Hartley Courthouse, circa 1836, was designed by colonial architect Mortimer Lewis in the Grecian Revival style and completed in 1837. It was used extensively until the majority of Court matters was transferred to Lithgow Court in 1887 it still functioned until 1870. It is still largely intact and constructed of locally quarried sandstone. It is an imposing building, as it was designed to be. There are etchings on the wooden walls of the holding cell made by the occupants that are timeless! The information stone gives a brief history but many notorious bushrangers and cattle thieves were kept inside the cells, with their bars and bolts still in position! As the convict system faded into history, and Hartley was bypassed by the new railway, the need for a courthouse diminished, as did the town itself.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 02:41:49 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015