JEFFERSON CITY, MO. August 22nd, 2013 - The Travel Channel's notorious ghost hunting television show Ghost Adventures came to Jefferson City to film in April of 2013. Believed by many to be the most popular of all the paranormal investigation shows on cable, the episode featuring the Missouri State Penitentiary (MSP) is slated to air on Friday, September 6th at 8:00pm CT.
"There are millions of Ghost Adventures fans all around the world," said Chris Wilson, Jefferson City Convention & Visitors Bureau Film & Sports Sales Manager. "The fact that such a widely-known television show chose to come here, to the Missouri State Penitentiary, speaks volumes as to the excitement and draw surrounding the prison tours at MSP."
The Ghost Adventures team is known for investigating the most legendary "haunted" places on the planet. When the crew arrives at a location they interview eye witnesses and historians who may have experienced paranormal activity at the site. They then use the information to determine where they will investigate during their dusk-to-dawn lockdown. While at the Missouri State Penitentiary, the crew filmed several reenactments which will be featured in the episode; local actors from around Jefferson City helped to reenact the 1954 Riot and the infamous double execution of Bonnie Heady and Carl Hall. The crew was said to take particular interest in Housing Unit 3 (which houses death row), Housing Unit 4 (the oldest housing unit on the property also known as 'A Hall') and the Gas Chamber.
The Jefferson City Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) began offering tours of the decommissioned Missouri State Penitentiary in 2009. Before it closed in 2004, MSP was the oldest continually operating prison west of the Mississippi. Once called the "bloodiest 47 acres in America" by Time Magazine because of the incredibly high number of serious assaults in the 1960s, the tours of the historic site have attracted visitors to Jefferson City from all over the world.
More than half of the nearly 20,000 visitors that toured MSP in 2012 took a 2-hour History Tour, the most popular tour. But since the CVB added paranormal tour options in 2011, the number of visitors coming for a Ghost Tour has increased steadily, growing from 20% of total tours to 25%. The addition of the paranormal tour options at the prison has spurred a cult-like following of paranormal enthusiasts from across the country. Visitors can schedule an overnight paranormal investigation for their group and spend the night exploring designated buildings at the prison or opt for a shorter Ghost Tour that includes both historical & paranormal information.
For more information about the Missouri State Penitentiary or to book a tour visit
www.MissouriPenTours.com or call (866)998-6998.
