HOUSE, 46 JOHN STREET (Holmdene)

Parent Place or Precinct

22385 North Fremantle Precinct

Statement of Significance

Holmdene House, 46 John Street, is a brick and iron two storey house dating from the 1900s. It is a fine example of the Federation Queen Anne style of architecture. The place has aesthetic value for its fine design and detailing as well as its contribution to the streetscape and the surrounding area. It is representative of the more affluent building stock located within the residential areas of North Fremantle. Historically significant as a representation of a fine residence in the North Fremantle area.

Physical Description

Holmdene House, 46 John Street, is a two storey tuckpointed brick, limestone and iron house. It is a fine example of Federation Queen Anne style of architecture. The picturesque asymmetrical form and elaborately detailed exterior display many of the features typical of this style. The ground floor is partially below ground level. The front entrance is via an arched portico located to the side of the house. A balustraded parapet gives the entrance emphasis. The walls are predominantly red brick on limestone foundations. There is rendered banding and detailing tothe walls. A projecting faceted bay, which contains timber sash windows to the undercroft and the first floor, dominates the front elevation. Roof is steeply pitched, hipped and gabled corrugated iron. The gable end is red face brick, roughcast render and decorative timber details. The hipped bullnosed verandah roof is supported by paired turned timber posts, and an elaborately carved timber frieze. There is simple timber balustrading to the verandah. French doors set into a limestone wall with brick reveals, open onto the verandah. The undercroft arches support the verandah floor. Brick chimneys with rendered corbelling. Extensions at rear. This place contains a limestone feature.

History

John Street was the main road surveyed through the parcel of land granted to Lt. Con. John Bruce in 1857. The land remained undivided and undeveloped until after John Bruce’s death, when his widow arranged for it to be auctioned as residential lots. A land sale was held in October 1890 to dispose of the estate of John Bruce. A large attendance resulted in all 88 lots being sold, for sums ranging from £21 to £102, at an average price of £33/16/0, well above the anticipated price. Towards the end of 1891, the new owners approached the Fremantle Council requesting that scrub be cleared so that they could access their blocks, and it is likely that this is when John Street, which had been marked on survey diagrams from at least 1833, was actually created. The area at this time was known as ‘Brucetown’. Pensioner Road, which ran from Stirling Highway (then Bruce Street) to the ocean and beach along the route of current Tydeman Road between Stirling Highway and the railway, and continuing beyond this point at the same angle, was renamed John Street in the late 1890s, being the continuation of the current John Street. This name remained until towards the end of the twentieth century, when roads were realigned to accommodate the expansion of Fremantle Port, and the current alignment of Tydeman Road was constructed. The present John Street, from Stirling Highway to the Swan River, developed as a predominantly residential area, with the exception of the Gresham Hotel (to 1934) and the North Fremantle Oval (later Gilbert Fraser Reserve). At the western end of the street a number of prominent homes were built, while the eastern end was characterised by workers cottages. Long residential blocks on the south side of the street, east of the oval, had a number of cottages built along their rear boundary, facing the water. These were reported to have flooded frequently. The street overall fell into disrepair in the decades following World War Two, with many of the larger residences used as boarding houses and the cottages rented out. Many German and Polish migrants took up residence in this period. From the 1980s, gentrification of the area began, with older places either being restored or demolished to construct higher density housing. In the 1990s, most of the older houses at the eastern end of the street were demolished to allow for new waterside developments, most notably Pier 21. Holmdene was constructed c.1901 for Joseph Bernard Tully, who is variously recorded as miner (1897), gentleman (1900), tobacconist (1902) and hotel keeper (also 1902). Holmdene replaced an earlier two-room cottage constructed in 1894. Tully is recorded in 1900 as residing at the Gresham Hotel further up the street, suggesting that the cottage had been demolished in this year and the large residence not yet completed. Tully took out a number of mortgages, suggesting that the cottage had been demolished in this year and the large residence not yet completed. In 1901 a mortgage of £1200 is recorded on the title, suggesting the construction of a large residence. Tully took out a number of mortgages again for £600, beginning 62 years of ownership by the Holm family. After Elizabeth died, the place was transferred in 1918 to Jessie Amelia Bathurst Holm (spinster). Jessie lived at the place until at least 1949. She died in 1962, but it was not until 1976 that the place was purchased from her estate by local residents Norman James Glazier (builder) and his wife Mavis Jean. The house was by this time in poor condition, and the Glaziers set about restoring it. Plans show the place as being two-storey at the front, but single storey to the rear, all contained under the same roofline, due to the fall of the land. The ground floor has only two rooms. A 1981 real estate advertisement for the place claimed it had a fireplace in every room. This place was included in the 'North Fremantle Heritage Study' (1994) as a place contributing to the development and heritage of North Fremantle. It was also included in the list of heritage places in the City of Fremantle identified by the Fremantle Society (1979/80) - PURPLE -of architectural and historic significance in its own right.

Integrity/Authenticity

High degree of integrity (original intent clear, current use compatible, high long term sustainability, restored, sympathetic rear extension). High degree of authenticity with much original fabric remaining. (These statements based on street survey only).

Condition

Condition assessed as good (assessed from streetscape survey only).

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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