The Old Melbourne Gaol is a building in the Melbourne CBD that operated in the past as the most serious jail in Melbourne.
A bluestone building that sits near RMIT, it developed in 1839, and operated between 1845 and 1924. During this time it held some famous Australian criminals that include Ned Kelly and and about 132 others who commited crimes so outrageous that they faced executed by hanging.
It stopped operating as a prison in 1924, with Pentridge becoming more important. Later on, the jail became part of RMIT University and still operates as a museum.
Still functioning as a popular museum as of 2023, tourists can find displays of memorabilia of the prisoners and examine death masks of the poor souls who were executed. Perhaps if they had better legal advice and representation, they may have avoided this fate.