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Heavitree Gap Police Station
205 Len Kittle Dr, Ilparpa
General
Significance
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Status
Permanent Declaration
Type
Place
Nominated
02/APR/93
Nomination Accepted
10/MAY/93
Assessment Report Considered
21/SEP/93
Signed By Minister
06/JAN/94
Gazetted
19/JAN/94
Publish Notice Of Declaration
15/FEB/94
LGA
Alice Springs Municipality
Statement Of Heritage Value
The former police station site at Heavitree Gap, Alice Springs, has special significance to the Territory as a focal point in demonstrating a way of life of the early police and their task of applying law and order in a remote and sometimes hostile environment. Although an initial police camp had been established in 1879 at the Alice Springs Telegraph Station, the move to the site at Heavitree Gap on 21 April 1886 determined the first officially regarded permanent police presence in Central Australia.
As custodians of law and order, the police duties were widely varied and involved undertaking patrols of long duration and covering large tracts of land, most of which was sparsely inhabited. Up to this point, accommodation facilities provided for both police and prisoners were minimal, consisting of tents supplemented by bough sheds.
When constructed in 1889 the two roomed thatched dwelling became the focal point for a gradual change in living conditions for all concerned which ultimately led to its abandonment when it no longer met those requirements.
Becoming, in 1904, the first offical gaol, prison and house of correction in Central Australia until closed in 1909, the site has had a chequered career degenerating to an abandoned ruin till its complete restoration as a historic building in 1971.
Value
Historic
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