In Twin Peaks Part 4, 5 and 7 on Showtime, action took place at Yankton Federal Prison in South Dakota. In reality, scenes were shot at Sybil Brand Institute, the former Los Angeles County correctional facility for women that closed in 1997. Since there are multiple scenes that take place both inside and out the prison, I’ve broken the analysis of this film location into several parts. Let’s start with the exterior scenes.
We first learn of Yankton Federal Prison in Part 2 when Mr. C accesses plans via a computer.
Later in Part 7, we see an establishing shot of the prison which was actually South Woods State Prison in New Jersey. See this article for more details about this brief scene.
Located at According to Center for Land Use Interpretation the building was opened in 1963:
“Sybil Brand was a minimum to maximum security facility, with a design capacity of 900, and a peak occupancy of 2,800. It once housed Susan Atkins (whose confessions to a cellmate at the prison led to the arrest of Charles Manson and family), and Susan McDougall of Whitewater scandal fame.”
The prison was heavily damaged during the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The prison finally closed in 1997 and prisoners were transferred to the Twin Towers Correctional Facility.
The first time the prison exterior is seen is in Part 4. FBI Agents Gordon Cole, Albert Rosenfield and Tammy Preston drive from a South Dakota airport to this prison. The image above shows the locations of the agents’ arrival.
The images above compare Part 4 and the actual location courtesy of Google Earth.
The car pulls up next to a black and white prison bus.
Thanks to LocoScout.com, above are two images from the Sybil Brand Institute parking lot.
The agents park and exit the vehicle.
The New York Film Academy used Sybil Brand Institute in a short YouTube video about cinematography at prisons. This screen shot above from the video shows the same area where Cole and his team arrive.
In Twin Peaks Part 7 on Showtime, we return to the parking lot outside the prison shortly after Diane Evans visits Mr. C. The Google Earth image above contains spots were scenes took place.
The agents gather outside as Diane pulls aside Gordon Cole.
You can see the location from the street view option on Google Earth. Notice the tile and open doors.
The previously shared New York Film Academy YouTube video has another shot of this same location.
Another image from LocoScout.com shows this exterior location.
Diane and Gordon speak in the parking lot.
The close up shot reveals the words “South Dakota” added to the side of the prison bus.
One of the publicity photos from Showtime by Suzanne Tenner also shows the exterior with Albert and Tammy.
A photo by Dan Cooley show this tan/brown tile outside this location that’s also seen in the images above.
Later in Part 7, the action briefly switches to the other side of the prison.
This spot is used shortly after Mr. C and Ray Monroe are released and exit the building.
The key to identifying this spot was the Showtime publicity photo by Suzanne Tenner. Notice the pipe on the side of the building.
The building appears to match the one in the bottom right side of the Google Earth image above.
This view from Google Earth shows the same building with the pipe on its side.
A prison guard escorts Mr. C and Ray Monroe down a set of stairs. You can catch a glimpse of the building behind the pipe building as they descend.
There are two images of Warden Murphy standing in the stairwell overlooking Mr. C and Ray leaving the prison parking lot. Of course, that action takes place on the other side so he’s really looking at nothing but other buildings.
LocoScout.com provided these location images. The building with the side pipe is seen in the distance.
Mr. C and Ray depart the prison in the same parking lot where the FBI Agents were first seen in Part 4.
The scene is reverse from the FBI Agents’ arrival in Part 4 – the action takes place on the ground first before Mr. C and Ray Monroe’s car is seen leaving the yard.
A Showtime publicity photo by Suzanne Tenner shows a slightly alternate look at this spot.
LocoScout.com offers one more photo which confirms the location. Notice the gate in the background of the publicity photo matches the location image above.
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