- Round House
----The Round House (coord|32|3|22|S|115|44|29|E|type:landmark_region:AU) is the oldest building still standing in
Western Australia . [ [http://register.heritage.wa.gov.au/viewplace.html?place_seq=896&offset=1&view=description Heritage Council of Western Australia :: Round House and Arthur Head Reserve ] ] It is located at Arthur Head in Fremantle, and recent heritage assessments and appraisals of the precinct of the Round House incorporate Arthur Head [ [http://register.heritage.wa.gov.au/comprehensivereport.html?place_seq=896 Heritage Council of Western Australia :: Round House and Arthur Head Reserve - Comprehensive Report ] ]It was built in 1830, and designed by
Henry Willey Reveley it was the first permanent building in theSwan River Colony .Intended as a
prison , it had eight cells and a jailer's residence, all of which opened onto a central courtyard. The design was based on thePanopticon , a type of prison designed by philosopherJeremy Bentham . [ [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10095465&dopt=Abstract The Round House Gaol: Western Australia's first lunatic asylum.] ]It was used for colonial and indigenous prisoners until 1886, when control of the Convict Establishment prison (now
Fremantle Prison ) was transferred to the colony. After that, the smaller Round House was used as a police lockup until 1900, when it became the living quarters for the chief constable and his family. [ Conole, Peter. and Graeme Sisson (2005) "Policing in the Round House". including details of Constable Thomas Powers who lived in the building in 1898. Newsbeat (http://www.police.wa.gov.au/ABOUTUS/News/Newsbeat/tabid/1224/Default.aspx), July/Aug. 2005, p. 16.]The Fremantle City Council took over responsibility for the Round House in 1982, and it was opened to the public shortly afterwards. Currently it opens to the public seven days a week. Entry is by gold coin donation.
References
Further reading
* Davidson, Dianne.(2001) "The rescue of the round house". Newsletter (Fremantle History Society), Summer, 2001, p. 1-3,
* Scott, Peter.(1989) "Hiding history : The Round House". (Aboriginal imprisonment in the Round House). "Murdoch ethos", p. 37-50, ("essays in Australian history in honour of Foundation Professor Geoffrey Bolton"edited by Rae Frances and Bruce Scates. Murdoch, W.A.: Murdoch University.
* Webb, David and Warren, David (2005) "Fremantle : beyond the Round House" Fremantle, W.A. Longley Books.External links
* http://register.heritage.wa.gov.au/viewplace.html?place_seq=896&offset=1&view=library Heritage Council Library bibliography of books, reports and studies 1984 to 2006
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