FCC Petersburg is a Federal Correctional Complex located in Prince George County near Hopewell, Virginia, about 25 miles southeast of Richmond. It brings together two distinct institutions under one administrative roof: FCI Petersburg Low, the older of the two, and FCI Petersburg Medium, a newer medium-security facility that opened in 2002. The Low facility traces back to 1932, when the site began as the Petersburg Federal Reformatory, one of the era's rehabilitation-focused institutions built largely by the labor of its own early inmates, complete with farmland, a dairy operation, and even its own small fire department. An adjacent minimum-security camp connected to the Low facility opened later, in 1978, rounding out the complex's range of custody levels. Over nearly a century of operation the site has evolved considerably from its original reformatory concept into a modern multi-institution complex serving different security classifications. For families, FCC Petersburg is really an umbrella term covering two separate prisons on adjoining grounds, so it's worth confirming which specific institution, Low or Medium, your family member is actually housed in.