Arresting proposition as historic SA courthouse hits the market

One of South Australia’s first courthouses outside of Adelaide, which also served as a police station and jail, has hit the market.

It looks like a standard old building but there is nothing cookie cutter about it. In fact, you could say it is an ‘arresting’ property.

These days, the Wellington property that sits on the edge of the Murray River is offering prospective buyers a business opportunity or potential home.

The original Wellington Courthouse at 37 Ferry Rd was built in 1859 and has become a landmark in the township, which is in the Rural City of Murray Bridge.

The courtroom, two rooms for the magistrates and constables, a telegraph room and the two old jail cells have been preserved over the years and today make up part of the building’s museum.

The old courtroom makes up part of the property’s museum.

A telegraph room, magistrate’s room and constable’s room are also part of the museum.

The property also has six bed and breakfast rooms, including the old ferryman’s quarters and police office, and an entertainment courtyard, which was the prisoner and horse exercise area.

The old horse stable is now a cafe and dining area, while the hay loft upstairs is a function room.

Owners Georgie Kontozis, Nick Moschos and Jim and Jenny Lappas bought the property in 2012 from the National Trust with the intention of fixing it up and showcasing its history.

“Because we’ve got a holiday home on the other side of the river, we kept seeing it was up for sale,” Kontozis says.

“When we bought it, we did some renovating that needed to be done to bring it up to date.

The building’s original two jail cells have also been preserved.

The prisoner and horse exercise area is now an entertainment courtyard.

“It took us 15 months to get it up to scratch and we ran it at the same time, we had the cafe open.”

They worked with the National Trust to help restore the building, which is a vital piece of the town’s history.

“The courthouse was the first original courthouse outside of Adelaide, it was also the first river crossing over the Murray,” Moschos says.

Criminals held in the property’s jail cells were transferred between states via the ferry crossing, which began in 1838.

“One of them, at least, got hung in the Adelaide Gaol,” Moschos says.

And the hay loft upstairs is now a function room.

There are six bed and breakfast rooms in the building.

“There was a priest and his family that lived there at one stage as well who had 13 children – six of them were born in the kitchen.”

They have enjoyed managing the property – where they have hosted countless functions, including weddings – but decided to sell it so they could focus on their other businesses.

Selling agent Tony Bezuidenhout, of Century 21 South Coast, said the property could be run as a business or used as a private residence.

“I think there will be a few people looking to have it as a home as well because of the location,” he said.

The property is listed for $895,000 to $925,000.

This article from The Advertiser originally appeared as “No objections here! South Australia’s historic Wellington Courthouse hits the market”.