Retired in 1995, the West Virginia State Penitentiary is an imposing gothic style prison located in Moundsville, West Virginia. The state bought the land in 1866, and used prison labor during the construction process. Work continued on this first phase until the prison opened in 1876.

In 1929, the state decided to double the size of the penitentiary because overcrowding had become a serious problem. The 5 x 7-foot (1.5 x 2.1-meters) cells were too small to hold three prisoners at a time, but until the expansion there was no other options. Two prisoners would sleep in the bunks with the third sleeping on a mattress on the floor.

The conditions at the prison worsened through the years, ultimately the facility would be ranked on the US Department of Justice's Top Ten Most Violent Correctional Facilities list. Over the years, 92 men from the Penitentiary were executed for their crimes: 83 by hanging and 9 by electrocution. During the prison's 120 years of operation, two guards were killed by inmates.

Towards the end of its life as a prison, the facility was marked with many instances of riots and escapes. In the 1960s, the prison reached a peak population of about 2,000 inmates. In 1982, a West Virginia judge ruled the conditions of the prison, particularly the 5-by-7 cells, constituted cruel and unusual punishment. It would be several years and more legal proceedings before the Penitentiary was eventually closed. With the building of more prisons in West Virginia, the population of the West Virginia State Penitentiary declined to 600 – 700 inmates by 1995. Currently, the site is maintained as a tourist attraction and training facility.

My eye has been increasingly attracted to urban decay. Exploring, researching the history, learning what I can from the past, and photographing the relics that remain. Many don't understand the appeal of a subject like this. But, within the aging structures I can still see the vitality of decades past, and a haunting beauty in the rust, crumbing plaster and peeling paint.

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Required Credit: "The former West Virginia State Penitentiary, a National Historic Places Registered facility, operated by the Moundsville Economic Development Council in Moundsville, West Virginia."