St Brigid's Convent (fmr)

Author

City of Perth

Place Number

01976

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Location

60 John St Northbridge

Location Details

Part of 2030 St Brigids Complex

Local Government

Perth

Region

Metropolitan

Construction Date

Constructed from 1887 to 1894

Demolition Year

N/A

Statutory Heritage Listings

Type	Status	Date	Documents	More information
Heritage Agreement	YES	17 Oct 1997	Text of the Heritage Agreement	Heritage Council
Heritage List	Adopted	16 Dec 1991
State Register	Registered	04 Apr 1996	Register Entry Assessment Documentation	Heritage Council

Heritage Council Decisions and Deliberations

Type	Status	Date	Documents
(no listings)

Other Heritage Listings and Surveys

Type	Status	Date	Grading/Management		More information
Type	Status	Date	Category	Description	More information
Classified by the National Trust	Classified				Heritage Council
Perth Draft Inventory 99-01	YES	31 Dec 1999			Heritage Council
Survey of Women's Employment AHC	Recorded	01 Sep 2002			Heritage Council
Local Heritage Survey	Completed\Draft		Category 1	Category 1 Exceptional significance - Essential to the heritage of the locality. Rare or outstanding example.
Municipal Inventory	Completed\Draft	13 Mar 2001
Municipal Inventory	Adopted	13 Mar 2001
Local Heritage Survey	Adopted	28 Mar 2023	Category 1	Category 1 Exceptional significance - Essential to the heritage of the locality. Rare or outstanding example.

Statement of Significance

The place is a long-standing landmark in the district as a fine collection of buildings constructed at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth that collectively form an important historic group of places that is visually complex and harmonious.
St Brigid’s Convent is an excellent example of a convent with an outstanding oratory, featuring a hammer beamed trussed roof, painted dado and leadlight panel bay windows with decorative gold painted arches.
The place is an early example of the work of the Sisters of Mercy who came to Western Australia in the 1800s to educate and mission, and established convent schools in a number of suburban and regional areas in the late 1800s and into the 1900s.
The place is valued by the local and wider Catholic community for its continuing associations with the Catholic Church in general and the Sisters of Mercy in particular.
The principal buildings at the place were designed by prominent Western Australian architects: Parish Hall (original primary school building) designed by J J Talbot Hobbs; Convent and Church designed by Cavanagh and Cavanagh; and, Convent School designed by R Dennehy.
The place is an example of Federation Gothic architecture that is uncommon within the metropolitan area.
The c 1882-1885 cottage is associated with William Canroy, who became a benefactor of the Sisters of mercy when he was executed for murder.

Physical Description

Large two storey rendered brick and iron convent building with a central loggia flanked by two gabled wings featuring faceted bay windows. The central entrance has a gable with a religious statue in the centre. The style of the building is Federation Gothic with Romanesque Influences.

History

St Brigid's Convent and School were established in the 1880's by the Sisters of Mercy. The first school building on the Fitzgerald Street site was designed by Sir J.J. Talbot Hobbs in 1889 and consisted of two large halls and two small classrooms. In 1892, another hall was added perpendicular to the existing hall. Circa 1922 the southern wall of the building fronting John Street was rebuilt and a rendered sign 'Saint Brigid's Parish Hall' was added.
In 1921 the two storey section fronting Fitzgerald Street was built on to the design by architect R.J. Dennely.
In 1978 the steel framed structure referred to as 'the Annexe' was built for the Ceramics Department of the Perth Technical College Department of Arts and Design.
Northbridge is an inner suburban area, named because it is just north of Perth across the railway bridge. It was approved as a suburb name in 1982.

Integrity/Authenticity

Medium level of integrity.
High level of authenticity.

Condition

Good

Associations

Name	Type	Year From	Year To
Cavanagh & Cavanagh	Architect	-	-

References

Ref ID No	Ref Name	Ref Source	Ref Date
1.122/211	Heritage Place File	City of Perth
	HCWA Assessment	Heritage Council WA
	Draft Conservation Plan St Brigid's Precinct, Aberdeen, Fitzgerald and John Streets Palassis Architects		September 1994

State Heritage Office library entries

Library Id	Title	Medium	Year Of Publication
3418	Final Report on Reconstruction of Roof Sheeting and Raingoods Works in 1998 at St Brigid's Convent Northbridge	Report	1998
9281	Sisters of Mercy in Australia: Responses to health, illness and disease by a women's religious order.	Electronic	2008
879	Conservation plan former St Brigid's Convent John Street, Northbridge : prepared for the Building Management Authority	Heritage Study {Cons'n Plan}	1994
11562	The former St Brigid's Primary School & St Brigid's Parish Hall	Heritage Study {Cons'n Plan}	2017

Place Type

Individual Building or Group

Uses

Epoch	General	Specific
Present Use	EDUCATIONAL	Secondary School
Original Use	RELIGIOUS	Monastery or Convent

Architectural Styles

Style
Federation Gothic

Construction Materials

Type	General	Specific
Roof	METAL	Corrugated Iron
Wall	RENDER	Smooth
Wall	BRICK	Rendered Brick

Historic Themes

General	Specific
SOCIAL & CIVIC ACTIVITIES	Religion
SOCIAL & CIVIC ACTIVITIES	Institutions

Creation Date

30 May 1989

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Approved

Last Update

08 Jul 2024

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.