Coronado

Parent Place or Precinct

25394 Union and Redfern Heritage Area

Statement of Significance

For information on the significance of the Union and Redfern Heritage Area refer to the Local Planning Policy for the Heritage Area.

Physical Description

110 Heytesbury Road was designed as a late example of a Federation Queen Anne villa, with some detailing (such as the verandah) influenced by the Federation Bungalow style.
Key elements include:
Asymmetrical plan, with a stepped façade.
Gabled-hipped roof with terracotta tiles and curved terracotta finials.
Note: No chimneys are visible from the street.
Gabled bay on the western side of the main façade.
This features a projecting rectangular bay window with a bank of three casement windows set over a projecting rendered sill. The highlights each have four, small, timber-framed panes which are consistent with the period and style of the house. The narrow casement windows have curved leadlight detailing accented with textured glass, which is more consistent with later inter-war detailing.
The flying gable end has a roughcast face with vertical battens.
Tuck-pointed brickwork to the main façade with two contrasting rendered string courses under the verandah – one at window sill height and one at door-head height. Where the brick walls extend above the height of the verandah, there is a third rendered string course immediately under the eaves.
Entry vestibule
This is located immediately adjacent to the rectangular window bay, but is distinguished from it by a small recess to the main façade, the western end of the front verandah and a distinctive roof treatment (comprising a small louvered gablet).
The double entrance doors have large glazed panels with curved leadlight, textured glass and a stepped timber frame at the top of the glazing. Similar to the main windows, the style of this door is consistent with later inter-war detailing.
Stepped façade
To the east of the entry vestibule the façade steps back to create a deep verandah area. On the eastern wall of the vestibule there is a porthole window with a wide rendered surround and leadlight glazing.
On the rear wall of the verandah there is a wide pair of casement widows with leadlight glazing to match the entrance door and bay window.
Stepped front verandah
The verandah projects forward of the main façade and extends between the western gable bay and the modern garage. It was designed in the style of a wide front porch, and steps back near the eastern end.
The raked verandah roof continues in a broken-back alignment from the main roofline and is supported by half-height paired timber posts with simple geometric brackets. The posts are set on rock-faced stone piers with rendered caps and the whole of this element is influenced by the Bungalow style.
The late twentieth century double garage is located at the eastern end of the house, aligning with the main façade (and enclosing the eastern side of the verandah).
The house is set back approximately 6.8m from the front boundary, which is defined by a scalloped timber picket fence.

History

Perth Suburban Lot 255 was purchased by the Intercolonial Investment Land and Building Company Ltd of Sydney in August 1890. Two years later it was transferred to James Chesters of 155 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne, estate agent. By 1894 Chesters had subdivided this land as Deposited Plan 899, with 42 lots laid out around Queen Street (soon renamed Union Street).
The City of Subiaco Rates Book of 1915/16 records the owner of Lots 18 & 19 as the Subiaco Town Clerk, Chris Luth. However the Certificate of Title shows that ownership was not officially transferred from James Chesters until July 1919, when a new Certificate of Title was issued in the name of Victor Albert Du Feu. It therefore seems possible that Chesters had taken a deposit on the property in c.1916, but that the initial purchaser had moved on before finalising the transaction.
Victor De Fu had moved to Western Australia from Victoria in the early 20th century, to work with his father, James Peter Du Feu, and brother, Edward James Du Feu, at J. P. Du Feu and Co. Ltd. When Edward died in 1923 it was reported that:
After leaving school he joined his father in business in Latrobe-street, Melbourne, as spouting manufacturers. In 1903, his father came to this State and opened a similar business in Roe-street. The deceased joined him in Perth about a year later. On the death of their father in 1917 the deceased and his brother Victor entered into partnership, and had since carried on the business under the name of J. P. Du. Feu and Co., spouting manufacturers, Roe street, Perth.
Victor continued to manage and develop the firm and in 1933 J. P. Du Feu and Co. Ltd was described as follows:
This local progressive firm is well known throughout Western Australia, having been established in this State for over 30 years. With the recent additional installation of modem machinery they are now producing numerous household, farming, mining and building requisites, etc, among which are tanks, cyanide vats, sheep, cattle and pig troughing, downpipes, ridgecap and gutter elbows, angles, hopper heads, bell mouths, cowls, sewerage vents, bore casing, irrigation pipes wheat bins, brine tanks, fowl coops, ice moulds, fireplaces, baths, skylights, "VicKan" buckets, billycans, bins, dippers, cream, fruit, jam, honey, oil, paint and pulp tins, etc
Victor married Mabel Mercy Hutchinson in 1914 and they had three children, Maurice Albert James Du Feu (1917), Valmai Marcia Du Feu (1919), and Faye Therese Du Feu (1923). When they purchased Lots 18 & 19 the family were living at 91 Heytesbury Road, but had moved into their new house at 110 Heytesbury Road by 1920.
In 1934 the house was offered for sale, as below, but it appears to have been withdrawn from the market as the De Feu family remained here until the children were adults, finally moving to West Perth in about 1949 (shortly before Victor’s death in 1950, aged 70 years).
HODD, CUTHBERTSON and NORTH, LTD., have been favoured with instructions to OFFER by PUBLIC AUCTION as above Portion of Perth Suburban Lot 255, and being Lots 18 and 19 on Plan 889, being the whole, of the land comprised in Certificate of Title Volume 713, Folio 121. THE LAND has a frontage of 100 links to Heytesbury- road, by a depth of 174.2 links to a r.o.w. THE IMPROVEMENTS include that faithfully built Brick Residence, with tiled roof , known as Coronada, No. 110 Heytesbury-road, Subiaco, containing wide verandahs, entrance hall, 3 bedrooms, dining room, lounge, maid's- room, well arranged kitchen, with gas stove, interior bathroom, enamelled bath, basin, gas water heater, laundry, and all conveniences.
The property is in perfect order. Rooms are tastefully decorated. It is a perfect home.
Members of the De Fue family were often mentioned in the social pages of The West Australian from the time of their marriage through until at least the early 1950s, referencing local, interstate and overseas holidays, social events and family celebrations.
After their departure, 110 Heytesbury Road was owned for at least a short time by Robert George Taylor (a steward), but a newspaper notice suggests that he sold it in 1954.
Historical aerial photographs indicate that major rear additions, plus a new garage at the front, were constructed in the period 1985-1995.

Integrity/Authenticity

Note: The external streetscape character and finishes of the original part of the house are largely consistent with its original design (albeit with some modified detailing to the doors and windows). However, the scale and presentation of the place to the street has been significantly modified by the prominent double garage on the eastern side of the house.

Condition

Based on a streetscape inspection the building appears to be in a good condition.

Uses

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.