BERRIMA Gaol was built in the 1830s. The Goulburn Herald and Sydney papers regularly reported on its progress and incidents that occurred. Selections are presented here.

Berrima was established in the 1830s as the administrative centre for the southern district of the County of Camden. A fine Court House and Gaol were designed for the town.

The cost of the goal was in excess of 10,000 pounds. When opened in 1839, it consisted of a massive thick stone wall containing a central building from which radiated three wings, each with fourteen cells.

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Other buildings housed a kitchen and rooms for the keeper and staff.

All cell doors were made of solid cedar and fitted with huge iron bolts. Corridors and exercise yards were partitioned off by heavy iron grilles. On an underground level were solitary confinement cells and a condemned cell.

Five hangings took place in the 1840s.

Further work made the gaol more secure. By 1847, however, the rapid increase of settlers further south meant that Goulburn, rather than Berrima, became the principal southern centre.

A Goulburn Court House and Gaol were built and Circuit Sessions were transferred to the more rapidly growing town.

Only local District court sessions continued to be held at Berrima and the gaol was relegated to being a subsidiary prison holding just a few aged and infirm prisoners.

The Goulburn Herald of 8 July 1848 considered this wasteful: As great anxiety exists in the minds of the community at large, to provide suitable places in the interior for the reception of newly arrived immigrants, from whence they may be engaged by the surrounding settlers, we deem it right to draw public attention to the Berrima Gaol, which has been closed since the beginning of the present year.

There are several commodious lodges within the gaol wall, independent of the main building, in which a large number of immigrants might conveniently dwell till such time as they obtained employment. It is to be regretted so fine a building as this should be thus left untenanted, and allowed to become a ruin, which it unquestionably will, if not occupied in some way or other.

Despite this plea, Berrima Gaol continued to languish until the early 1860s when the government decided to extend its capacity in order to house an overflow of prisoners from other gaols.

The Goulburn paper reported in October 1861 that eight prisoners had been sent with escort to Berrima Gaol. These were all men originally sentenced to two and three years imprisonment in Goulburn Gaol.

The men were all despatched in their prison dresses, branded in various parts with GG and the broad arrow, in order that in the event of an escape they might not so easily avoid a subsequent detection.

IN early 1862 work was undertaken on quarters for a hospital and mess-room at Berrima Gaol. Three prisoners escaped during this work, as reported in Sydneys The Empire on 26 April 1862:

On Wednesday morning three confinees in Berrima gaol effected their escape by means of a ladder which happened to be in the gaol yard, belonging to a contractor who was doing some repairs to the building. The names of the prisoners who have escaped are Davidson,

Daft, and McCracken; the latter whilst in Darlinghurst gaol was known by the soubriquet of Possum, from his climbing propensities. Maybury, the gaoler at Berrima, it appears, knowing the agility of McCracken, had given instructions to the warders, Freer and Mason, to keep a strict watch over him, as well as one of the others, who had expressed his determination to escape at the first opportunity. The warders have been suspended for allowing these prisoners to escape.

Major renovations, under the Colonial Architect and at a cost of about 3000 pounds, were commenced at Berrima Gaol in mid-1862.

Once again, during the work, escapes were made. The Goulburn Herald reported on 18 October 1862 that two prisoners had escaped.

The outer roof of their wing was off for renovations and builders scaffolding conveniently enabled them to descend into the main yard. By some misadventure or neglect, the two men had managed to get locked up together in one cell on the night in question.

They picked a hole in the brick ceiling and, shortly after midnight, got out on the roof and down into the yard; having placed a pole against the outer wall, and with a rope of shredded blankets, they effected a clear escape.

Work on the gaols extensive upgrade continued during the 1860s.

To be continued

This article compiled by PHILIP MORTON is sourced from the archives of Berrima District Historical & Family History Society, Bowral Rd, Mittagong. Phone 4872 2169.

Email bdhsarchives@gmail.com.

Web: berrimadistricthistoricalsociety.org.au

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