Semi-detached mirror dwellings

Statement of Significance

"The place has considerable aesthetic value as a good example of the Convict and Late Colonial Georgian styles. The place has considerable historic value as a good example of one of the earliest worker’s dwellings built in the area prior to the Gold Boom period."

Physical Description

"The semi-detached pair is an example of the Convict and Late Colonial Georgian style. The dwellings consist of a mirrored pair, which have symmetrical façades. Each front door is located in the centre of the façade and flanked by two multi-paned sash windows. The front door to the western portion of dwelling has a metal security door while the other front door has a timber framed fly screen door. The front façade has been rendered and a narrow party wall projects from the centre of the facade. The dwellings have a hipped roof and a separate concave bell verandah, which is an uncommon feature of dwellings in the Town. The verandah is supported by square metal posts of which are not the original. The roof and verandah are clad in red corrugated iron. The chimneys are located at the ends of the dwelling. The chimneys are constructed using bricks which are corbelled near the top. The façade wall is constructed with Flemish brickwork bond. The side walls are in the English Garden Wall brickwork bond. The dwelling is delineated from the street by a low brick pier fence which has two parallel metal bars running between the piers. Two metal mesh gates are located symmetrically both ends of the fence forming separate entries to the two dwellings. Internally each dwelling is symmetrical in design and consists of a central hallway with four rooms of similar size projecting from the hallway entered through low waisted timber panelled doors. Entry to the dwellings is through a timber panelled door with a vent above. Timber floorboards run in a north-south direction in the hallway of each of the dwellings and the four front rooms. The original vents and skirtings are still extant and no ceiling roses or cornices are featured in the dwellings. A series of timber steps lead from the rear of the original part of the dwellings to the skillion in which the laundry, kitchen and bathroom are located. The kitchen features a fireplace with a Metter's stove."

History

"Cowle Street is located on the former Lake Henderson, which was part of the lake and wetland system which covered much of the Perth area. Due to the arrival of convicts and pensioner guards which increased the population, market gardens were established on some of the lakes which had been drained. Lake Henderson was drained in the early 1870s, with the drain running through Dorrien Gardens, Robertson Park and beyond and it was farmed by European market gardeners. In the 1870s Charles Street became a major road in the area and settlers established dairy farms and market gardens along its length, such as the area along Cowle Street. The land of Lake Henderson was taken up quickly for market gardens, one area was bought by James Fox, at what is now Robertson Park. The earliest dwelling to have been constructed in Colwe Street was the dwelling at No. 54 Cowle Street. This property was owned by market gardener Walter Edward Joseph Gallop (Joseph) who is recorded in the City of Perth Rate Books as the owner of No. 54 Cowle Street at the time it was constructed in 1884. Joseph Gallop had arrived in Western Australia in 1829 with his brothers Edward and James (great great grandfather of the former WA Premier Geoff Gallop). Joseph Gallop died in the 1890s and the land was passed onto his two daughters. Gallop Street, located nearby, is named after him. After the European market gardeners, many Chinese immigrants developed their own market gardens in the same area until the 1920s. Chinese gardener Hong Cheong is listed as working the reclaimed land behind Nos. 32 and 40 from 1907 to 1916 and in the 1930's another garden further north in Dorrien Gardens was run by Kai. W. E. Bold, who was the Perth City Town Clerk from 1901 to 1944, advocated the '˜City Beautiful' movement where the health of a city's residents was enhanced by the beauty of the environment. To implement this philosophy it was suggested that some of the Chinese market gardens. which had the reputation for being unhealthy areas, be converted to public parks and recreation areas. Some of the land was used to establish Birdwood Square, Hamilton Square, Dorrien Gardens, Lake Monger reserve and Robertson Park. The semi-detached dwellings located at Nos. 28 - 30 Cowle Street were built between 1891 and 1893 and first appeared in the City of Perth Rate Books in 1892. The land was previously owned by Hotelkeeper, John Charles Chipper who also owned the John Bull Inn (now the Criterion Hotel) along Hay Street. His heirs subdivided the land following his death, which included eight blocks in Cowle Street on the north side from the corner of Fitzgerald Street and another seven in Fitzgerald Street (Perth Town Lots Y210, 211, 212, 229, 230 and 231). Chas Crossland & Co. handled the sales of what was advertised as 'splendid building and garden land'. F.D Good purchased the land and Nos. 28 - 30 were constructed in 1891. In 183 they were rented to Frank Bell, a clerk (No. 28), and C.Turner, a surveyor (No. 30). In 1897 Thomas William Wade bought the properties, and his wife Catherine took on ownership in 1911, after his death. The properties were rented out for many years but the street numbers only appear in the Wise's Post Office Directories, in 1904 when Mrs Mulwaur is listed as occupying No. 30. William Nicholls moved in the following year and there was a further change the year after. The first resident listed for No. 28 was Frederick Rogers in 1908. In 1910 the occupants had changed to Frederick Rogers (No. 28) and Michael Dwyer (No. 30). In 1927 David Everett bought the property and lived there until 1929, when he moved next door to No. 32 Cowle Street. That year he constructed about eight tennis courts on the reclaimed land behind Nos. 12 - 32. These operated until at least the 1950's. Andrew Mian states in his historical work, 'A History of Cowle Street, West Perth, Western Australia' that, ' it is claimed that the courts were the first floodlit courts in Perth and were known as the 'Start Tennis Courts'. The entrance to the courts was the driveway between Nos. 30 and 32 and to advertise the tennis courts, a star was painted on the eastern wall of No. 32. Throughout the 20th Century there were many occupants of the dwellings, indicating that for much the time, both were rented. One long term family was the Mundays - Esther May (O'Reilly) and Walter John Munday and their three children, who first moved into No. 29 around 1922 and then to No. 28 from 1935 until well beyond 1949. Their son Harold said that like other children of the time, they were to be seen and not heard and they were sent outside to play when the adults had things to discuss. They played in the street and would 'kick a footy, play cricket against the lamp post, 'throw the tin'. We used to play marbles and we would even play a game called 'follow the tor' and it was down alon ghte gutters of the street. (Harold Munday). It was occupied by the Hicks family in the 1930's and Charlie, their eldest son, played football for West Perth. In 1936 the site of Dorrien Gardens was cleared and in the 1950s the Perth City Council established a soccer ground behind the dwellings on the north side of Cowle Street. In the 1940's the Perth City Council commenced discussion to extend Dorrien Gardens. In a land transfer undertaken in 1969 the land of which the subject place is located was purchased by the Perth City Council from Mrs Emily M Edwards (formerly Everett) and transferred to Mr A.R Roworth in exchange for land to the north of the subject property that was owned by Mr A.R Roworth who lived at No. 40 and operated a nursery on the land at the rear. Once transferred to the City of Perth the land north of the subject place was consolidated with the existing land that formed Dorrien Gardens."

1891 - 1919 - Population and Settlement: Residential Development

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This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.