Over 3 decades of public safety
By Don Chaddock, Inside CDCR
Office of Public and Employee Communications
During the 1980s and ’90s, California expanded the prison system. The original 12 prisons were supplemented with new facilities ranging from Pelican Bay State Prison in Crescent City to R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego. Today, CDCR operates 35 adult institutions. One of those newer facilities is California State Prison, Corcoran. The men’s facility was activated in 1988 after two years of planning and another two years of construction.
1980s: From drawing board to activation
“Thirty-six minimum-security men inmates were bused to the new Corcoran State Prison which will have 2,900 inmates ranging from minimum to maximum security when it reaches capacity,” reported the Associated Press, Feb. 23, 1988.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Superintendent Bernie Aispuro said at the time, regarding the arrival of the first inmates.

More than 200 attended the groundbreaking ceremonies for CSP-Corcoran in 1986. CSP-Corcoran under construction, 1987. CSP-Corcoran under construction, 1987. CSP-Corcoran under construction, 1987.
2000-2020
CSP-Corcoran’s hospital, 2014. (CDCR file photo.) Solar power at CSP-Corcoran, 2014. Dental offices at CSP-Corcoran, circa 2014. CDCR file photo. The CSP-Corcoran dining hall, 2014. (CDCR file photo.) Vehicle sally port, CSP-Corcoran. Classrooms, such as this one at CSP-Corcoran, are one of many places inmates are able to improve their chances of success when reintegrating back into the community. Corcoran Mayor Raymond Lerma speaks during a ceremony honoring the prison’s 30th anniversary in 2018.
Learn more about CSP-Corcoran
- Staff provide scholarships.
- Donating blood is a friendly competition with SATF.
- Families learn about CSP-Corcoran.