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Old Bunbury Gaol & Police Station Complex (fmr) - Site

Author

City of Bunbury

Place Number

05747

Location

Wittenoom St Bunbury

Location Details

W end of Stephen Street

Local Government

Bunbury

Region

South West

Construction Date

Constructed from 1852 to 1885

Demolition Year

1969

Statutory Heritage Listings

Type Status Date Documents More information
(no listings)

Heritage Council Decisions and Deliberations

Type Status Date Documents
(no listings)

Other Heritage Listings and Surveys

Type Status Date Grading/Management More information
Category Description
Municipal Inventory Adopted 31 Jul 1996 Historic Site

Historic Site

Historic Site

Statement of Significance

DEMOLISHED
The old Police Station Complex was served the Bunbury for over 100 years. It was an important civic centre in Bunbury, from where law and order was administered.

Physical Description

DEMOLISHED. 1852 Gaol Date Stone and cell door now located at King Cottage Museum, Forrest Avenue.

History

The first Bunbury Lock-Up was built in 1848 by John C Morgan. It was certainly in use by March 1850, when it was reported that three Aboriginal prisoners had escaped.

Following the introduction of convicts to the district in 1850, the Bunbury Lock-Up was rebuilt and strengthened in 1852. A 1852 date stone was positioned above the entrance to the reconstructed building.

The building was a whitewashed, simple utilitarian structure with a thatched roof. Almost the whole allotment was surrounded by a high wall.

By 1867, a building for court room, the resident magistrate’s office and public office, and a separate building for the police station and gaolers’ quarters, had been built on the Wellington Street frontage. These new structures effectively hid the gaol from public view.

The building housing the courthouse, resident magistrate’s office and public office was a long, low rough limestone building. The building had several entrance doors, each leading to the different rooms. A verandah under a separate roof ran the full length of the building was supported on slender timber posts.

The gaolers’ quarters were replaced c 1908.

At some stage, women’s cells were added to the goal. An outer exercise yard (or yards) was also created with a grid of open railings positioned overhead, bridging the space between the gaol and police offices.

The complex was demolished in 1969. The doors have been incorporated into the Laurence Saunders Annexe at King Cottage Museum and it is believe that another cell door is at a private residence in Bunbury. The date stone is also at King Cottage Museum.

Integrity/Authenticity

DEMOLISHED

Condition

No visible remains.

State Heritage Office library entries

Library Id Title Medium Year Of Publication
7299 Bunbury images : people and places. Book 2004

Creation Date

14 May 1997

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Approved

Last Update

01 Jan 2017

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