Green’s Dictionary of Slang

(UK Und.) a prison.

c.1698		B.E. Dict. Canting Crew n.p.: Trib c. a Prison. He is in Trib, for Tribulation, c. he is layd by the Heels, or in a great deal of Trouble.
1725		New Canting Dict. [as cit. c.1698].
1737, 1759, 1760, 1776		Bailey Universal Etym. Eng. Dict. [as cit. c.1698].
1785, 1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
a.1790		H.T. Potter New Dict. Cant (1795).
1809		G. Andrewes Dict. Sl. and Cant.
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1823		Egan Grose’s Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
1833		‘A Shove In The Mouth’ in Regular Thing, And No Mistake 61: Oh! remember the time, when Canary-bird you / I toddled to see you in trib.
1834		‘Jack Downing’ Andrew Jackson 148: If any one was suspected of not bein fully in his interest I guess they soon found ’emselves in trib.
1848		Flash Dict. in Sinks of London Laid Open.
1910		Cornhusker in DN IV:ii 124: trib, from tribulation. A prison.