Louisiana State Penitentiary Museum

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THE LOUISIANA STATE PENITENTIARY

Compiled by Office of the Deputy Warden for Operations
Revised: February, 2004

The Louisiana State Penitentiary (LSP) at Angola is located in West Feliciana Parish, approximately fifty-nine miles northwest of Baton Rouge. LSP consists of 18,000 acres of the finest farm land in the south. It is ideally situated for the prison as it is located in a rural area, surrounded on three sides by the mighty Mississippi River, and bordered on the fourth side by the rugged Tunica Hills.

LSP is part of a statewide network of adult institutions operated by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections. The other institutions are Elayn Hunt Correctional Center, Dixon Correctional Institute, Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women, Phelps Correctional Center, David Wade Correctional Center, Winn Correctional Center, Allen Correctional Center, J. Levy Dabadie Correctional Center, Washington Correctional Institute, and Avoyelles Correctional Center. LSP, however, is the only institution in the state of Louisiana classified as a maximum security prison. The corrections web site has additional information at www.corrections.state.la.us

LSP currently houses 5,108 inmates. Housing areas consist of the Main Prison Complex, which houses approximately 2,500 inmates and five out camps (Camps C, D, F, J, and the Reception Center), collectively housing approximately 2,600 inmates. The Main Prison Complex and each out camp are "mini-prisons" in themselves, as each has its own warden, security staff, classification staff, primary medical staff, and mental health staff. Each area also contains its own canteen, kitchen and laundry facility, and clothing room.
Front Gate at LSP