Thousands Attend Electrifying Joliet Prison Party

JOLIET, IL - To call Saturday night's first-ever Great Joliet Prison Break-In a success would not be giving the event organizers enough credit. It was hot, and it was muggy, but this was a huge success. When I was leaving at 9:45 p.m. there were still people arriving at the gate, purchasing tickets to see The Blooze Brothers, the night's main entertainment.

On Saturday night, the prison was packed. One city councilman told me at least 2,400 tickets were sold ahead of time, and that's not counting a number of complimentary tickets given out to the event's many corporate sponsors. As expected, a number of people chose to wait to buy their tickets at the gate.

Safe to say, there appeared to be at least 3,000 adults inside the Old Joliet Prison to witness and participate in a huge milestone event for the city of Joliet. This was history. And this place was filled with excitement.

Everybody had a great time. It turned out to be a nice night once the sun went down. Up came a full moon that gave the Old Joliet Prison party an eerie, beautiful backdrop. (Did you know that you can get Joliet news delivered straight to your inbox for free? Sign up for our free daily newsletter and our breaking news alerts at Joliet Patch.)

The Joliet Area Historical Museum took the lead during the past year to spearhead the massive ongoing cleanup efforts of the 1858-era limestone fortress along Collins Street. During Saturday night's fund-raiser for ongoing prison restoration efforts, guests could tour and take photographs inside two of the oldest prison buildings, the lower level of the East Cell Block as well as the North Segregation Unit.

It was quite a party. Hot Mess. M&R Rush. Petty Cash. The main act had the place rocking when Joliet Jake and Elwood Blues appeared on stage as The Blooze Brothers.

I showed up around 4:30 p.m. and stayed until 9:45 p.m. People were still wandering inside to be there for a great moment of pride for the city of Joliet, the Joliet Chamber of Commerce and the Joliet Area Historical Museum.

When there's a great party, word gets around fast.

This night will be remembered as the night when the Old Joliet Prison, long dormant, long neglected and too long forgotten, came back to life like never before.

Images via John Ferak/Joliet Patch Editor