Justice & Police Museum
All sides of the law
Step into Sydney’s dark side. Crooks and cops, locals and drifters, the guilty and the innocent have all left their stories here. Originally a police station and courts, the museum draws you into a world of crime, policing and punishment, from bushrangers and razor gangs to the future of forensics. In a city that’s grown out from the harbour, the waterfront has always been a place of misadventure and misdemeanour.
Justice & Police Museum
Corner Albert and Phillip streets, Sydney NSW 2000. Phone +61 2 9252 1144- Wheelchair accessible
Sydney Open: Sunday 5 November 2023
One pass opens the door to more than 40 of the most historically and architecturally inspiring buildings and spaces across Sydney
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Alexander Riley, legendary Aboriginal police tracker
The remarkable talents of Aboriginal trackers who worked for NSW Police in the 20th century are featured in a display at the Justice & Police Museum
Stories
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Gritty business
Immerse yourself in Sydney's chilling criminal past in this unique water-front museum of policing, law and disorder – with its grizzly collection of underworld weapons along with tales of mayhem and lawlessness, aptly described as an educational resource befitting a 'professor in crime'
A dubious defence
On 19 October 1921 Herbert Burridge was listed in the New South Wales Police Gazette as a deserter from HMAS Cerberus
A life in crime
Curator Nerida Campbell has got the dream job – rummaging through the grit and grime of Sydney’s criminal past to help us to come to terms with the city’s dark side
Alexander Riley, legendary Aboriginal police tracker
The remarkable talents of Aboriginal trackers who worked for NSW Police in the 20th century are featured in a display at the Justice & Police Museum
Behind the scenes: How to read a ‘special’
Around the world, police forces followed established conventions when taking mugshots. But Sydney police in the 1920s did things differently
Learning programs
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A trial run
Within the setting of a historic police station and courthouse, this program gives students the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of the interrelationships between the law and society
Bailed up!
Students explore the impact of the gold rush on law and order in the colony of NSW, and of bushrangers on the Australian identity
Crime & punishment: a case study
This challenging and thought-provoking program develops students’ skills in historical research and critical thinking, and their appreciation of history as a study of human experience
