The Medium Security Institution, commonly referred to as The Workhouse, was a medium-security
penitentiary
A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state, usually ...
located in
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...
, and was owned and operated by the municipal department of Public Safety and Corrections. Opened in 1966, the prison was long controversial for its poorly ventilated rooms,
debt bondage
Debt bondage, also known as debt slavery, bonded labour, or peonage, is the pledge of a person's services as security for the repayment for a debt or other obligation. Where the terms of the repayment are not clearly or reasonably stated, or whe ...
, inadequate food, forced labor, and other
human rights
Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...
violations. On June 17, 2021, the jail was closed and its inmates moved to the City Justice Center.
In 2025, after long debate, the building was demolished.
History
Built in 1966, the prison gained its nickname "The Workhouse" from an 1840s city ordinance that allowed forced labor as a punishment for criminals sentenced in law court who couldn't pay their fines.
The Workhouse became infamous for its poor living conditions,
prisoner abuse
Prisoner abuse is the mistreatment of persons while they are under arrest or incarcerated. Prisoner abuse can include physical abuse, psychological abuse, sexual abuse, torture, or other acts such as refusal of essential medication, and it can ...
, and
penal labor
Penal labour is a term for various kinds of forced labour that prisoners are required to perform, typically manual labour. The work may be light or hard, depending on the context. Forms of Sentence (law), sentence involving penal labour hav ...
.
On July 4, 2018, Close the Workhouse, a prison-abolition group, held demonstrations outside
city hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...
to protest the inhumane conditions of the prison.
In 2019, Arch City Defenders, a
public defender
A public defender is a lawyer appointed to represent people who otherwise cannot reasonably afford to hire a lawyer to defend themselves in a trial. Several countries provide people with public defenders, including the UK, Belgium, Hungary and Si ...
organization, filed a class-action lawsuit against the facility's inhumane living condition. The lawsuit alleged that the civil rights of detainees within the facility had been violated by the poor sanitation, limited ventilation, and poor medical care. The lawsuit said temperatures in the prison sometimes surpassed . In response, St. Louis spent $40,000 on temporary portable air conditioning for the prison.
In 2021, St. Louis
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
Tishaura Jones proposed closing the Workhouse on her first day in office.
The Workhouse was later closed on June 17, less than a month into her term.
In 2025, it was demolished.
References
{{Saint Louis protests
Penal labor in the United States
1966 establishments in Missouri
2021 disestablishments in Missouri
Buildings and structures in St. Louis
Defunct prisons in Missouri