When it comes to quirky properties it's hard to beat this building in historic Sofala which once served as a police station and jail with its own mini-courtroom.
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In the 1890s petty criminals were detained and served justice in the on-site courtroom of the Old Sofala Gaol, while more serious criminals were transported on horseback to the nearby regional hubs of Lithgow and Bathurst.
In fact the property served as Sofala's police station until the 1950s.
Most recently the site became known as the local café and museum, which is now no longer in operation.
The property at 7 Barkly Street, which was built using bricks from a brickworks north of Sofala, has been preserved, restored and repurposed over the years by Di and Harvey Parsonage who are now retiring after 30 years of ownership.
The on-site museum, which is no longer open to the public, houses an amazing collection of memorabilia the couple has collected over the years and this will all be included in the sale.
"It's a very special place and we've put a lot of work into it to make it like it is," Mr Parsonage said.
"It's also got a gift shop in the building so you could create quite a business out of it because you've got the bnb, the restaurant and you've got an outlet for a retail business.
"It's ready for someone to just walk in and take it over."
The space previously occupied by the cafe and museum can be utilised as an extension of the adjoining three-bedroom residence which now services the short-term accommodation market.
This residence has plenty of original features like high ceilings, lead-light windows, iron doors and heavy-wooden beams.
According to Mr Parsonage one of the sandstone walls was constructed using convict-made bricks which were originally used to build a now-dismantled pub in Sydney's Circular Quay.
According to Raine and Horne Bathurst's Chris Hagney, who has listed the property with a price guide of $1.3 to $1.4 million, it's a great opportunity for the right person.
As Sofala doesn't have any other cafes he said the buyer may be someone wanting to ramp-up the hospitality offerings in the town.
"Once upon a time it was a fairly striking little cafe and it used to get a lot of people going out there," Mr Hagney said.
He also expects buyer interest from history buffs, possibly from Sydney, who are keen to own an old gaol or someone who used to visit the Sofala as a child and may have a lot of nostalgia about the building and the location.
"[Also] They've collected a lot of things ... if you were to auction off the stuff there's a fair bit of dollar-value there," he said.
The sale also includes an original three-bedroom cottage built in about 1886 which has a stringybark roof, which could be a renovation project and later used as a guesthouse, rental property or private retreat.
There's also original stables on site as well as shedding and storage areas and the entire 6,648 square-metre property can be divided into four separate titles.
Tracey Prisk
I am a writer on the national property team and I cover real estate news in Orange, Bathust, Dubbo, Wagga and the Blue Mountains. I was previously the editor of the Central Western Daily for six years and before that worked as the CWD's chief of staff. During this time I also wrote feature stories for Country Style magazine. Before joining ACM I was a film writer and reviewer at the Sunday Telegraph. I was previously the editor of the film and television magazine Encore and also wrote for Broadcast Engineering News.
I am a writer on the national property team and I cover real estate news in Orange, Bathust, Dubbo, Wagga and the Blue Mountains. I was previously the editor of the Central Western Daily for six years and before that worked as the CWD's chief of staff. During this time I also wrote feature stories for Country Style magazine. Before joining ACM I was a film writer and reviewer at the Sunday Telegraph. I was previously the editor of the film and television magazine Encore and also wrote for Broadcast Engineering News.
