Coburg in Merri-Bek, Victoria, Australia — Oceania

Pentridge Timeline

Photographed by Dean Barton-Ancliffe, August 5, 2026

1. Pentridge Timeline Marker Part 1

Inscription.
1850
Stockade

1851
Pentridge Opens

1859
B Division
Airing Yards
Silent Separate System

c.1860
C Division

1865
A Division
Women

1873
Ned Kelly

1878
Industry

c.1882
Rock Breaking Yards

1894
Female Prison

1948
1000 Inmates

1951
Jean Lee Hanged

1958
H Division
Maximum Security

1967
Ronald Ryan Hanged

1980
Jika Jika

1987
Riots
Fire

1994
H Division Closes

1997
Pentridge Closes

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Law Enforcement. A significant historical year for this entry is 1850.

Location. 37° 44.152′ S, 144° 58.16′ E. Marker is in Coburg, Victoria, in Merri-Bek. It is on Success Lane 0.1 kilometers west of Champ Street, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1 Champ Street, Coburg VIC 3058, Australia. Touch for directions.

Regionally, it is in Oceania,

in Australasia,

in the Pacific Ocean,

in South Pacific,

on the Pacific Rim,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once a British colony.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other

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markers are within 8 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies: The Watchtowers (within shouting distance of this marker); The Muster (about 150 meters away, measured in a direct line); Coburg Lake Reserve (about 240 meters away); Sydney Road (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); Rudder Grange Historical Chronology (approx. 7.2 kilometers away); Keith Haring Mural (approx. 7.2 kilometers away); World Heritage Site (approx. 7.6 kilometers away); Colonial Mutual Life Building (approx. 7.6 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Coburg.

Also see . . . Pentridge Prison.

Until its closure in 1997, Pentridge was Victoria’s central prison and the most well-known and used gaol in the State’s history. Most of Victoria’s convicted and notorious criminals were gaoled there between 1900 and the 1990s. In 1967, Ronald Ryan, who was convicted of the murder of a prison officer during an escape from Pentridge, became the last person in Victoria to be hanged at Pentridge.

Established in 1850, as a penal stockade, the prison was largely constructed in the period 1858 – 64, Pentridge was the largest prison complex
Photographed by Dean Barton-Ancliffe, August 5, 2026

2. Pentridge Timeline Marker Part 2
constructed in Victoria in the 19th century and operated as the central establishment in the wider prison system, which included the Melbourne Gaol, from the early 1860s.

The complex of buildings, which remain on site, demonstrate a number of phases in the development of the penal system, including the ‘separate system’, which dominated penology in Victoria in the 19th century.

The 19th century prison buildings at Pentridge have a monumental scale and austere style, expressive of the requirements of containment and order. The front entrance gate was designed like a medieval fortification. Constructed from ashlar bluestone, much of it quarried on site, the building was imposing and grim – intimidating in scope and severe in purpose.

(Submitted on September 6, 2026, by Dean Barton-Ancliffe of Rowville, Victoria.)

Pentridge Timeline Marker Part 3a image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Dean Barton-Ancliffe, August 5, 2026

3. Pentridge Timeline Marker Part 3a

Pentridge Timeline Marker Part 3b image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Dean Barton-Ancliffe, August 5, 2026

4. Pentridge Timeline Marker Part 3b

Pentridge Timeline Marker Part 4 image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Dean Barton-Ancliffe, August 5, 2026

5. Pentridge Timeline Marker Part 4

Credits. This page was last revised on September 8, 2026. It was originally submitted on September 6, 2026, by Dean Barton-Ancliffe of Rowville, Victoria. This page has been viewed 9 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on September 6, 2026, by Dean Barton-Ancliffe of Rowville, Victoria. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.