Old Melbourne Gaol

Old Melbourne Gaol is a former 19th-century prison located on Russell Street in central Melbourne, Victoria. Operating between 1842 and 1929, the bluestone complex held thousands of prisoners including bushranger Ned Kelly, who was executed there in 1880. Now a museum managed by the National Trust of Australia (Victoria), it preserves original cells, gallows and watch house, offering insight into Victoria's penal history and early Melbourne's justice system.

Visitors can explore the bluestone cell blocks, solitary confinement cells, exercise yards and gallows within the central Melbourne complex. The museum displays death masks, prisoner records and Ned Kelly-related exhibits. Self-guided visits and guided tours are available, including the City Watch House experience and night tours. The site is indoors with narrow corridors, steep stairs and low lighting reflecting its original prison layout.

Constructed in stages from 1841 to 1864, Old Melbourne Gaol operated as a prison from 1842 to 1929. It housed short-term prisoners, remand prisoners and those awaiting execution, with 133 executions carried out on site. Its most famous prisoner was bushranger Ned Kelly, executed in 1880. The gaol reflects the development of Victoria's penal and justice system during the colonial period and was later used as part of RMIT University before becoming a museum.

The gaol is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register and managed by the National Trust of Australia (Victoria) as a museum of penal history. It preserves an example of early Melbourne bluestone penal architecture and serves as an educational site interpreting 19th-century justice, prison life and social history, including the story of Ned Kelly which remains prominent in Australian folklore.