Old Newcastle Gaol

Enter Newcastle Gaol Museum and find yourself hurtling back in time to imagine life as a prisoner here from 1865 to the early 1900s. The tiny cells are most disturbing, particularly the Aboriginal cell which still has a metal bar to which Aboriginal prisoners were once chained. Close the door here to experience the darkness that once entombed prisoners, and watch a projection which represents, what Aboriginal prisoners endured. Other cells feature different displays, including one dedicated to the infamous Wheatbelt bushranger Moondyne Joe, who was once imprisoned in Toodyay. Another cell tells the story of the Dorizzi family who lived in the building after it had closed as a gaol. The sons used the cells as their bedrooms. Three of the boys later died in World War II and their former bedroom now honours their memory. Across the road you can visit the old police stables, the 1907 lockup which replaced the Newcastle Gaol, and a shearing shed brought in from a Toodyay farm.