old castlemaine gaol

align=center colspan=2\|Australian Prisons
align=center colspan=2\|Castlemaine Gaol
style=width:80px\|Location:	Castlemaine, Victoria
tatus:	Closed
lassification:	?
apacity:	?
pened:
losed:	1990
anaged by:	?

Old Castlemaine Gaol is located in Castlemaine, Victoria, Australia.

History

1857 Single storey building (existing front building) and two storey stone dormitory block (demolished circa 1860) were constructed.
1859-61 The present Gaol was constructed from granite and sandstone in the local area.
1863 - The execution platform was installed and remained unused until 1865 when David Young was executed for murder despite the uncertainty of his guilt.
1865-76 Nine prisoners were executed over a period of eleven years in the Gaol and buried in it's grounds in unmarked graves.
1884 - The gaol was considered for adaption as a lunatic asylum for the criminally insane before patients were moved to Ararat where a new ward was built for them.
1909 - Gaol changed to a Reformatory Prison for youthful offenders
1951 - The boys from the Reformatory were removed to HM Prison Langi Kal Kal and the Gaol was closed.
1954 - Gaol re-opened as a semi-hospital prison to cope with prisoners from HM Prison Geelong.
1974 - A new mess hall was constructed, and the vegetable garden outside the walls was so productive that the prison was completely self-sufficient. During the 1970s there were nine reported escape attempts due to the classification of prisoners, maximum security prisoners held in a medium security prison. Because of this razor wire was installed to deter wall scalers.
1990 - The new HM Prison Loddon was opened in August which saw the final closure of the Old Gaol
1995 - The Old Castlemaine Gaol reopened as a tourist facility offering

Word Browser