Missouri River Correctional Center

A minimum-security and community-custody state prison for men near Bismarck, North Dakota — a low-custody facility on the site of the former state farm.

Overview

Missouri River Correctional Center is a state prison for men operated by the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. It is about 4 miles southwest of Bismarck, in Burleigh County, in south-central North Dakota. The facility holds men in minimum security and community custody.

ND DOCR assigns custody level based on factors that include sentence length, time remaining, and conduct, and a resident’s custody level can change during incarceration. The custody class and housing held at a given facility affect visiting arrangements, so families confirm the arrangement that applies to the specific person before a first visit.

What Makes the Missouri River Correctional Center Different

Missouri River Correctional Center holds men in the lowest custody levels — minimum security and community custody — rather than the medium- or maximum-security population housed at North Dakota’s larger institutions. The facility sits on the site of the former state farm southwest of Bismarck, land the state historically used for agricultural operations. As a low-custody facility, it is oriented toward residents who are nearer the end of a sentence or otherwise classified for reduced custody. Because custody level governs where a person is held, a resident’s assignment to or from this facility can change as that level changes.

Visiting

The statewide ND DOCR rules above — the approved visitor list, the dress code, ID, and item limits — apply at the Missouri River Correctional Center. The facility’s own arrangements:

Getting There and Parking

Missouri River Correctional Center is at 1800 48th Avenue S.W., about 4 miles southwest of Bismarck in Burleigh County, in south-central North Dakota. Bismarck is reached by way of Interstate 94, which runs east–west across the state, and the facility is south of the city near the Missouri River. The nearest commercial airport is Bismarck Airport.

Parking is on site. Visitors confirm current entry procedures, the visitor-processing location, and what may be brought onto the grounds with the facility before arriving, because electronic devices and personal items are generally not permitted inside — visitors may typically bring only identification, a vehicle key, and a small amount of coins for vending machines, with all other items secured in a vehicle.

Nearby Services

Bismarck, the state capital, has a full range of lodging, dining, and fuel, with additional options across the river in Mandan. Emergency and hospital medical care is available in the Bismarck–Mandan area. Visitors traveling a long distance generally find the most options for fuel, food, and overnight stays along the Interstate 94 corridor through Bismarck.

Mail

North Dakota DOCR routes incoming personal mail through an off-site scanning vendor. Letters, cards, photos, and drawings sent to a resident are delivered to the Securus Digital Mail Center, where they are opened and scanned; the resident receives a digital copy on their Securus tablet (the “player”) rather than the original paper. Missouri River Correctional Center’s incoming mail uses the North Dakota State Penitentiary mailing box. Address personal mail with the resident’s full committed name and ID number as:

Resident’s Full Committed Name and ID Number Missouri River Correctional Center P.O. Box 5521 Bismarck, ND 58506-5521

Legal mail, court and agency correspondence, and documents requiring a signature are not scanned — they go directly to the facility and are handled under the rules for privileged mail. Publications must be new and shipped directly from an approved publisher or vendor. Confirm the current mailing address and any package rules with the facility before sending anything, because mail-handling vendors and addresses change.

Learn More

• Visiting in North Dakota — Approved visitor list, scheduling with each facility, dress code, ID, and what you can bring.
• Mail in North Dakota — How North Dakota scans personal mail, the addressing format, and how legal mail and publications are handled.
• Phone & Video in North Dakota — Setting up Securus phone calls and video visits, and how messaging works.
• Sending Money in North Dakota — Using JPay to add money to a resident’s trust account, by mail, online, app, or MoneyGram.
• Medical Care in North Dakota — How health care, intake screening, and requests for care work in ND DOCR facilities.
• Transfers & Intake in North Dakota — Where newly sentenced people enter the system, reception and orientation, and how transfers happen.