Norman House & Magnolia Tree and Cheyne's Stables, Outbuilding & Oak Tree

Child Places

• 26924 Norman House and Magnolia Tree
• 24551 Cheyne's Stables, Outbuilding & Oak Tree

Values

• The place has historic value as a precinct comprising two buildings associated with the early colonial settlement and development of Albany, with the mature oak tree and magnolia tree contributing to the landmark value and historic character of the place overall.
• Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding has historic value as a rare example of a colonial building dating to the 1830s which is among the earliest surviving buildings at Albany and in Western Australia.
• Norman House and Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding have historic value through their association with prominent early Albany settler George Cheyne, and later the Hassell family, who contributed to the early development of the Great Southern region.
• Norman House has historic value as a rare early example of a substantial two-storey Victorian Georgian style residence of granite and brick construction, albeit obscured by the present front balcony.
• Norman House has historic and social value as the first house of Toc H in Australia (designated ‘Mark I’), a boarding house which also served as a ‘rallying centre’ for Toc H. Toc H was established as an international Christian social service movement of Allied servicemen following World War I and was one of many social welfare organisations established during this period to meet growing needs.
• The place has social value in contributing to the local community’s sense of place due its associations with early colonial figures and role in supporting servicemen and memorialising the fallen under Toc H ownership.
• Norman House has historic value in its evolution from a single-family residence to various forms of group accommodation from the 1930s, reflecting social changes and needs over the early twentieth century in the region and Western Australia.
• Norman House has historic value through its continuous residential and accommodation use from its construction c.1858 until 2015.
• The Oak tree (c.1850s-60s) is rare as one of the oldest surviving oak trees in the State, and the oldest in Albany, and is prominent within the surrounding area overlooking Princess Royal Harbour.

Physical Description

The place comprises Lot 212 on the north side of Stirling Terrace in the Albany town centre. In the western half of the lot, set back approximately twelve metres from the frontage, is a c.1858 double-storey painted render granite and brick building with a corrugated iron roof, originally named Belle-vue, later named Edward House and currently known as Norman House. A number of major elements of Norman House have been altered due to the change in use from single dwelling to hostel accommodation, and the added verandah and balcony obscures its original Victorian Georgian façade. However, the basic form of its core and much of the fabric is original. Original elements of the c.1858 front section include the brick and granite walls, stairs and balusters, lathe and plaster ceilings (of which two on the first floor are tray type), as well as some of the timber floors, skirtings, architraves and doors, window frames, shutters and panelling. Behind Norman House is a rectangular single storey sun-dried brick building with a corrugated iron roof over shingles, originally constructed in the mid-to-late 1830s, known as Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding. Its original use as a stable is no longer apparent in its façade as the wide carriage opening has been infilled and replaced with a doorway. A mature English oak tree (Quercus robur), understood to be one of the oldest surviving oak trees in Western Australia, is situated between the two buildings; and a mature Magnolia Tree (Magnolia ) is located in front of Norman House. A contemporary double-storey student housing accommodation development constructed in 2018 is situated on the eastern portion of the lot, with a driveway and car parking at the front and through the centre of the lot. Both Norman House and Cheyne's Stable and Outbuilding have undergone continuous modifications since their original construction. A number of major elements of Norman House have been altered and the added verandah and balcony obscures its original Victorian Georgian façade. A large extension at the rear of Norman House over the single-storey skillion was likely constructed in the late nineteenth century. The exterior of Norman House was substantially modified in the 1930s, including the removal of the original verandah and balcony and replacement with an enclosed balcony on the upper floor supported by heavy brick piers, and alteration of the roof form to accommodate a chapel (since removed). Further alterations and additions were made during its conversion and use as a hostel, including cement rendering of the walls, and later as a guest house/bed and breakfast. Photographs dating to c.1858 show a wide opening on the centre of the south façade of Cheyne's Stable and Outbuilding which was since filled in, obscuring the original use of the building as a stables and coach house. Restoration work completed to Cheyne’s Stable and Outbuilding in 1994 included re-roofing with galvanised sheeting with any remaining shingles left in-situ and replacement of fretting external brickwork with original bricks from the interior. Conservation works to Cheyne’s Stable and Outbuilding completed between 2010 and 2023 included external groundworks, installation of guttering, repairs to the timber flooring, walls and lime plaster, replacement of windows, and installation of a timber ceiling to the eastern room. Original elements of Cheyne's Stable and Outbuilding include the pink bricks, hand adzed rafters, shingles and battens, stump floor to stables, hay loft structure, remnant ceiling structures and lathe and plaster ceiling, and elements of the hay hoist.

History

Norman House & Magnolia Tree and Cheyne’s Stables, Outbuilding & Oak Tree is located in the City of Albany in the Great Southern region of Western Australia. The place is located on Stirling Terrace in the town centre of Albany, overlooking Princess Royal Harbour, and is adjacent to P14922 Stirling Terrace Precinct, Albany, a historic townscape precinct dating primarily from 1867 to 1915. The place is in the traditional lands of the Menang people of the Wagyl Kaip and Southern Noongar region of Noongar booja (country), which also includes the Ganeang and Goreng language groups. While some interactions with Europeans (French and British) in the Albany area were mutually respectful, the majority of Noongar people across the south west of Western Australia were displaced from their traditional lands after British settlement, and conflict continued throughout the nineteenth century. The first permanent British settlement in Western Australia was established in Albany in 1826. Albany played a key role in the development of Western Australia through the nineteenth century in its role as the State’s main shipping port until Fremantle Port opened in 1897. Following Albany’s transition from military outpost to part of the Swan River Colony in March 1831, much of the new and replacement civic, residential and commercial infrastructure shifted from the military garrison in the west, to the east. The land now comprising Lot 212 on Plan 401417 was originally part of Special Lots 13 and 14 fronting Stirling Terrace, originally granted to George Cheyne in the 1830s. By c.1841, Cheyne held these Lots in freehold, as well as adjacent lots S 15 and S 16. Collectively the lots formed Cheyne’s Albany town estate, a prominent site at the head of the Albany jetty. Both buildings were constructed for George Cheyne and his wife Grizzel (Grace), who had arrived in Albany in November 1831 and were among the first group of ‘free settlers’ to reside in Albany. Cheyne was a prominent merchant and entrepreneur who went on to hold extensive interests in the Great Southern region including pastoral, farming, whaling and sandalwood. In 1834 Cheyne was residing at his cottage on an adjacent Lot, and from 1842 resided at his Cape Riche farm, where he developed a substantial farm and port in the 1840s. Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding was likely built in the mid-to-late 1830s. The building was situated in a fenced paddock and originally comprised three rooms. The west room has a wood block floor and was a former stables, with a loft area to store hay (floor lining missing). Photographs dating to c.1858 show a wide opening on the centre of the south façade which was since filled in, indicating the central room was a carriage room/coach house. The east room has a cellar under the timber floor and may have been used as workers’ accommodation. The sun-dried bricks used were similar to those in a number of historic buildings at Albany and were possibly brought via ship as ballast. The building currently known as Norman House was constructed for Cheyne in front of Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding, facing onto Stirling Terrace. The building was constructed as a substantial, elegant family residence in the Victorian Georgian style with granite outer walls and a symmetrical façade featuring a front verandah and balcony supported by slender timber pillars. The façade was lime ashlar rendered, scored with grooves to give an ashlar effect. It was the most substantial residence at Albany at the time, evidencing Cheyne’s success. It appears likely that Cheyne used an 1834 sketch of his then-proposed single storey house on Lot S 14, which was never constructed, and added a second storey. Cheyne himself, and/or Grace Cheyne’s nephews Alexander and Andrew Moir, were likely involved in its construction, although no evidence has to date been found to confirm this. A two room coachman’s and gardener’s cottage west of Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding was likely built around this time, but has since been demolished. Cheyne went to England in 1860 and ultimately did not return to Albany before passing away in 1869. In 1861 the property was leased to William Carmalt Clifton, the branch manager of the Peninsular and Oriental Company (P&O). The 1850s had marked an important turning point for Albany due to its selection as Western Australia’s mail port, and as a major coaling port on the international trading route between Australia and Europe. The first P&O steamship arrived in Albany in 1852, and in 1858 the company was awarded the contract for mail services. Clifton also became well-known in Albany for his instrumental role in establishing the Albany Cooperative Society. In 1865 Lots S 13 and S 14, containing the buildings now known as Norman House and Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding, were purchased by well-known Albany resident and prominent pastoralist Captain John Hassell for £1,600. Clifton vacated the property c.1866 to make way for Hassell to move into the Belle-vue residence with his wife Ellen and daughter Ellen Belinda. John and Ellen lived their remaining years at the house. Both passed away at home, John in 1883 and Ellen in 1886. The mature English oak tree (Quercus robur) between Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding and Norman House is likely to be the same as photographed c.1860s and is the oldest known surviving oak tree in Albany, and one of the oldest in the State. Following Hassell’s death in 1883, Lots S 13 and S 14 passed to his daughter Ellen Belinda, who married Captain Peter Hay Nicholson in 1887. The couple resided at Belle-vue, and their annual ball was a highlight of the Albany social calendar in the 1890s. In 1897 Nicholson passed away at Belle-vue. Ellen Belinda married local lawyer Frank Rawling Dymes in 1906, in the drawing room at Belle-vue. The large extension to the rear of Norman House over the single-storey skillion was likely constructed during Ellen’s ownership. Following Ellen’s passing in 1913, Lots S13 and S14 were acquired by Dymes. It remained his home until his death in 1921 and was sometimes referred to as ‘Dyme’s House’. Following Dymes’ death in 1921, the properties passed to his sister, Miss Annie Dymes. In 1931 Annie gifted land including the southern portions of Lots S13 and S14, comprising the buildings currently known as Norman House and Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding, to Toc H, an international Christian interdenominational charity and allied servicemen’s club. The Toc H movement originated in a soldiers’ rest centre established near Ypres, Belgium. Founded by Reverend P.B. (Tubby) Clayton and Neville Talbot, the rest centre was named Talbot House in memory of Neville’s brother Gilbert who had been killed July 1915. The centre provided a haven amidst war for more than 50,000 Allied soldiers from December 1915 to the end of World War I. Following the war, the Toc H movement was established in England to continue Talbot House’s embodiment of Christian service and brotherhood, where members in a hierarchy of branches and groups across the world committed to regular voluntary acts of service in their communities. Toc H is army signallers’ code for Talbot House. In 1922, Toc H received its Royal Charter, and the organisation spread to all Australian states, including Western Australia, from 1925. The movement was very active during the inter-war period, with 44 branches at its peak, predominantly in country towns. In 1932, Toc H had a total membership of 1,509 in WA. A Toc H unit was established in Albany in 1927. Reverend A.E. White, known as the ‘Father of the ANZAC Dawn Service’, was Chaplain of Albany Toc H from 1929 to 1938. In Albany, following the endowment of Belle-vue to Albany Toc H, the dwelling was renamed ‘Edward House’ and became the first house in Australia of the Toc H (designated ‘Mark I’). At the time, there were 27 Toc H houses in Britain. Modelled on the original Talbot House, a Mark was a house either purchased or donated to a branch, ‘manned by a picked team of young men representative of various classes and creeds, serving as a rallying centre for Toc H. units in the area.’ Toc H also operated hostels for short-term accommodation, but a Mark was distinct as a boarding house for permanent residents. However, research suggests this was likely more flexible in practice. Edward House was officially opened on 5 December 1931 by Lieutenant General Sir Talbot Hobbs, K. C. B., the WA President of Toc H, to a crowd of over 300 people. The Royal Patron of Toc H, HRH Edward, Prince of Wales, consented to the place being named in his honour. The same day, the League of Women’s Helpers unit in Albany attained Group status. State Padre, Reverend H.E. King, noted that nothing had been done by Toc H without the ‘loyal and courageous assistance’ of the LWH, who had also taken on many jobs that Toc H could not have. Edward House served as the Toc H headquarters in the Great Southern and was a central location for charitable assistance, including a soup kitchen during the Depression. Toc H members and their male friends could also stay at the house while in Albany. Upon opening, Edward House comprised a State bedroom, mess room, library/quiet room, three bedrooms, a billiard room, common room, Warden’s quarters and kitchens. In addition to a commitment to charitable acts, an integral part of Toc H was providing spiritual support to its members, who were primarily returned servicemen. One aspect of this was a focus on memorialising the fallen. Several rooms, including bedrooms, were each dedicated in memory of one of the ‘Elder Brethren’ who had fallen in battle. Photographs and belongings of each person were displayed in the room bearing their name. As in other Branches around the world, the Albany Branch’s Lamp of Maintenance was lit during the Ceremony of Light held at each meeting, with a recitation of Lawrence Binyon’s ‘Ode to the Fallen’ and period of silence. At 2024 the lamp is understood to be at the Fire Brigade on North Road, and still lit annually in honour of Toc H founder Tubby Clayton. In addition to changes to the interior, Toc H substantially modified the exterior of Edward House in the 1930s. Funds were raised for the building’s restoration, and by 1934 renovations included the removal of the original verandah and balcony and replacement with an enclosed balcony on the upper floor supported by heavy brick piers, and alteration of the roof form to accommodate a chapel (since removed). Of the original façade, which featured a central door on each level flanked by two double hung sash windows on each side, the two eastern windows on the first floor were bricked in (though still visible in the plasterwork), and the westernmost window converted to a door. A photograph dating to the 1920s shows the magnolia tree (Magnolia) was mature by this time. Edward House became somewhat neglected in the late 1930s-early 1940s due to local enlistment for World War II, and was closed as Toc H Mark I in 1940 to reopen as Edward House Community Centre. In 1942, after 2,000 allied servicemen arrived in Albany after the bombing of Darwin, the Citizens’ Reception Committee established an Albany Allied Services Club and Allied Trench & Camp Comforts Club at Edward House which operated until the end of the war, with assistance and activities also provided by local businesses and organisations including churches, the Red Cross, and Country Women’s Association. In 1946 the property was purchased by the Methodist Church (later known as Uniting Church) for £900. Alterations and additions, including cement rendering of the walls, were made to the building for conversion into a hostel providing accommodation to Albany High School students from the surrounding district and region who would not otherwise be able attend high school. The hostel was named Norman House Methodist Hotel for Boys, in honour of Councillor and Methodist Conference member John Norman Jr. and the Norman family. Further renovations and repairs were made to Norman House externally and internally during its time as a hostel, including the installation of sewerage. Cheyne’s Stable and Outbuilding was repurposed as a storage area during this time, with brick toilets added to the east end of the building (since demolished). In 1955 the Public Works Department reported that the outbuilding with cellar was used for storing timber and bicycles. The hostel closed at the end of 1962 as necessary expenditure to cover necessary building repairs could not be justified, and students were relocated to the old Government Hospital (P00069 Vancouver Arts Centre Group). Norman House, as it continued to be known, was then leased to various tenants operating the place as a guest house/bed and breakfast, with living quarters for the proprietor. Cheyne’s Stable and Outbuilding continued to be used for storage. Further renovations were undertaken on Norman House in the early 1980s. Restoration work completed to Cheyne’s Stable and Outbuilding in 1994 included re-roofing with galvanised sheeting with any remaining shingles left in-situ and replacement of fretting external brickwork with original bricks from the interior. The current Lot 212 on Plan 401417 was created in 2015 and sold to affordable housing provider Great Southern Community Housing Association (now known as Advance Housing). In 2015 an independent building surveyor noted that Norman House could not be safely occupied, and the building has remained vacant since this time. Construction of three two-storey buildings on the eastern portion of Lot 212 commenced in 2016 and was completed by 2018. Conservation works to Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding completed between 2010 and 2024 included external groundworks, installation of guttering, repairs to the timber flooring, walls and lime plaster, replacement of windows, and installation of a timber ceiling to the eastern room. No notable alterations were made to Norman House during the same period. As at February 2024, Cheyne’s Stables and Outbuilding had been vacant or used for storage since the mid-twentieth century. The building is thought to retain much of its original elements, demonstrating early building techniques in Albany. Norman House, after a continuous history of use as accommodation, has been vacant since 2015. Both the English oak tree (Quercus robur) and magnolia tree (Magnolia) are still extant and valued by the local community for their landmark value.

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