Missouri State Penitentiary tours return for first full post-tornado season

People wait for a 9 p.m. ghost tour Friday, March 6, 2020, outside the Missouri State Penitentiary. The penitentiary tours, later to be temporarily suspended again in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, had resumed for the first time since the May 2019 tornado damaged the Jefferson City property.
People wait for a 9 p.m. ghost tour Friday, March 6, 2020, outside the Missouri State Penitentiary. The penitentiary tours, later to be temporarily suspended again in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, had resumed for the first time since the May 2019 tornado damaged the Jefferson City property.

As the air and ground begin to thaw and spring approaches, tours of the historic Missouri State Penitentiary are officially open for the 2020 season.

After a tumultuous 2019 season interrupted by the May 2019 tornado that damaged several of the old prison's buildings and knocked down portions of the prison wall, the Jefferson City Convention and Visitor's Bureau is hoping for a normal season this year.

Tours started March 1, and the season will run until November.

The CVB offers a few options for tours of the site. The most popular is the two-hour history tour. Guides lead tour groups around the historic buildings and share stories about the infamous riot from 1954, attempted escape and more. History tours are available for guests ages 10 and older.

Guests on the two-hour tour will visit Housing Units 1 and 3, the women's unit and the gas chamber.

The damage from the tornado, which had the prison shut down from May to Oct. 1, has had lasting effects on the tours. Just like in October, Housing Unit 4 - the oldest remaining building on site, built in 1868 - is not open to the public because of safety concerns.

To supplement the loss of Housing Unit 4 on the two-hour history tours, guests will visit solitary confinement and the death row area, previously only shown on the more in-depth three-hour history tour.

The three-hour tours will not be available until May, CVB Communications Manager Brittney Mormann said. Access to Housing Unit 4 at that time is unknown.

Also not yet on the tours are the "new" buried cells. Crews first discovered the old cell block underground while working on a recreation yard in 1984. After inspection, the cells were recovered so the court-ordered project could continue.

The cells are estimated to have been built in the late 1840s, which would make them the oldest portion of building on site. In December, crews started uncovering them for good. The CVB hopes to eventually add them to history tours.

If history isn't interesting enough, the CVB also conducts two- and three-hour nighttime "ghost" or "paranormal" tours and a three-hour ghost hunt class, where guests ages 14 and older are guided through the prison in search of spirits.

The two-hour ghost tours will also be modified for the 2020 season because of the damage.

The CVB also offers three-hour photography tours for guests ages 12 and older.

Longer paranormal tours and private history, ghost and photography tours are also offered. All tours can be booked on the Missouri State Penitentiary website, missouripentours.com.