Gomm Cottage

Statement of Significance

Gomm Cottage has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: The place is associated with Harry and Katie Gomm (nee Rogers) who acquired the land in 1904. Harry had been in the army and posted at the Albany Forts and Katie was a nurse from New Zealand who set up a nursing home in Albany at Brackenhurst in Brunswick Road before moving to Kalgan. The place is a fine example of a simple rural cottage expressing the characteristics of the Victorian Georgian style and reflecting the skills of the original owner’s labour and using available local material for the rough faced stone walls. The place represents the enduring position that Albany has held as a popular and desirable seaside and holiday resort destination which resulted in the many purpose built hotels and hostels as well as the conversion of many private house into guest houses and hostels to meet the demand both in the town and in the outlying districts.

Physical Description

Some of the notable features of this place include: Original stone cottage • Location on property of approximately 20 acres with many mature pine trees • Many typical characteristics of Georgian cottage • Symmetry of façade • Small scale single storey building • Simple corrugated iron gable roof • Rough faced random stone walls • Porch over entry door • Side hung, many paned, wooden framed recessed windows with architraves • Small attack window raised out of roof Cottage to the rear • Corrugated iron walls and gable roof • Broken backed verandah with colonial criss cross balustrading • Symmetrical façade with wooden framed windows and doors • Raised on low wooden stumps

History

Gomm Cottage was built over a period of time from 1904 to after World War I. The original owners and builders were Harry and Katie Gomm (nee Rogers). Katie was a nurse who originally hailed from New Zealand. They married in 1898 and moved to Albany when Harry, who had been prospecting in the goldfields, joined the regular army as a bombardier and was posted to the Albany Forts. By 1902 Catherine had set up a private nursing home at Brackenhurst in Brunswick Road. After Harry left the army in 1903 they decided to settle in Albany and acquired the land at Kalgan in 1904 and built their cottage. In November 1909 their original cottage, furniture and effects were all destroyed by fire, with Catherine fortunate to save herself and their children as Harry wasn’t home when the fire started. They gradually rebuilt the cottage and lived there until the early 1930s when they moved to Kalgoorlie. The house stood for many years as a stone wall ruin and was lovingly restored during the 1980s. At the same time a c1880 cottage was relocated from Mt Barker to the rear of Gomm Cottage. Called ‘Whispering Pines’, owing to its location amongst many tall pine trees, the cottage is to be used for holiday accommodation. Note: On one of the fence posts near the entrance to the property is the name Ongerup. It is not known whether this was one of the original names of the property.

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity: High Authenticity: Moderate

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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