The purpose of the outing was to visit the infamous J Ward Jail.
J Ward was built as a local county jail in 1859 during the early gold rush days and when the gold ran out and the population decreased, it was incorporated into the Ararat Lunatic Asylum.
The Lunatic Asylum was eventually renamed Aradale Asylum and was a major psychiatric hospital that ran from 1865 to 1998 and housed up to 900 patients a year.
J Ward was used for the most depraved and dangerous men in Victoria (the criminally insane) who were housed in horrific conditions under the highest security. It closed in 1991 and is now a museum.
The tour is highly informative if a little confronting. It includes many pieces of archaic medical equipment used to treat, transport and operate on the inmates. Electric shock therapy was practised here and all inmates who died were autopsied for the purpose of medical science.
The building is a great example of the local blue stone readily available in the district.
After two and a half hours 'inside' it was lovely to get out into the fresh air again and we took a drive out to Aradale which is now being used as a local TAFE college. They do tours but only on Sundays so we had a drive around the grounds.
After all that it was off to Maccas for a late lunch then back to Horsham and a much needed rest!
Glad we went, definitely interesting. Thank you to the daughter and her family for the trip.
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