During World War II, the Navy operated a gunnery school east of Lexington. After the war, the State of Oklahoma acquired the property and built an annex to Central State Mental Hospital (later Griffin Memorial Hospital). In 1971, the Department of Corrections acquired the property and opened a minimum security prison called the Regional Treatment Center. In 1976, the state began construction on the Lexington Assessment and Reception Center (LARC) which processes all new prisoners entering the state correctional system. The Regional Treatment Center was re-designated as the Joseph Harp Correctional Center, a medium-security prison.