Darlington Hall

Statement of Significance

Darlington Hall, a double storey stone and iron structure with later single storey brick additions, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: . the place contains one of the few stone, free standing cellar constructed in Western Australia; . the place, which incorporates the 1890 cellar for the Darlington Vineyard is all that remains of one of the earliest vineyards planted in the district; . the place has social importance for the local community and plays a major role in community events; . the place has associations with Alfred Waylen and Joscelin Amherst who established Darlington Vineyard and played a role in the development of their communities; . the place represents the strong drive that the Darlington community had to develop a community centre which would be suitable for their needs; and, . the place is important to the overall appearance of the village green. The later additions to Darlington Hall, which comprise the sections built in 1960, 1978 and 1987, while important to the local community as they form part of their community hall and indicate the ongoing social commitments of the community, have less significance than the 1890 stone section.

Physical Description

Darlington Hall is a composite building which consists of a double storey stone building (1890) constructed for Alfred Waylen and Josceline Amherst as a wine cellar; brick rendered single storey additions on the north west side (1960.1978) and a single storey verandah across the front (1987). The roof is clad with corrugated galvanised iron. The later additions were constructed as the Darlington Hall by the Darlington Progress Association (later Darlington Residents and Ratepayers Association). The building is located within the township of Darlington which contains a single general store, and is adjacent to the village oval The small commercial centre is surrounded by residences. Darlington Hall sits on a triangular piece of land which is bounded by Owen Road to the south east, Pine Terrace to the south and north west and the oval on the north east side- The land slopes gently down towards the west and rises slightly towards the south west. Due to this topography, the original 1890 section of the building is two storeys high at the north east end, but only one storey high at the south west end. Due to the chronological differences between the double storey section of the hail and the later single storey section, the building is rather eclectic in style, although the application of bagged render to the later brick sections has given the building some uniformity. The oldest section bears some passing resemblance to Victorian Italianate, but only in its simplest form.

History

Assessment 2002 Construction 1890 Darlington Hall displays four distinct building phases. Phase 1 was the original double storey stone cellar (1890) constructed for Alfred Waylen and Josceline Amherst. Phase 2 was a single storey brick structure, abutting the stone cellar and built as the Darlington Community Hall (1960). Phase 3 represents additions and alterations to the 1960 structure (1978). Phase 4 was the addition of a verandah to the north east side of the building (198'7). The cellar was constructed as a processing and storage facility for the Darlington Winery, while the Darlington Progress Association (later Darlington Residents and Ratepayers Association) constructed the brick hall together with the additions and alterations for community activities

Uses

Historic Themes

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