| Location | Toowoomba, Queensland |
|---|---|
| Status | Non-Operational |
| Security class | Historic Site |
| Opened | 1864 |
| Closed | 1900 |
| Managed by | site reused |
Toowoomba Gaol is a historic prison site in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia. [1]
The original Toowoomba Gaol opened in 1864. [1] William Murphy (who served in the Crimean War) became first Governor of the Toowoomba Gaol. [2]
Female prisoners were transferred from Central Gaol, Brisbane, to Toowoomba Gaol in 1870. [3] A woman's reformatory with a well-patronised laundry was constructed in 1883-84 by Richard Godsall outside the prison walls and opened in 1869. [4] On 14 Sep 1898 the prison was proclaimed a prison for females only. [1]
The gaol was closed in 1903 after the prisoners were transferred to Boggo Road Gaol [5] and demolition commenced. Some of the hand-made bricks (using clay dug from pits in Queens Park [3] ) from the demolished structure were used to build the Boer Wall Memorial Gateway [4] at the Margaret Street end of East Creek Park near the Mother's Memorial, [4] after being held in storage, as the plaque thereon states. [4]
After the prison closure in 1903, it was reused for several purposes before becoming Rutlands Guest House from 1930 to 1959. [3] [4] It was purchased by the DeMolay Order (DeMolay International) for 6000 pounds in 1960 [6] and renamed DeMolay House.
The whole original site and surrounding modern buildings, including the Repertory Theatre, are the source of many ghost sightings/tales. [3] [4] One of the original "dark cells" is still part of the basement. [4] At night the ghost of a reformatory inmate can be seen in the attic on the first floor of the building. One of the girls was so unhappy with her situation that she committed suicide by hanging herself there. [6]
A plaque marking the site of the old Toowoomba Gaol is located at the eastern end of Stirling Street, off Burstow Street, in the Caledonian Estate heritage precinct. The basalt foundations on the site, are all that remain of the Toowoomba Gaol. The foundations supported the red brick wall which confined 52 prisoners in 1869. [7]
The Park Motor Inn at 88 Margaret Street was built on the northeast part of the old gaol grounds.
The original hospital site for the Women's Gaol at 92 Margaret Street is now the site of the Park House Cafe.
The Toowoomba poet George Essex Evans was influential in founding The Austral Society, which bought part of the grounds and let a tender to roof part of the prison yard in September 1904. The Austral Hall was built on this site.
After his death in 1909, the Austral Society ceased in 1911, [8] and the building was later demolished, [4] eventually being replaced in part by a townhouse block.
Hangmen were brought up from Brisbane as needed. [4]
Oakey is a rural town and locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Oakey had a population of 4,705 people.
HM Prison Beechworth, now known as Beechworth Gaol, was a medium security Australian prison located in Beechworth, Victoria, Australia.
Boggo Road Gaol in Brisbane, Australia, was Queensland’s main jail from the 1880s to the 1980s, by which time it had become notorious for poor conditions and rioting. Located on Annerley Road in Dutton Park, an inner southern suburb of Brisbane, it is the only surviving intact gaol in Queensland that reflects penological principles of the 19th century. After closing in 1992, the larger 1960s section was demolished, leaving the heritage listed section, which is open to the public through guided tours run by Boggo Road Gaol Pty Ltd.
Dutton Park is an inner southern suburb of the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Dutton Park had a population of 2,024 people.
Townsville Correctional Centre is an Australian prison facility in Stuart, Townsville, Queensland, Australia. The facility has been known in the past as "Her Majesty's Penal Establishment Stewart's Creek", "H.M. Prison Townsville", "Stuart Prison", and now known as "Townsville Correctional Centre".
Clifton is a rural town and locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, Clifton had a population of 1,456 people.
The history of Toowoomba begins in the 19th century. Europeans began exploring and settling in the area from 1816 on-wards. By the end of the 1840s the rich lands around Toowoomba were being used for agriculture. 12 suburban allotments at Drayton were surveyed in 1849. Small commercial settlements were growing with schools and churches also being built. The first council election took place in 1861 and the telegraph connection to Brisbane was established in 1862. Between 1868 and 1886, several new railway lines from Toowoomba were opened. Throughout the 21st century the city prospered with new hospitals, large industrial buildings and education facilities established. Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport was opened in 2014.
The Austral Society was founded in 1903 due to the influence of The Toowoomba poet George Essex Evans to promote Australian Arts and Culture. The Society ceased in 1911.
St Helena Island is a heritage-listed island in Queensland, Australia, 21 kilometres (13 mi) east of Brisbane and 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) east of the mouth of the Brisbane River in Moreton Bay. Originally used as a prison, it is now a national park. Local Australian Aborigines called the island Noogoon but it was renamed St Helena after an aboriginal named Napoleon was exiled there in 1827. The island is visible from the mainland, particularly the suburbs of Wynnum, Manly and Lota. It has its own permanent water supply, a spring in the centre of the island. Many migratory birds use the island as a watering hole; it forms part of the Moreton Bay and Pumicestone Passage Important Bird Area, so identified by BirdLife International because it supports large numbers of migratory waders, or shorebirds.
The Austral Society was founded in 1903 because of the influence of The Toowoomba poet George Essex Evans to promote Australian Arts and Culture.
Charles Donald "Don" Talbot is an author based in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia.
Frank Pearson was an Australian bushranger, operating under the pseudonym Captain Starlight. Pearson claimed he was the inspiration for a fictional figure of the same name: the character Captain Starlight in Rolf Boldrewood's novel, of 1882–1883, Robbery Under Arms. Boldrewood, who presumably had some insight into the matter, denied the claim and stated that the character was a composite of several bushrangers of the era, including Henry Readford and Thomas Smith, alias Captain Midnight. The cattle thief Readford did not use a pseudonym himself and had no connection with Captain Starlight until the author indicated a possible influence.
East Toowoomba is a locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. At the 2016 Australian Census East Toowoomba recorded a population of 5,244.
South Toowoomba is an urban locality in Toowoomba in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, South Toowoomba had a population of 5,224 people.
Westbrook is a town and locality in Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the town recorded a population of 3,885.
Patrick Kenniff (1865-1903) was an Australian bushranger who roamed western Queensland, Australia, with his brother James Kenniff (1869-1940). They were primarily cattle thieves, but the brothers were found guilty of murder and Patrick was hanged in Boggo Road Gaol in 1903.
Cork County Gaol was a former prison located in Cork City, Ireland. The main walls and gate entrance of the prison are today incorporated in the perimeter of University College Cork.
Old Toowoomba Court House is a heritage-listed courthouse at 90 Margaret Street, East Toowoomba, Toowoomba, Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1861 to 1864. It is also known as Old Toowoomba Gaol Wall, Austral Museum, and De Molay House. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 30 June 2001.
Stewart's Creek Gaol is a heritage-listed prison at Centenary Drive, off Dwyer Street, Stuart, City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by the Office of the Queensland Colonial Architect and built from 1890 to 1893 by Thomas Matthews. It is the predecessor of the modern Townsville Correctional Centre on the same site. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 31 July 2008.
Normanton Gaol is a heritage-listed former prison at 27 Haigh Street, Normanton, Shire of Carpentaria, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by William Taylor Jack and built from 1892 to 1899 by the Department of Public Works. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 23 July 1999.
