Newcastle Gaol

The Old Newcastle Gaol operated from 1865 until 1907. It closed as a prison but was used by various families as a residence until the 1940s. After that time it fell into disrepair until the Toodyay community rallied to get the building conserved. It opened in 1962 as one of the first regional Musuems in Western Australia.

The Museum has a wide ranging collection from the Prison history of the Old Gaol and nearby Police Stables and Station to the domestic objects that once belonged to the settlers of the town. These are interpreted to explain the unique history of the town.

Each cell of the Gaol has a different display of the past; most popular by far is the Moondyne Gallery telling the stories of the infamous Moondyne Joe, a notable thief who rose to infamy through his numerous escapes.

There is a solemn reminder of the lives lost at war in the Dorizzi Memorial Cell; the Dorizzi family were living at the Old Gaol during WW2 and sadly lost three sons. Friends of those boys dedicated a cell to their memory once the Museum opened and it houses a display on thier lives and the lives of other Toodyay people who fought at war.

Other cells display the domestic, childhood and agricultural trappings of life in Toodyay throughout its history.