Trial Bay Gaol Conservation Management Plan
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3.0 Statement of Significance The statement of significance is a succinct way of setting out why a place is important. It is on this basis that decisions, both broad and detailed, are made about the place. A standard format is used to set out these statements so that consistency can be maintained in making assessments, and comparisons made between similar sites. 3.1 Comparative Assessment The comparison of other like places is important in providing a clear understanding of a place’s cultural significance. The method of comparison has concentrated on illustrating how the Trial Bay Gaol site relates to: • Comparable prisons erected in New South Wales during the latter half of the nineteenth century • Comparable breakwaters constructed by Harbours and Rivers Branch of the Department of Public Works • Comparable examples of penal institutions in New South Wales with a similar setting A firm basis for determination of comparative values is provided through a number of published histories of nineteenth century penal architecture and port construction in New South Wales, the two principal sources being James Semple Kerr’s Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind: Australia's Places Of Confinement, 1788-1988 (Sydney 1988) and Lenore Coltheart’s Between Wind & Water: A History Of The Ports And Coastal Waterways Of New South Wales (Sydney 1997). Comparable Prisons New prison architecture in New South Wales during the latter half of the nineteenth century was developed by the Public Works Department under the influence of Harold Maclean, the Sheriff (later Comptroller-General) of the Prisons Department between 1864 and 1889. Maclean’s approach to penal servitude was firmly based on the principles of initial separation followed by careful classification and segregation. The system aimed to prevent corruption of a lesser criminal by a greater criminal and to protect the vulnerable from harm. Implementing this regime required major programs of adaptation and new construction. Maclean’s quest for developing modern approaches to prisons resulted in visits to Victoria in 1865 and England in 1869. He also consulted the acknowledged English experts Sir Edmund Du Cane and Sir Walter Crofton. The three-storey E Wing at Darlinghurst Prison, built between 1866 and 1872, was the first new gaol completed in New South Wales under Maclean. A feature of the design of this prison is the large central hall with cell wings running directly off it. The central hall provided observation of the interiors of the cell wings. The cell wings provided separate cellular accommodation. It is clear that Maclean copied the design from Victorian country prisons such as at Sandhurst (Bendigo). Sandhurst was designed in 1858 and completed in 1861. The E Wing at Darlinghurst was designed by the Colonial Architect Office within the Public Works Department. The Colonial Architect at this time was James Barnet with William Coles responsible for much of the construction. TRIAL BAY GAOL PAUL DAVIES PTY LTD CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT AND CULTURAL TOURISM PLAN APRIL 2004 58 The other major new prisons of this era were Bathurst Gaol (commenced in 1884, finished in 1888, added to in 1893) and Goulburn Gaol (commenced in 1880, occupied in 1883, finally completed in 1894). These gaols were major self-contained establishments complete with chapel, hospital, stables, exercise yards, kitchens, workshops, etc situated all within the perimeter wall. The governor’s quarters were attached to the prison, situated outside the perimeter wall. Contemporary with these major gaols were a series of smaller country gaols built at Hay (1879-80), Young (1876-78), Tamworth (1879-1881), and Wentworth (1879-1881). Typically these gaols comprised a single storey of 10 cells, with detached cookhouse, hospital, dispensary and store, surrounded by a substantial perimeter wall with two watchtowers. The entrance gateway with inner and outer gates was flanked by office and guardroom, with an attached gaoler’s residence outside the perimeter wall. Within the context of the Maclean era prisons, the prison at Trial Bay is similar to E Wing at Darlinghurst with its large central hall with cell wings running directly off. The planning of the entrance gate with flanking office and guardroom and attached chief warder’s residence at Trial Bay is comparable to country gaols such as Hay. In other respects the gaol is unique: • the design was undertaken by the Harbours and Rivers Branch of the Public Works Department • the provision of accommodation for the warders and surgeon • the discrete location of the governor’s residence and garden • the location of outbuildings such as stables, stores etc outside the perimeter walls • dormitory accommodation for licensed prisoners • provision of potable water from a purpose-built dam Comparable Breakwaters Harbour, port and river works completed in New South Wales during the latter half of the nineteenth century were undertaken by the Harbours and Rivers Branch of the Public Works Department. The first chief engineer of this branch was Edward Orpen Moriarty. It was Moriarty who advocated in 1866 the construction of a breakwater at Trial Bay. The breakwater at Trial Bay was one of small number of such engineering works undertaken during the last decades of the nineteenth century. Albeit never completed, the breakwater was the most ambitious work undertaken by the Harbours and Rivers Branch up to that time. The construction of a breakwater typically requires the sourcing of local stone, the extraction of the stone, and transportation and displacement of the stone. During the nineteenth century construction was assisted by steam-driven machinery. At Trial Bay the construction layout incorporated a levelled bench with a tramway and 30-ton capacity travelling steam crane to lift the hewn rock onto tramway wagons for final displacement. The construction technology is interesting in regard to the scale of the operation, the difficulty in quarrying the hard granite, and the immense weight of the hewn granite blocks. It is worth noting that construction technologies were very similar to those later employed in the construction of Cataract Dam (1901-1906) for the Sydney water supply, which is an engineering landmark. The construction authority for this dam was the Harbours and Rivers Branch. Comparable Settings Set within the peninsula of Laggers Point, the isolated location and coastal setting of Trial Bay prison are unique in New South Wales. TRIAL BAY GAOL PAUL DAVIES PTY LTD CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT AND CULTURAL TOURISM PLAN APRIL 2004 59 3.2 Summary Statement of Significance Trial Bay Gaol is of local, regional, state and national significance. It is a place that has inspired and continues to inspire strong and lasting connections with the Aboriginal community, with local communities generally, and with visitors to the site, for its sense of history, its dramatic presence and its natural values. The Trial Bay Gaol precinct in its current ruined form has strong associational value in the development of tourism on the NSW mid-north coast, through its early and continuing use as a camping and holiday destination extending over 80 years, a period of use that far exceeds its period of operation as a fully completed gaol, which lasted only four years. This enduring use of the place was also the catalyst for the development of South West Rocks into the sizeable and thriving township it is today. For the local Aboriginal community and people of the Dunghutti nation the site has ongoing significance as a site for tribal gatherings and ceremonies and as a valuable collecting area for bush tucker. The Gaol has high social significance for descendants of German internees held there during World War I, and for descendants of staff, soldiers and guards who worked there during its two main periods of use. It is the only prison in Australia built specifically to house prisoners engaged in public works (the building of the Trial Bay breakwater) and represents a significant episode in the development of penology and the penal system in NSW. The attempted construction of the breakwater to create a safe harbour in Trial Bay was a major civil works project in the life of the colony that not only determined the location of the gaol, but which represented a significant step in the development of the north coast of NSW and the coastal shipping industry. The failure of the enterprise, due both to lack of engineering expertise and advances in the technology of water transportation making the project anachronistic, also ultimately spelled the failure of the township of Arakoon to develop into an important sea and river port. Several of the leading figures in NSW's colonial development such as Harold Maclean, Comptroller of Prisons and a noted prison reformer, and Edward Orpen Moriarty, engineer- in-chief of Harbours and Rivers Navigation Branch of the Department of Public Works, are directly associated with the construction and operation of Trial Bay Gaol. The remaining structures and scattered archaeological sites of the Gaol and its service and outbuildings present opportunities to understand the principal tenets of 19th century prison design and architectural technology, particularly in relation to stonework and the use of granite and concrete, and to better understand the rhythms and technologies of daily life in an isolated colonial community. The extensive artefact collection and documentary archive, including the comprehensive photographic collection, also represents a unique opportunity for research and for the development of interpretation that will significantly enhance understanding of a range of themes and issues associated with the site. The Gaol and its site, located on a peninsula above the tranquil sweep of Trial Bay, is strongly evocative to the contemporary observer and has high natural values. The landscape contains rare flora and fauna and significant habitats for a wide range of animals. The granite outcrop underlying the gaol and landscape is distinctive and provides much of TRIAL BAY GAOL PAUL DAVIES PTY LTD CONSERVATION MANAGEMENT AND CULTURAL TOURISM PLAN APRIL 2004 60 the character of the locality.