House, 90 Bagot Rd, Subiaco

Parent Place or Precinct

27310 Park Street Heritage Area

Statement of Significance

For information on the significance of the Park Street Heritage Area refer to the Local Planning Policy for the Heritage Area.

Physical Description

Architectural style
90 Bagot Road was designed in the Federation Filigree style. The two-storey house and spacious grounds were of a scale and form generally considered suitable for occupiers such as successful businessmen (and in this case an engineer/miner).
Plan form at the street frontage
• Asymmetrical facade.
This features a stepped façade with a wrap-around a verandah/ balcony.
• At ground floor level an arch on the eastern side of the main façade leads to a porch and recessed entry.
Roof form and materials
• Hipped-gabled roof clad with traditional short-sheet corrugated iron.
• Gable centred over a slightly projecting wing on the western side of the main façade. This has a rough-cast rendered face and simple pattern of vertical and diagonal timber battens.
• Face brick chimneys with simple rendered detailing.
Wall materials and finishes to the main facade
• Painted brick, originally tuck-pointed face-brick.
• One rendered string course at mid wall height to the first floor facade.
Other detailing to main facade
• Rendered frame and ‘key-stone’ to the arches on the south and east sides of the main entry porch.
• 5-panel entry door at the back of the porch, framed by traditional moulded architraves, highlight and sidelights. Some leadlight panels.
• Second entry at the back of the setback along the western side of the house. This has a plain 4-panel door with a highlight over.
• Similar entry to the balcony at the back of the setback along the western side of the upper floor.
• Varied double hung windows, including full height with kick plates to the projecting wing. Other windows have moulded projecting sills and curved under-sill panels (ground floor verandah) or plain projecting sills (first floor balcony).
• Varied verandah detailing including turned timber verandah posts, carved timber brackets, square lattice frieze to ground floor, and open square and diagonal cross pattern balustrade to the first floor.
Streetscape setting
• House set back approximately 2.1m from the Bagot Road frontage.
• Lot width approximately 20.2m.
• Approximate set back of 5.2m both sides, with the eastern side partly occupied by a skillion carport.
• Front yard enclosed by a low face-brick fence and tall clipped hedge.

History

Subiaco's population increased significantly in the 1890s due to an economic depression in the eastern states and the discovery of gold in Western Australia. During the 1890s property developers bought large landholdings for subdivision in the Perth metropolitan area. The original subdivisions in Subiaco were generally simple grid pattern developments with small lots suitable for occupancy by working families. However, the more elevated parts of the suburb, particularly towards Kings Park, also attracted business and professional men and some lots were later amalgamated to accommodate their larger homes and gardens. Mixed development occurred and within the Park Street Heritage Area this ranged from narrow, single storey terrace housing through to a large 2-storey house set in spacious grounds. The readily available evidence indicates that the number of houses within this area increased from around 24 in 1901 to 72 in 1906; 86 in 1910; 91 in 1915, 94 in 1920 and 13 by 1925. Development then stabilised, with 106 houses and 1 block of flats identified in 1949.
Perth Suburban Lots 218 and 219 had been subdivided as Deposited Plan 214 by the mid-1890s. This comprised 52 lots, including 24 lots with frontages to Ivy Street, which extended between Barker and Bagot Roads (renamed as part of Olive Street in c.1901). In October 1898, two lots at the southern end of Olive Street (Lots 12 and 13 on the western side) were sold to Florence Edgecumbe, the wife of Francis (Frank) Edgecumbe, real estate agent (Swan Land Agency Co). At about the same time the property was re-subdivided to create 4 lots with frontages to Bagot Road. During the early twentieth century, the Edgecumbe family were living in West Perth and there is no evidence to suggest that they undertook any development on the Subiaco property.
Lots 2 and 3 of Deposited Plan 930 were sold to William Richardson Purvis-Ley in June 1903 and the readily available evidence suggests that the Purvis-Ley family were responsible for the construction of the house.
William Richardson Purvis-Ley (engineer and miner) (c.1856-1946) and Isabel Adolphus (c.1851-1943) were married in Victoria in c.1890 and moved to Western Australia in the late 1890s, together with at least some of William’s five children from his first marriage (born c.1877-1887). Newspaper advertisements from October 1903-1907 indicate that “Madame Purvis-Ley” offered a variety of classes at 90 Bagot Road, including music (piano and theory), French, drawing, and ballroom dancing (plain and fancy styles) – with the primary focus on dance classes. William and Isabel were still living at 90 Bagot Road in 1908 but had moved to Sandstone by 1910.
When the house was offered for sale in mid 1914 it was described as follows:
HANDSOME TWO-STOREY BRICK RESIDENCE, No. 90 BAGOT-RD., SUBIACO.
ROBERTSON BROS. (in conjunction with WILLOUGHBY G. BELL) have been instructed by the Owner to SELL as above.
Lots 3 and 4 [2 and 3] of Perth Sub. Lot 219 having a frontage of 66ft. to Bagot rd. by a good depth, upon which is erected substantial 2-storey residence, constructed of brick on stone foundations, containing drawing room 18 x 16, dining-room 21ft 6in. x 15, 4 good bedrooms, one of which is 21 x 15 opening on to balcony; bathroom, linen press, kitchen, washhouse with copper and troughs fitted; pantry, all under one roof, e.l., fowl house and run.
This Property is very conveniently situated, only 5 minutes' walk from the Hay st. tram and King's Park. Easy Terms: £150 deposit, balance arranged.
In the 1913-1914 Rate Books the owner’s name was given as Hyman Weiss and he was still listed as the owner in 1917-1918. However, this transfer does not appear to have been formally completed as the Certificate of Title remained in Purvis-Ley’s name until June 1920 when the property was sold to Mary Lillias Hall (who had been living here since c.1916).
Mary Lillias Swan (c.1857-1951) and Henry Lyall Hall (c.1861-1935) were married in Victoria in c.1884. They came to WA in c.1894, where Henry worked as an estate agent and land speculator, as well as serving as a member of the Perth City Council (c.1896-1898) and Member for Perth in the Legislative Assembly (1897-1901).
From 1921 through until at least the late 1930s, the upper floor of 90 Bagot Road was being advertised as a self contained flat. Following Henry’s death in 1935, Mary continued to live in the ground floor quarters until c.1940, but by 1941 a ground floor flat was also being offered for rent.
By 1942 the property had been sold to Elizabeth Esme Edna McDonald-Smith, who retained ownership until her death in 1976. Elizabeth Ferguson (c.1900-1976) had married Hector McDonald Smith (c.1902-1978) in the Blackwood district in c.1931 and entries in the Electoral Rolls show that were living at 90 Bagot Road from at around the mid 1930s until the mid-1940s (with Hector working as a teacher at Wesley College for at least part of this time). By 1950 Hector and Elizabeth had moved away from Subiaco and were identified as graziers and farmers of York.
An analysis of a historical Metropolitan Sewerage Plan (as revised in 1927 and 1955) and historical aerial photographs, suggests that the footprint of the house has remained relatively unchanged since the mid-twentieth century.

Integrity/Authenticity

The authenticity of the house within its streetscape setting has been reduced by the painting of the main façade. Its presentation is also impacted by the low level of maintenance of the external finishes.

Condition

Based on a streetscape inspection the building appears to be in a fair to poor condition

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Last Update

Disclaimer

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.