HM Prison Pentridge, better known as the Pentridge Prison and officially, Her Majesty's Prison Pentridge, is a former prison in Coburg, an inner northern suburb of Melbourne, in Victoria, Australia. The first convicts arrived at the gaol in 1851 and the facility closed during 1997, and some of the heritage-listed buildings are extant. Pentridge was colloquially referred to as the "Bluestone College", "Coburg College" or "College of Knowledge".
The site is archeologically significant as it contains remnants of 1850s-era prison structures, the burial sites of all executed prisoners relocated from the Old Melbourne Gaol between 1929 and 1937, and the burials of nine prisoners executed at Pentridge between 1928 and 1951, including the former grave of Ned Kelly, a Colonial Australian bushranger.
In 1999, the Victorian Government sold the site to property developers and, since 2013, guided by various masterplans, heritage impact statements, and development consents, the heritage-listed buildings were required to be restored and integrated into a new community precinct with a mix of housing types, retail, commercial, public open space, and heritage-aligned tourism facilities. Buildings that were not included in the heritage curtail were demolished.
Location The former prison is located on the traditional lands of the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung.
During its operations, known as the Coburg Prisons Complex, the site at Coburg was located to the west of Merri Creek and generally consisted of two distinct precincts: to the north was the historical HM Pentridge Prison, and to the south was HM Metropolitan Prison. The complex was bounded by Champ Street, Murray Road, and Urquart Street. Pentridge Boulevard, Wardens Walk, Sentry Lane, Industry Lane, Stockade Avenue, and Via Roma were all internal roads within the prison complex.
Churches, Council offices, and schools were all located within of some of Victoria's most hardened criminals. A local historian opined:
Heritage listing
Parts of the former prison site of approximately , whilst still in operation as a prison, were added to the Victorian Heritage Register on 20 August 1992 in recognition of the prison's historical, architectural, archaeological, scientific (technological) and aesthetic significance. The site was nominated for inclusion in the Australian National Heritage List; however, due to its closure and divestment, it did not meet the criteria and its nomination was withdrawn.
Parts of the former prison site were also added to non-statutory lists by the Victorian branch of the National Trust on 4 May 1998 and the City of Merri-bek on an unknown date. The site was identified, but not listed on the now defunct Register of the National Estate on unknown date, and the distinctive castellated entrance gates, with clock tower, designed by Gustav Joachimi of the Victorian Public Works Department, were listed on the now defunct register on 21 March 1978.
The heritage buildings and landmarks of significance include A, B, D, E and H Divisions, B Annexe, Pentridge's iconic entrance, the administration building, the guard towers and observation posts, and the wall surrounding the site. These structures were retained and, , restoration work commenced or planned to ensure their stability and preservation.
Divisions The Pentridge prison was split into divisions, named using letters of the alphabet:
Division Use Est. Closed Notes A Short- and long-term prisoners of good behaviour; built initially to house female prisoners, 1860–1865. During the late 1980s, until its closure it became a scene of many monthly bashings, stabbings and bludgeonings. 1860 1997 B Long-term prisoners of poor behaviour; initially called A Division, renamed in 1887; two-storey-bluestone structure with basement; could accommodate 176 cells; held a small number of women, 1956–1987 1859 1997 C Vagabonds and short-term prisoners, where infamous bushranger Ned Kelly was imprisoned; initially called B Division, renamed ; two-storey bluestone structure, expanded in 1879; could accommodate 360 prisoners 1858 1974 Demolished, 1974–1977 D Remand prisoners, as HM Metropolitan Prison; built to initially house female prisoners, 1887–1894; three-storey bluestone structure 1887 1997 E Hospital, 1859–1959; repurposed a dormitory for short-term prisoners 1859 1997 Repurposed for dining and craft brewing F Remand and short-term prisoners; housed male juveniles, 1873–1879; transformed as the Metropolitan Remand and Assessment Centre; site of eleven executions by hanging 1997 G Psychiatric division; built to initially house female juveniles, 1875–1893; then as a general hospital for inmates, 1959–1980 1875 1997 H High security, discipline and protection 1958 1994 J Young offenders initially aged 18 to 21 years; subsequently used for long-term prisoners with a record of good behaviour 1960s 1997 Demolished, 2013 K Initially called Jika Jika, the maximum-security risk and protection division 1980 1987
History of prison structures
In 1851, an ad hoc group of structures was built by prison labour using local materials and the first prison structures were established. None of these structures survived, other than the boundaries of the prison that were established. The second phase of construction, undertaken in the late 1850s and early 1860s, was made under the direction of Inspector General William Champ, based on British and American precedents. The grounds were originally landscaped by landscape gardener Hugh Linaker.
Pentridge was the location of reformatories for both males and females, including juveniles, established following the findings of the Victorian royal commission on penal and prison discipline of 1870–1872. A female prison was constructed on the site between 1860 and 1865, subsequently known as A Division; a new female prison was constructed between 1887 and 1894, subsequently known as D Division; and a purpose-built reformatory for juvenile girls operated between 1875 and 1893, subsequently known as G Division. When HM Prison Fairlea was established as Victoria's main female prison in 1956, Pentridge predominately housed male prisoners only; with a small number of women accommodated in the Annex to B Division until 1987. A reformatory for juvenile boys was accommodated in F Division, between 1875 and 1879. Both the girls' and boys' reformatories were called Jika.
In 1900, labour yards for A Division were completed. During the 1950s these yards were later converted to a high security block which became known as H Division.
In 1924, the Melbourne Gaol was closed and its prisoners were relocated to Pentridge as it became the main remand and reception prison for the Melbourne metropolitan area. In 1958, H Division was opened as a high security, discipline and protection unit.
Jika Jika high-security unit (K Division) Jika Jika, opened in 1980 at a cost of 7 million, was a 'gaol within a gaol' maximum-security section, designed to house Victoria's hardest and longest-serving prisoners. It was awarded the 'Excellence in Concrete Award' by the Concrete Institute of Australia. The design of Jika Jika was based on the idea of six separate units at the end of radiating spines. The unit comprised electronic doors, closed-circuit TV and remote locking, designed to keep staff costs to a minimum and security to a maximum. The furnishings were sparse and prisoners exercised in aviary-like escape-proof yards.
In 1983 four prisoners escaped from 'escape-proof' Jika Jika. When two prison officers were disciplined in relation to the Jika Jika escape, a week-long strike occurred.
1987 fire In 1987, inmates Robert Wright, Jimmy Loughnan, Arthur Gallagher, David McGauley and Ricky Morris from one side of the unit, and convicted Russell Street bomber Craig Minogue and three other inmates on the other side, sealed off their section doors with a tennis net. Mattresses and other bedding were then stacked against the doors and set on fire. Wright, Loughnan, Gallagher, McGauley and Morris died in the blaze. Minogue and the three others were evacuated and survived. Jika Jika was closed the following year amidst controversy after the escapes, fire, and resultant inmate deaths.
Winding down and closure In 1994, the infamous H-Division was closed and prisoners were transferred to the new maximum security facility, HM Prison Barwon. The Victorian Government confirmed its intention to close Pentridge and replace it with two new male prisons, each accommodating around 600 prisoners, in December 1993. In April 1995, the Office of Corrections ordered that the six main towers at Pentridge be closed, since most of the high-security prisoners from the gaol had been relocated to Barwon, HM Prison Loddon, and private prisons in and , as part of the downgrading of Pentridge to a medium-security prison. HM Pentridge Prison was closed on 1 May 1997, the adjacent HM Metropolitan Prison was closed on 25 November 1997, and both sites were subsequently sold by the Victorian Government.
Panopticons
Following its closure and during conservation work in 2014, archaeologists discovered three rare panopticons in the former prison grounds, located near the A and B Division buildings. Built of bluestone in the 1850s, the first panopticon uncovered and excavated was to the north of A Division and was relatively intact. The circular design, with walls coming out from the centre, created wedge shaped 'airing yards' where prisoners would be permitted daily access for an hour, without coming into contact with other prisoners. The panopticons fell out of use, due to prison overcrowding, and were largely demolished in the early 1900s. The excavation and uncovering of the other two panopticons next to B Division revealed the remains of its rubble footings only.
Inmate history Grave sites
The grave site of bushranger Ned Kelly formerly lay within the walls of Pentridge Prison. Ronald Ryan's remains have been returned to his family. Kelly was executed by hanging at the Melbourne Gaol in 1880 and his remains moved to Pentridge Prison in 1929, after his skeleton was disturbed in April 1929, by workmen constructing the present Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) building. Peter Norden, former prison chaplain at Pentridge Prison, has campaigned for the site's restoration.
As of 2011, most of the bodies have been exhumed by archaeologists and have either been re-interred in the original cemetery near D Division, are awaiting identification at the Melbourne morgue, or have been returned to their families.
In 2011, Ned Kelly's remains were again exhumed, and returned to his surviving descendants for a family burial. The identified remains of Kelly did not include most of his skull. DNA testing established that another complete skull believed to be Kelly's was not his.
Executions Between 1842 and 1967, 186 prisoners were executed in Victoria, including ten at Pentridge. In 1951, Jean Lee was the last woman to be executed in Australia, who was hanged. After being convicted of killing prison officer George Hodson during an escape from Pentridge, at 8:00 am on 3 February 1967 Ronald Ryan became the last person to be executed at Pentridge and the last person executed in Australia. Ryan was hanged in D Division and his body was buried in an unmarked grave within the D Division prison facility.