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Completed in 1866-67, Ararat Court House is a small, symmetrical brick building designed by Public Works Department architect Gustav Joachimi in the Victorian Free Classical style with a recessed entry and gabled roof. As with other examples of this style, the vestibule to the court house features a semi-circular brick partition wall with double-entry into the court room. The front exterior, characterised by two Romanesque arches below a circular vent in the gable pediment, also featuresdichromatic brick patterning, bracketted eaves, and brick machicolations to the gable. Internally, the court house has a simple cruciform plan with a central court room flanked by offices at the sides and rear. The original ground plan shows the building dominated by the courtroom with a large office at rear for the judge, and similarly sized offices adjoining this space on both sides. In 1873 a jury room was added to the rear of the western office wing and a new jury box was built in the court room by contractor T. Walker. Major alterations and additions were undertaken by Thomas Corley in 1879-80, when the court room was extended into the space formerly used as a judge's room. A new judge's room was built at the rear, and a sheriff's office was added as an extension to the eastern office wing. During these alterations a first floor gallery was also added to the building and a lantern was installed on the roof of the court room. In 1908-09 Robert Ludbrook built an office for the Department of Crown Lands and Survey by extending the western office wing almost to the line of the facade. During the 1950s the building was re-roofed with terra cotta tiles, and around 1960 the original prisoner's cell was converted to two toilets and a cleaner's room. The building, still serving its original purpose as a court,retains early fittings and the front facade is notable for its high degree of intactness. |