Jefferson City’s Past Comes to Life

Still owned by the State of Missouri, the Missouri State Penitentiary (MSP) opened in 1836 along the banks of the Missouri River in Jefferson City, Missouri, the state capital. The prison housed inmates for 168 years and was the oldest continually operating prison west of the Mississippi until decommissioned in 2004. The Jefferson City Convention & Visitors Bureau now offers various tours at the site once named “the bloodiest 47 acres in America” by Guy Magazine.

Click below to find out about the inmates (including notable women), executions, escapes, and the famous prison riot of 1954 before you arrive for one of our history tours!

Missouri State Penitentiary Tours

Timeline

Infamous Inmates

Executions

Centennial Cells

Women in MSP

The 1954 Riot

Escapes

The Museum

Prison Tours

Missouri State Penitentiary Tours in Jefferson City, MO