Barracks Arch

Barracks Arch is yet another building designed by the prolific Richard Roach Jewell. It was part of the Pensioner Barracks, originally built in 1866 to house the retired ‘Enrolled Pensioner Force’. This Force came to Australia as guards on convict ships, who were given small land grants in return for guarding the convicts part-time.

In the 1860s, most of the convict work moved from Fremantle to Perth and there was a need to accommodate the many Enrolled Pensioners and their families. To accommodate them, Jewell designed the three-storey building in a style that resembled a medieval castle. Completed in 1866, the Barracks was later extended to house an additional 21 families. Each family apartment had two rooms, each about 13 feet by 11 feet, with at least one fireplace. The outbuildings included a cook house, firing range and gun room, wash house, stores and stables.

In 1887 a fire destroyed the timber flooring of the east wing and the second floor of the central section. To get the blaze under control, water was pumped by hand pumps from the Swan River and taken in buckets to the burning building by a chain of volunteers. The burnt sections were later restored and the Barracks was gradually converted to offices for the Public Works Department between 1900 and 1904.

In 1966, despite a public outcry, much of the Barracks was demolished to make way for the Freeway. Eventually, after a vote in Parliament, the Public Works Department retained the Arch and landscaped the surrounding area.