Fox River State Penitentiary
Fox River State Penitentiary is a fictional level one maximum-security prison featured prominently in the first season (and briefly in the second season) of the television series Prison Break. The real-life counterpart of the prison is the Joliet Correctional Center originally known as the Illinois State Penitentiary, located in Joliet, Illinois. The fictional prison is probably named after the real Fox River, about 20 miles outside Joliet, Illinois.
Structural organization
Fox River State Penitentiary assumes many characteristics of its real-life counterpart, Joliet Prison. Its structure and layout are the same, with the exception of its three-tiered A-wing in contrast to the two tiers in Joliet Prison.
As shown in the episodes "Riots, Drills and the Devil (Part one and two)", the general prison population is divided into east and west cell blocks in A and B wings respectively. These two wings are completely segregated by the South wing, which holds the administration staff. In a subsequent episode, "The Old Head", it is revealed that the infirmary is located on the opposite end of the prison to the A wing. A storage room, which later became the correctional officers' break room, is located at the center of the prison, directly above the underground pipes.