Memorial Unit

A historic men's prison near Rosharon, formerly the Darrington Unit (renamed in 2021); home of TDCJ's in-prison seminary, the Heart of Texas Foundation College of Ministry.

Overview

The Memorial Unit is a men’s prison near Rosharon in Brazoria County, south of Houston. TDCJ established it in 1917, making it one of the historic Texas prison farms, and lists its capacity at about 1,931 beds. The unit holds a wide custody mix (G1-G5).

The unit was renamed from the Darrington Unit to the Memorial Unit in 2021. It is the same facility at the same address; the inmate locator and many families may still use the older name, and the road and the seminary continue to carry the “Darrington” name.

What Makes Memorial Unit Different

• One of the historic Texas prison farms, established in 1917
• Home of TDCJ’s flagship in-prison seminary — the official TDCJ page names it the Heart of Texas Foundation College of Ministry
• Holds a broad G1-G5 custody mix, so the visiting format follows the incarcerated person’s classification rather than one unit-wide rule
• Located in the Rosharon area of Brazoria County, where several TDCJ units operate close together

The in-prison seminary

The Memorial Unit hosts an in-prison seminary, a bachelor’s-level ministry program that began in 2011. The official TDCJ page names it the Heart of Texas Foundation College of Ministry. The program started as a campus associated with Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary; the official page does not state the current degree-granting partner. Alongside the seminary, the unit offers chaplaincy services, a faith-based dormitory, and religious studies.

Visiting Hours and Procedures

The statewide rules above — approval, ID, prohibited items, and dress code — apply at the Memorial Unit. What follows is specific to this unit.

The unit’s custody mix is the main reason one posted schedule does not mean one visiting experience. General-population housing typically uses standard contact visiting, while more restrictive housing can mean different room assignments or non-contact procedures on the same weekend. The format follows the incarcerated person’s classification, so two families arriving the same morning may have different experiences.

Getting There and Parking

The Memorial Unit is near Rosharon in Brazoria County, south of Houston. The route runs on highways for most of the way and finishes on local roads near the unit.

Phones, Mail, and Video

Contact has a sequence to it. A phone number must be on the incarcerated person’s approved contact list before calls can connect, and after intake or a transfer that approval can take time to process. Calls are placed by the incarcerated person on TDCJ’s Securus phone system; a prison cannot be called into. Account setup, rates, and video options are covered in Phone & Video Calls.

Nearby Services

Rosharon is a small community, so commercial services are limited near the unit. Larger concentrations of gas, food, groceries, and lodging are toward Pearland and Angleton and, farther out, in the Houston metro area south of downtown.

For support beyond the unit itself, the Texas Inmate Families Association is a statewide nonprofit focused on education, advocacy, and prison-system navigation resources for families with someone in TDCJ custody.

Learn More

For detailed information about visiting and communicating with someone at a Texas state prison:

• Visiting in Texas — TDCJ approval process, dress code, scheduling
• Mail & Packages — what you can send and what gets rejected
• Phone & Video Calls — Securus accounts, call costs, video visits
• Sending Money — how to add funds to a TDCJ trust account
• Medical & Mental Health — healthcare in TDCJ facilities
• Transfers — what happens during transfers