Leavenworth United States Penitentiary

Opened in 1903, Leavenworth United States Penitentiary is a medium security penitentiary which also has a nearby minimum security prison camp.  USP Leavenworth is located in Leavenworth, Kansas, approximately 25 miles from Kansas City.  Between the penitentiary and satellite camp, the facilities have a total inmate population of 1,845 male prisoners, with 1,397 inmates at the penitentiary and 448 inmates at the camp.  Despite the fact that Leavenworth has an inmate population of 1,845 offenders, the camp was only designed to house 398 offenders while the penitentiary was designed to hold 1,611 offenders.  USP Leavenworth was originally a maximum security prison, being known as the largest maximum security federal prison in the United States.  However, this changed when the penitentiary was downgraded to a medium security prison in 2005.

At USP Leavenworth, all offenders are given the opportunity of self improvement.  Leavenworth encourages inmates to work towards self improvement by providing a variety of programs and services.  All inmates are required to participate in either work or education.  Educational courses include General Education Development, Adult Continuing Education, English as a Second Language, Post-Secondary Education, Vocational Training and Apprenticeships, release preparation, and parenting classes.  Inmates not assigned to education will be assigned to work.  Some common work assignments include cooks, bakers, butchers, plumbers, welders, mechanics, painters, tutors, clerks, and orderlies.  Recreational activities are also available for the benefit of the inmates.  Recreation provides prisoners with leisure time to do activities such as crafts, softball, walking, and music time.  

In 1910, there was an incident where several prisoners escaped.  Inmate Frank Grigware along with 5 other prisoners escaped by crashing through the prison gates with a stolen locomotive.  All the escapees were quickly caught, however Grigware managed to flee to Canada.  Grigware even became the mayor of a Canadian town called Spirit River.  In 1933, Grigware was finally discovered by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.  The US eventually dropped their extradition request and as a result Grigware never returned back to the United States.  Grigware died in Alberta in 1977.  Another prisoner, Basil Banghart, has escaped Leavenworth on 3 separate occasions.  On September 5th of 1930, Carl Panzram, was hanged at Leavenworth.  Panzram was a serial killer who was given a federal death sentence.  In addition, two other executions have taken place at Leavenworth.  Robert Suhay and Glenn Applegate, both under a death sentence for murder, were hanged at Leavenworth on August 12th, 1938.

Visiting Hours at Leavenworth United States Penitentiary:

• Leavenworth United States Penitentiary runs visitation from 8:00 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. on visiting days.  Visitation for inmates in the penitentiary is on Mondays, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays.  For inmates in the camp, visitation will run during the same hours, but only on Mondays, Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays.
• Offenders are granted 24 points each month for visitation.  Each hour of visiting time on Mondays and Fridays will deduct 1 point from an inmate's visiting points.  Each hour of visiting on weekends and federal holidays will deduct 2 points.
• A prisoner can have up to 5 visitors at a time.
• As the visiting room overcrowds, officers will terminate visits by a "first in, first out" basis.
• Prisoners who are part of the Special Housing Unit will be granted visiting time, however these visits will be non-contact via video and will not exceed 2 hours in length.  Prisoners in the SHU can only have 1 adult visitor at a time. 
• Visitors may bring the following items into the facility:
  • A small wallet or clear bag, no larger than a quart sized bag
  • Up to $20.00 in change only
  • Basic infant necessities if an infant is present
• Basic infant necessities that may be brought into the facility include:
  • Sealed premixed formula and baby food, must be in original containers
  • 3 clear nursing bottles
  • Up to 3 diapers
  • Baby wipes
  • A clear diaper bag
• A children's play area is located on the lower level for children.  Visitors must supervise their children at all times and inmates will not be allowed in the play area.

Physical Address:

Leavenworth United States Penitentiary
1300 Metropolitan Avenue
Leavenworth, Kansas 66048

Telephone:

(913)-682-8700

Inmate Mailing Address:

For the USP:

Inmate Name, ID Number
Leavenworth United States Penitentiary
P.O. Box 1000
Leavenworth, Kansas 66048

For the Camp:

Inmate Name, ID Number
Leavenworth United States Penitentiary Satellite Camp
P.O. Box 1000
Leavenworth, Kansas 66048