COURT HOUSE
123 MAIN STREET BACCHUS MARSH, MOORABOOL SHIRE
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Statement of Significance
What is significant?
The Bacchus Marsh Court House was built in 1858-59. It was designed by Samuel White of the Public Works Department. White was employed as a draftsman with the Public Works Department from 1857 until 1863. The contractor was William Jackson. It replaced an earlier court house erected at nearby Maddingly in 1856-57, which survives as part of the local tennis club. Maddingly had been surveyed earlier as a township, but by the late 1850s Bacchus Marsh was showing stronger signs of growth. It developed from being merely a stop-over point on the way to the Ballarat goldfields in the 1850s to a thriving agricultural township in the late 1850s and 1860s.
The Bacchus Marsh Court House is an imposing two-storey building, with a single-storey side wing and hipped roof, constructed of local freestone (i.e. sandstone). It is designed in the Free Classical style. Notable elements include the fine timberwork to the concave verandah and slender verandah posts, stone quoining, slate roof, and original internal cedar fittings.
The building accommodated the Court of General Sessions and the County Court from 1860. The Victorian County Court, established in 1852, provided the second tier of jurisdiction in the colony. In 1862 the County Court was operating in 38 Victorian towns. Unlike regular courts of petty sessions, the building's function as a County Court required the provision of a separate witness room.
The Bacchus Marsh Court House was also used for other public administrative needs in addition to court purposes. It accommodated a local Land Office, where sales of Crown land were conducted from 1859. The Bacchus Marsh Road Board met here from 1863-71, and the Bacchus Marsh Shire Council from 1871-85. The barrister?s room was altered in 1957 when it was used by the Lands Department.
How is it significant?
The Bacchus March Court House is of historical and architectural significance to the State of Victoria.
Why is it significant?
The Bacchus March Court House is of architectural and historically significance as an example of an early and substantial local court house built in Victoria. It is the most intact example of a group of early courts in the Victorian Free Classical Style.
The Bacchus Marsh Court House is also of historical significance for its function in various forms of local administration, for example in administering the land selection acts, and as a meeting place of the local road board and shire council.
The Bacchus March Court House is also of architectural and historical significance as one element in an important historic streetscape. Other sites that make up this precinct include the nearby Police Lock-up (1857) [H1546] and Police Stables, which together with the court house form an important law enforcement precinct, and also the National Bank (1865).
[Online Data Upgrade Project 2004]
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COURT HOUSE - History
The draft statement of significance and the above history were produced as part of an Online Date Upgrade Project 2004. Sources were as follows:
David Saunders. Historic Buildings of Victoria. Jacaranda Press, 1966.
Bruce Trethowan. ‘The Public Works Department of Victoria 1851-1900: An architectural history’, vol. 2, 1975.
Doyle, Helen, ‘Dispensing Justice: A historical report on the theme of justice in Victoria’, prepared for Historic Places Branch, DNRE, 2000.
John Petersen and Daniel Catrice, ‘Bacchus Marsh Heritage Study’, c.1994.
Court House data sheets held HV– ‘Bacchus Marsh’COURT HOUSE - Permit Exemptions
General Exemptions:
General exemptions apply to all places and objects included in the Victorian Heritage Register (VHR). General exemptions have been designed to allow everyday activities, maintenance and changes to your property, which don’t harm its cultural heritage significance, to proceed without the need to obtain approvals under the Heritage Act 2017.
Places of worship: In some circumstances, you can alter a place of worship to accommodate religious practices without a permit, but you must notify the Executive Director of Heritage Victoria before you start the works or activities at least 20 business days before the works or activities are to commence.
Subdivision/consolidation: Permit exemptions exist for some subdivisions and consolidations. If the subdivision or consolidation is in accordance with a planning permit granted under Part 4 of the Planning and Environment Act 1987 and the application for the planning permit was referred to the Executive Director of Heritage Victoria as a determining referral authority, a permit is not required.
Specific exemptions may also apply to your registered place or object. If applicable, these are listed below. Specific exemptions are tailored to the conservation and management needs of an individual registered place or object and set out works and activities that are exempt from the requirements of a permit. Specific exemptions prevail if they conflict with general exemptions.
Find out more about heritage permit exemptions here.
Specific Exemptions:
General Conditions: 1. All exempted alterations are to be planned and carried out in a manner which prevents damage to the fabric of the registered place or object. General Conditions: 2. Should it become apparent during further inspection or the carrying out of works that original or previously hidden or inaccessible details of the place or object are revealed which relate to the significance of the place or object, then the exemption covering such works shall cease and Heritage Victoria shall be notified as soon as possible. Note: All archaeological places have the potential to contain significant sub-surface artefacts and other remains. In most cases it will be necessary to obtain approval from the Executive Director, Heritage Victoria before the undertaking any works that have a significant sub-surface component.
General Conditions: 3. If there is a conservation policy and planall works shall be in accordance with it. Note:A Conservation Management Plan or a Heritage Action Planprovides guidance for the management of the heritage values associated with the site. It may not be necessary to obtain a heritage permit for certain works specified in the management plan.
General Conditions: 4. Nothing in this determination prevents the Executive Director from amending or rescinding all or any of the permit exemptions. General Conditions: 5. Nothing in this determination exempts owners or their agents from the responsibility to seek relevant planning or building permits from the responsible authorities where applicable. Minor Works : Note: Any Minor Works that in the opinion of the Executive Director will not adversely affect the heritage significance of the place may be exempt from the permit requirements of the Heritage Act. A person proposing to undertake minor works must submit a proposal to the Executive Director. If the Executive Director is satisfied that the proposed works will not adversely affect the heritage values of the site, the applicant may be exempted from the requirement to obtain a heritage permit. If an applicant is uncertain whether a heritage permit is required, it is recommended that the permits co-ordinator be contacted.
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RESIDENCEVictorian Heritage Register H0503
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BACCHUS MARSH EXPRESS OFFICE AND PRINTING WORKSVictorian Heritage Register H0504
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FORMER CHRISTOPHER CRISP RESIDENCEVictorian Heritage Register H0505
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"1890"Yarra City
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"AMF Officers" ShedMoorabool Shire
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"AQUA PROFONDA" SIGN, FITZROY POOLVictorian Heritage Register H1687
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'Altona' Homestead (Formerly 'Laverton' Homestead) and Logan ReserveHobsons Bay City
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