During the era of the Galactic Civil War, The Purge functioned as an Imperial prison barge.
Originally, The Purge was a garbage barge. It was later modified by adding holding cells and a rudimentary medbay. Records show that as far back as 33 BBY, the vessel transported convicts to various detainment stations and penal colonies throughout the galaxy. While en route to the Cog Hive Seven prison during a standard prisoner transfer, The Purge was ambushed and seized by Jabba the Hutt's yacht, the Star Jewel. Jabba's mercenaries then used the hijacked barge to approach the prison undetected and launch a surprise retaliatory attack on the prison's warden, who had previously executed Jabba's agents held within the facility.
Around 1 BBY, the Imperial prison barge Purge was under the authority of the Imperial Corrections Service. At this time, Warden Bissley Kloth commanded the ship and had transformed The Purge into a self-contained mobile prison. When the barge's engines failed during a transit to a detainment moon, the crew dispatched a salvage team to a derelict Star Destroyer nearby, named Vector, hoping to find replacement parts. Among the prisoners aboard the Purge during this incident were Aur Myss, Von Longo, his sons Trig and Kale Longo, and the smugglers Han Solo and Chewbacca.
The salvage team successfully retrieved the necessary components but found no signs of the Vector's crew. However, shortly after their return to the Purge, most of the team began exhibiting symptoms of a previously unknown infectious disease, which rapidly proved fatal. Despite the immediate quarantine efforts initiated by The Purge's chief medical officer, Zahara Cody, the virus spread uncontrollably. The pathogen quickly infected nearly everyone on board, overwhelming the barge's medical facilities. Less than twelve hours following the initial engine failure, only six individuals remained alive on the Purge: two Imperial officers, Dr. Cody and Captain of the Guard Jareth Sartoris, along with four prisoners, the two Longo brothers, as well as Han Solo and Chewbacca. After being attacked by the mysteriously reanimated corpses of the barge's crew and prisoners, the survivors were compelled to abandon the Purge and seek refuge aboard the derelict Vector.
After the events that transpired, The Purge was recovered, and records discovered onboard the barge were released publicly for scholarly study.