This is the second post on Port Arthur. If you missed the first one, use the links above to go back to the previous post. This week I’ll round out the rest of the thing that caught my eye at Port Arthur.

The Penitentiary

Originally a flour mill

Starting life as a flour mill, intended to make the settlement self-sufficient, it was eventually realised that even with the water supply built to channel water to the building, there were too many occasions when there wasn’t enough water to drive the mill. The building was repurposed by adding an extension on one end and redesigning the interior as cells and dormitories. This building replaced the original barracks that were further up the hill, of which only retaining walls remain.

Then the Penitentiary

The lower floors were comprised of brick-built cells. These would have been dark at the best of times, and probably cold as well. The signage on the site indicates that the higher floors housed the better behaved and lower risk convicts, and they enjoyed more pleasant accommodations, in the form of bunkrooms. Of course, as the wooden interior of the building was burnt in the bushfire there is nothing left of that to see now. A little of the interior brick wall remains, however, to give a good idea of what the cells must have been like.

The cells were all located down the centre of the building, with passageways between the cells and the outside walls. There are windows in the outside walls which would have, in daylight, ensured a reasonable amount of light in the passage. While no evidence of them exists now, I expect the doors on the cells were probably solid wooden doors, however, which would not have let much light in even if the convict was in their cell during the day.

The Separate Prison

A new way of punishing

Introduced in 1849, the Separate Prison epitomized the “punish and reform” mentality behind the convict system. In fact, it took this mentality to a whole new level. The facility exempted convicts from work and kept them in isolation in their cells for almost the entirety of their time. They only left their cells to attend mandatory chapel services, and officers escorted them to small exercise yards for one hour a day. In the yard, one person per yard, they paced around for an hour before officers marched them back to their cells.

In the chapel, each convict had a little door between them and the convict next to them to prevent communication or passing information. A guard stood on a raised platform at the front of the chapel to ensure no one broke the rules. But that isn’t all. They had to remain silent and wear a hood whenever they were out of their cells. They could only remove the hoods while in their cells, in their cubicle in the chapel, or in the exercise yard.

With punishment for the punished

And just to make sure the rules were obeyed, this maximum isolation prison contained an isolation cell. It had several doors to ensure that no light or sound from outside penetrated even when food was brought in. The solitary cell had its own exercise yard so convicts in solitary didn’t even get the stimulation of being escorted in shackles and hood through the facility to the exercise yard.

The Government Gardens

One of the original gardens provided for the benefit of the free residents in the community, the Government Gardens were reported to provide a place of shade and respite to the residents. It is not clear how much of the current gardens are remaining from the convict era, but apparently the central fountain is original.

There were plenty of flowers around in the gardens, even in late April (that’s mid-autumn for us), and I took many photos.

Other things

There are many more parts to the site, covering the history of both the convict and post-convict life in the area. It would be possible to do entire blog posts on just a single building, if I’d taken the time to write all the information down and to take the photographs. But that isn’t the point of this blog. Go see it for yourself. You won’t get the full experience from just looking at my photographs.

Links

• Port Arthur Historic Site (website)

Disclaimer

We attended the establishments and locations mentioned in this post as full fee-paying guests. Our hosts were not advised that we are semi-professional photographers or bloggers before or during our visit. It is our understanding that the tours and information we received were as normally provided to any member of the public.

The views expressed in this post are mine and mine alone, and any errors in it are also all mine. Any recommendations made in this post are unpaid and are based entirely on my experiences during my visit. Your experience may differ, and I cannot be responsible for that.

The Port Arthur Historic Site Management Authority do no permit commercial photography at their sites without prior permission. I did enquire about getting permission but the costs were going to be prohibitive given the very slight chance of any sales. They do permit photography for sharing with family and friends and did give permission for me to use my photographs from the sites on this blog. These images are provided for your information and enjoyment only, and are not for sale or other use.