Sacramento Prison Hulk: prison profile
VIC | Decommissioned | Australian Prison Directory
Source-linked profile checked 2026-11-12. Dates and capacities below describe the stated source period, not necessarily today’s available beds or prisoner population.
About this facility
Floating prison initially operating in Corio Bay near Geelong in 1853. After the male prisoners were removed, women and children were placed aboard in 1858. Its intervening use is not fully documented; by 1872 it again accommodated a male public-works gang near the Yarra mouth. It was vacated in March 1878, followed by formal discontinuation in April.
Classification: Historical probationary and later mixed-function prison hulk; not a modern security-classified land facility
One record per named vessel. Shared anchorages, relocations, later non-penal use and the collective “Victorian prison hulks” are not additional facilities.
Contact details
Address: Historical moorings in Corio Bay off Geelong, later Hobsons Bay and the Yarra mouth, VIC; no fixed present-day prison address
No current dedicated contact verified.
No operating prison or dedicated visitor contact; historical vessel moorings are not present-day prison addresses.
The March 1878 evacuation is distinct from the 15 April legal discontinuation. No claim of continuous occupation is made for the poorly documented interval after the proposed 1859 transfers. The 1878 notice recites a 13 March 1854 founding proclamation, differing from PROV’s 15 March date.
Opening, closure and history
Opening: 1853 — Fitted out and in use in the latter half of the year; prisoners attested by December
Closing: 1878-04-15 — Public-prison proclamation and boundaries formally revoked; gazetted 18 April
1854-03: Public-prison proclamation: PROV gives 15 March; the 1878 revocation recites 13 March, so exact day is unresolved
1857: Male prisoners removed to Pentridge before year-end
1858-01-01: Female prisoners transferred from western gaols; children were also held aboard
1872: Male public-works prison accommodation attested near the Yarra mouth
1878-03: Hulk finally vacated and transferred to Torpedo Corps, according to PROV
Capacity
130 persons: Approximate capacity stated by PROV for September 1854. Reference date: 1854-09. Scope: Sacramento’s early prison-hulk phase. Approximate historical accommodation, not modern bed capacity. Later headcounts and children’s presence are separate measures.
Deaths in custody: totals and limitations
No complete facility-level series is established here for suicide, medical or natural causes, homicide, other causes, Aboriginal deaths or combined Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander deaths. Missing data does not mean zero deaths. Selected cases below, where available, are not lifetime or reporting-period totals. “Murder” is a legal conclusion and is not substituted for a source’s classification.
Photograph
No verified licensed photograph is installed in this profile. No stock or generated image is presented as a photograph of this prison.
Sources
Using this profile
Confirm visiting arrangements and current contacts with the corrections department or heritage operator. Heritage visitor contacts are not operational prison contacts. General information only, not legal advice.
This directory includes prison complexes and components and is not a complete Australian operational or historical census. Component capacities must not be added to their parent complex a second time.
Comments