Fremantle Prison (former)

Child Places

• 00877 WARDERS' COTTAGES (FMR), 7-41 HENDERSON STREET
• 01014 Fremantle Prison

Physical Description

The original buildings of Fremantle Prison are a fine example of the Royal Engineers' Georgian style , based on the preced ents of Pentonville and Portland , and modified to incorporat e locally available materials. They were constructed by convict labour under the direction of Sapper instructors and warders, at a time when building in West ern Austra ia was not much more than a cottage industry.
The major additions were mad e between 1890 and 1908 in an architecturally sympathetic style by the Public Works Department .
The Fremantle Prison was a part of the last British Colonial Convict Establishment to be built , and embodied the most developed thinking in the rehabilitation of convicts . That it is still largely intact and being used for the purpose for which it was designed has attracted the interest of historians, archaeologists, sociologists and architects from all over the world.
The precinct has historical importance as the hub of the convict system in W stern Australia , and through association with its designers and build ers who had a great influence on the development of the State.
The Prison buildings , set within a twelve acre walled enclave , are the dominant element on the escarpment at the eastern edge of Fremantle. Built of local limestone, they are at once a landmark and a well - integrated element in the fabric of the City.
The original buildings are the last remaining intact Colonial Convict Establishment in the world .They are unique .
The Prison was constructed between 1852 and 1858 by convict labour using local limestone and jarrah. Significant addition s were mad e between 1890 and 1908.

The origina l buildings were designed by the Comptroller General of Convicts, Captain E.Y.W. Henderson, assisted by Captain Henry Wray and their clerk of works James Manning .
The additions were designed and built by the Public Works Department. Henderson reported to his superiors that his designs were of the simplest and plainest construction, and that all ornamental expense had been carefully avoided. Nevertheless the buildings display a strong and confident hand ling of form , space and structure . In addition to the visual cohesion generated by the consistency of scale and material, an organic network of inner and outer wall systems continuously enclose, define and link space , level and building. These walls are an integral part of the Prison Establishment.
New Workshops (c.1900) .
Single storey stone and saw tooth asbestos cement roofed workshops, built onto the outsid e of the Parade wall in replacement of stables stores etc. The doorways, doors and ironmongery through the Parade wall appear to be orig inal. The interiors are spacious and uncluttered. Approximate gross floor area 9500 sq. ft.

History

Assessment 1982
Classification is comprised of:
Chapel: 1 855; Main Building: 1852-1858;
Cisterns: C.1860; Engine Room and Pump House: 1856 and on;
Gatehouse: 1855; Guard House: 1 854 – 1856;
Hospital: 1856; Old Workshops: 1856; Punishment Cells: 1854
Terrace Houses: 1856 -1857; New Workshops: 1851 – 1855
Women’s Prison: 1890; New Division: 1908

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Last Update

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This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.