The Gaol
Beaumaris Gaol — Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
Beaumaris Gaol was built in 1829 to the designs of Joseph Hansom — the architect who later gave his name to the Hansom cab — and survives as one of the most complete Victorian county gaols in Britain. Inside, the cells, the punishment cell, the treadwheel and the condemned man’s final walk give an unvarnished picture of 19th-century justice; it is atmospheric rather than sanitised, and all the better for it.
The Courthouse
Beaumaris Courthouse — Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
Across town, the Courthouse dates from 1614 and, despite Victorian alterations, keeps its original character — a raked, panelled courtroom where Anglesey’s assizes were heard for nearly four centuries. Standing in the dock looking up at the bench is worth the ticket by itself.
Before You Visit — Check Opening
Important: both buildings, which are run by the local council, have been closed in recent years for a major refurbishment of their infrastructure, with reopening originally targeted for spring 2026. Check current opening times with Beaumaris Town Council before planning a visit around them.
Both sit within a few minutes’ walk of the castle — when open, the three together make a superb full-day heritage circuit, and the Gaol is one of the best rainy-day options in town.
Stories from the Cells
The Gaol’s exhibits have always leaned on the human record: the treadwheel that pumped the building’s water (the only one in Britain still in its original position), the whipping rack, the nursery where prisoners’ infants stayed with their mothers, and the story of Richard Rowlands, hanged here in 1862 protesting his innocence — local legend says he cursed the church clock, which thereafter refused to keep time. Whether the refurbishment re-presents these displays or rethinks them, the buildings themselves — Hansom’s grim, functional gaol against the courthouse’s 17th-century dignity — carry the story on their own.
Explore Wales & the Borderlands
