[1] The facility was built in 1968 to support the Kentucky State Penitentiary (KSP).

In 1977, it became its own separate institution, the Western Kentucky Farm Center (WKFC), a minimum-security prison.

When WKFC became Western Kentucky Correctional Complex in 1989, medium-security infrastructure was added.

Five years later, [1] it was divided into two separate facilities: the current men's prison (WKCC) and a separate women's prison—the 200-bed Ross-Cash Center—due to fewer female prisoners; this change was projected to save US$700,000 (equivalent to about $900,000 in 2023) per year[3] and only require 90 days of work to accomplish.

Ross-Cash was named for two Kentucky Department of Corrections staff members killed in the 1980s, Patricia Ross (died 1984 at KSP) and Fred Cash (died 1986 at WKFC).