiary opened in Walla Walla as a requirement for statehood. When Washington became a state in 1889, the new facility officially became the Washington State Penitentiary. These registers show name, alias, age, residence, place convicted, crime, sentence, physical condition, and date of discharge, parole or escape. The records in this collection from 1950 on also include mug shots.

The Prison at Seatco was established by Pierce County Sheriff Jeremiah K. Smith, Thurston County Sheriff William Billings, and Territorial Governor Elisha P. Ferry, with private funds provided by businessman Oliver Shead. Prisoners were contracted out as laborers for seventy cents per day. The poor conditions at Seatco may have encouraged the government to build the Territorial Penitentiary in Walla Walla.

Although Seatco Prison was privately operated, the records from that facility were passed along to the appropriate government body. The responsibility for operating prisons has passed through various departments, starting in 1897 with the Board of Audit and Control. Since 1981, all adult correctional institutions have been run by the Department of Corrections.

Learn about the documentation of Institution in Washington and what information is found in the various record types by selecting the tab that says "About this Collection"here.