Toowoomba Prison
Encyclopedia
Toowoomba Gaol is a historic Australian prison site in Toowoomba
, Queensland
.
and demolition commenced in 1903.
Some of the hand-made bricks (using clay dug from pits in Queens Park) from the demolished structure were used to build the Boer Wall Memorial Gateway at the Margaret Street end of East Creek Park near the Mother's Memorial , after being held in storage, as the plaque thereon states.
The whole original site and surrounding modern buildings, including the Repertory Theatre, are the source of many ghost sightings/tales.
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, and the building was later demolished, eventually being replaced in part by a townhouse block.
Toowoomba, Queensland
Toowoomba is a city in Southern Queensland, Australia. It is located west of Queensland's capital city, Brisbane. With an estimated district population of 128,600, Toowoomba is Australia's second largest inland city and its largest non-capital inland city...
, Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
.
History of site
The original Toowoomba Gaol was closed after the prisoners were transferred to Boggo Road GaolBoggo Road Gaol
Boggo Road Gaol was a notorious Australian prison located on Annerley Road in Dutton Park, an inner southern suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The site is the only surviving intact gaol in Queensland that reflects penological principles of the 19th century...
and demolition commenced in 1903.
Some of the hand-made bricks (using clay dug from pits in Queens Park) from the demolished structure were used to build the Boer Wall Memorial Gateway at the Margaret Street end of East Creek Park near the Mother's Memorial , after being held in storage, as the plaque thereon states.
The whole original site and surrounding modern buildings, including the Repertory Theatre, are the source of many ghost sightings/tales.
Motel
The Park Motor Inn at 88 Margaret Street was built on the northeast part of the old gaol grounds.Women's Gaol Hospital
The original hospital site for the Women's Gaol at 92 Margaret Street is now a cafe.Austral Hall
The Toowoomba poet George Essex EvansGeorge Essex Evans
-Biography:Evans was born in London on 18 June 1863. Both his parents were Welsh. Evans's father, John Evans, Q.C., died in 1864 when Evans was only a few months old. John Evans, who was the Treasurer of the Inner Temple and a member of the House of Commons, left his family a fortune of 60 000...
was influential in founding The Austral Society
Austral Society
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....
, which bought part of the grounds and let a tender to roof part of the prison yard in September 1904. The Austral Hall
Austral Hall
The Austral Society was founded in 1903 because of the influence of The Toowoomba poet George Essex Evans to promote Australian Arts and Culture.The Society purchased part of the closed Toowoomba Gaol grounds and let a tender to roof part of the goal yard in September 1904...
was built on this site.
After his death in 1909, the Austral Society ceased in 1911, and the building was later demolished, eventually being replaced in part by a townhouse block.
Woman's Reformatory
Female prisoners were transferred from Central Gaol, Brisbane, to Toowoomba Gaol in 1870. A woman's reformatory with a well-patronised laundry was constructed in 1883-84 by Richard Goddsall outside the prison walls and opened in 1869. After the prison closure in 1903, it was reused for several purposes before becoming Rutlands Guest House. The Order of de Molay Society bought the property in 1967. One of the original "dark cells" is still part of the basement.Notorious prisoners
Hangmen were brought up from Brisbane as needed. Andrew Ritchie, convicted of murder and robbery under arms, was the first to be hanged at the gaol, in August 1864. In December 1869 Chinese cook Gee Lee was hanged for murder together with John (Jacky) Whitton, an Aborigine, for child rape in a double hanging.See also
- George Essex EvansGeorge Essex Evans-Biography:Evans was born in London on 18 June 1863. Both his parents were Welsh. Evans's father, John Evans, Q.C., died in 1864 when Evans was only a few months old. John Evans, who was the Treasurer of the Inner Temple and a member of the House of Commons, left his family a fortune of 60 000...
- Jacques de MolayJacques de MolayJacques de Molay was the 23rd and last Grand Master of the Knights Templar, leading the Order from 20 April 1292 until it was dissolved by order of Pope Clement V in 1312...
- Knights TemplarKnights TemplarThe Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...
- List of Australian Prisons and Detention Centres
Further reading
- Ghostly Tales of Toowoomba. (Don TalbotDon Talbot (author)Charles Donald "Don" Talbot is an author based in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia.-Journalism career:Talbot was born in Manchester, United Kingdom, and trained as a journalist on the Isle of Man before moving to Australia in 1953....
) 2004. ISBN 0 9580584. Greenridge Press, Toowoomba, Qld, Australia. - Historic Sites and Buildings in Toowoomba (R. A. Dansle) 1988
- Crime, Culprits and Court Houses (Beris Broderick) published in the Toowoomba Historical Society Inc Newsletter June 2003.
- To Foster the Arts & Science: Austral - The Beginning 1903-4 (R. A. Dansle) 1991
- Toowoomba - Strange and Unusual Tales Vols 1-5 (Don TalbotDon Talbot (author)Charles Donald "Don" Talbot is an author based in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia.-Journalism career:Talbot was born in Manchester, United Kingdom, and trained as a journalist on the Isle of Man before moving to Australia in 1953....
) 2003-2007