The 'Island' Farmhouse

Statement of Significance

• The place has historic value for its association with the early settlement and development of this region for farming. • It has historic value for its association with the Reynolds family who were prominent in the community for their role in agriculture and leaders in the community. • The place has social value for the community as it is a demonstration of the type of residence built for affluent members of the community in the early 20th century.

Physical Description

‘The Island’ farmhouse is a designed in the Federation Queen Anne style has a hipped roof clad with corrugated metal sheeting and an encircling verandah. Three brick chimneys are located in the centre of the roof. The residence is constructed of limestone with several sets of timber French doors leading off the verandah. Three pane sash windows with two over two design are also evident. Portion of the verandah has been enclosed with fibre cement sheeting. The verandah floor is concrete and the verandah roof is an extension of the main roof supported on slender metal poles. The residence is located within an expansive garden that is overgrown although the mature trees that had encroached on the building were removed with the roof replacement in 2021..

History

This property was first owned by John Hurford who was murdered in a notorious case in 1855 that lead to his wife being hung. She was the first woman to be hung in the Swan River Colony and the sentence was carried out at the Perth Gaol, now the Western Australian Museum. The heirs of the estate sold the property to Joseph Gardiner Reynolds in 1861 who owned the adjacent property, Membenup. He combined the two properties to create one property but continued to live at Membenup. Previous research has determined that this residence was built in 1907 to a design by architect Eustace Gresley Cohen and built by local contractors Bill Moyes and Robert Donald. The planned house was only ever partially built, with the second stage shown on the plans not begun. The home was built for one of the Reynolds sons, Thomas Henry Reynolds (1880-1960) and his wife Virginia Mary Prinsep (1880-1958) who married in 1907. Therefore this house was the Reynolds family home for the couple and their five children throughout the first half of the 20th century. A barn was built in 1934 to the north east of the residence and this structure is still extant although in very poor condition. Aerial photographs indicate that there has been little change to the form or extent of the building through the second half of the 20th century apart from the replacement of the roof in 2021. The place is currently [2024] unoccupied because of the poor condition and lack of services.

Integrity/Authenticity

High/high

Condition

Poor

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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