The wild west constabulary

Edward Mayne was appointed the first Commissioner of Crown Lands for the frontier district of the Liverpool Plains, in May 1839. He was stationed at Page’s River, now Murrurundi and safeguarded the Crown’s interests.

He also commanded a Border Police party in the Liverpool Plains District. The Border Police Force wa established in 1839 and served beyond the settled districts of the Colony, acting under the direction of the Commissioners of Crown Lands.

The force, comprising convicts and aboriginal trackers, was mounted and armed with cutdown muskets.

They received no pay but were fed and clothed by the government. The Force was abolished early in 1847, from which date two troopers were attached to each commissioner.

Murrurundi was proclaimed a place for holding Courts of Petty Sessions on 27/4/1840. A court and watchhouse were erected in 1841. The courthouse was of brick, and comprised a courtroom and two small rooms, and the watchhouse was of wooden slabs and comprised two cells and two rooms for the watchhousekeper.

It resided where the Murrurundi Museum now stands.

The watchhouse was in a very decayed state by the late l850’s, because of white ants.

In the 1830’s and early 1840’s, the Scone police patrolled the Murrurundi area. Timothy Ferry was the first chief constable appointed there on 1/1/1836. John Robertson was made police magistrate for Scone and Murrurundi on 11/2/1840 but the position was discontinued on 31/12/1843.

In 1841 Farrell was the first resident police constable.

In 1844 the then chief constable, James Johnston, who had been appointed to Scone on 14/4/1843, transferred to Murrurundi, although he still had charge of the Scone area.

Thomas Birkby replaced Johnston on 1/7/1847 but resigned in June, 1848; he too was stationed at Murrurundi. Anthony Sadlier took over as chief constable for Scone and Murrurlmdi but remained at Scone where he had been district constable for some years.

In 1849 provision was made for a chief constable at Murrurundi as well as at Scone, so James McDonnell was appointed chief constable for Murrurundi on 6/1/1849.

Michael Fallon briefly held the position of chief constable at Murrurundi from 30/6/1849 to early 1850 when John McGivaney replaced him.

The police force at Murrurundi in 1850 consisted of chief constable McGivaney who also acted as Bailiff of the Court of Requests and Inspector of Slaughterhouses and three ordinary constables.

A mounted police station was established here in the mid 1840’s.

In 1861 £1000 was allotted for the erection of a courthouse by the government and £500 allotted to convert the old courthouse into a lockup.

William Cains' tender to do this work for £1895 was accepted 29/1/1862. The courthouse was opened for court sittings on 13/12/1862. The old lockup was repaired to make a barrack.

In 1869 Police barracks were built and in 1900 the brick police station and lockup facing Page’s River was erected. This building originally contained quarters for the lockupkeeper, an office, a chargeroom, four cells and two exercise yards.

Today the building stands almost dormant in a yard adorned with its own water well, police quarters, jail and imposing courthouse with a small police station occupying one of its side rooms.

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Name: Unknown

Editor: Des Dugan

Date: 9/11/2023