This Estate Was Originally Built In 1877
Thursday, September 29, 2016
Vaucluse - South Head - The Keepers Cottage
Unrivalled In Prestige, Setting Or Historical Significance. Built In 1881 As The Keepers Residence Adjacent To The 1818 Macquarie Lighthouse And Set On Over 2,600 sqm
Thursday, June 2, 2016
"Swifts" - Darling Point - New South Wales
"SWIFTS"
Originally Built For The Tooth's Brewing Family
Swifts Is Cirrently Owned By Shane Moran Of The Moran
Health Care Family. The Gothic
Revival Mansion Was Originally
Built by Beer Baron Sir Robert Lucas tooth In 1882 And At One Stage Was Owned By The Catholic Church.
Goderich Lodge - Darlinghurst - New South Wales
This Darlinghurst mansion-house, or villa, was designed by John Verge for the High Sheriff of NSW, Thomas Macquoid, and was situated near what is now the corner of Bayswater Road and Penny Lane.
Born in Ireland, Macquoid came to Australia in 1829, following a period in Java, where he produced coffee crops for the East India Company, as well as a tenure as Sheriff of India.
The 1832 mansion house was named Goderich Lodge, after Lord Goderich (Frederick John Robinson), the then Secretary of State for the colonies, who was also the British Prime Minister for a brief period.
Macquoid arrived in Australia full of optimism for his new role in a new colony, but very soon had slunk into depression.
His first major issue was with his new job, which he believed did not have the appropriate status for such an important position. His office was also understaffed and overwhelmed with work. Litigation and bankruptcy proceedings were rife and there were over 700 summonses to be served.
To worsen things, Macquoid was also suffering financially after investing in a large farming property in the Tuggeranong Valley, near Canberra, which he named Waniassa. The country had been hit by drought, while the colony was also in financial collapse.
Unable to cope, Macquoid committed suicide in October, 1841, leaving his son Thomas Hyam to deal with his mounting debts.
(Incidentally, Thomas Hyam was one of 121 people who died aboard the wreck of the clipper, Dunbar, which crashed into rocks at South Head, at the base of suicide-spot, The Gap, in 1857; his body was never recovered. The Dunbar's anchor was retrieved and is mounted at The Gap as a memorial.)
Brougham Lodge - Darlinghurst -
Brougham Lodge was built in 1831 for the second Chief Justice of NSW, Sir James Dowling, who took over the role after Francis Forbes was given long leave in September 1835.
Sir Dowling was born in London in 1787 and studied at St Paul's School and worked as a parliamentary reporter before being called to the bar in 1815, at the age of 28.
Thirteen years later, at 41, he decided that he wanted to make ''myself useful to the public'' and advance his ''private interests and welfare of my numerous family,'' and so applied to the Colonial Office for an appointment abroad.
In February 1828 Sir Dowling arrived in Sydney aboard the Hooghly with his wife, Maria Sheen, and their six children. The couple had ten children but four died in infancy. Maria, his wife, died six years after their arrival in Australia and Sir Dowling then remarried Harriet Ritchie, the widowed daughter of John Blaxland (older brother of Blue Mountains settler Gregory Blaxland). The newlyweds made Kings Cross their home, living at one of the busiest junctions in the area, but I'll get to that later.
Sir Dowling initially came to Australia to act as puisne judge, or regular judge, but in 1835 he won the battle against Sir William Burton for the role of Chief Justice. He was also knighted in 1838.
Sir Dowling was a hard-working jurist, described by one colleague as having a ''painstaking and anxious industry rarely equalled'' who ''never failed to make himself its master in every detail'' of cases brought before him.
In 1829 he delivered the first sitting of the Supreme Court in the Hunter Valley (at the Union Inn) and also travelled to Norfolk Island for the same in 1833.
He worked so hard that in 1840, his daughter, Lady Dowling, despaired: ''Papa has for six days been at court until seven and eight o'clock in the evening. Yesterday he was there from 10am until three this morning.''
It seemed Sir Dowling was driven by a desire to build a good life for his children.
His salary as a puisne judge was 1000 Pounds a year, which doubled when he became chief justice.
Still, in 1828 he wrote to his patron, Lord Henry Brougham, in England, that ''Without parsimonious economy . . . I cannot keep out of debt . . . even with my frugal habits.
''I have been obliged to mortgage the little property I have scraped together to enable me to maintain and educate my children.''
But this dedication to his children and the role of Chief Justice would eventually take its toll.
In 1840 he was advised by his doctor to take medical leave for three months and a year later Sir Dowling applied for 18 months leave in order to regain back his strength lost from ''13 years of incessant judicial labour, never once relaxed''.
But his seniors refused this leave until June 1844 when Sir Dowling collapsed on the bench.
Sir Dowling eventually booked passage on a ship but before he could sail, he died on September 27, 1844, aged just 56.
Sir Dowling's home from 1831 to his death was Brougham Lodge, which was built at what is now the junction between Darlinghurst Road and Victoria Street in Kings Cross. He was granted over eight acres there in 1831. Brougham Lodge was initially designed by an unknown architect, but John Verge completed the designs.
The painting at the top of this post also shows the two windmills, known as the North Darlinghurst Mills, which featured on the Kings Cross landscape in the 1830s. There were also three other windmills on Darlinghurst Road - Clarkson's Mill and two wooden-post mills - as well as the Craigend Mill, all located along the ridge line and in the highest points of the neighbourhood so as to best catch the air currents. The mills were used as a source of renewable energy and to grind grain.
After Sir Dowling's death, the former chief justice's home was tenanted and also used as a boys's school. It was sold to developers in 1882 for 7000 Pounds and demolished soon after.
The Holiday Inn now marks the site of Brougham Lodge.
Grantham - Potts Point - New South Wales
Built on five acres of land purchased by Felix Caleb Wilson in 1836.
Potts Point was originally named Point Campbell by Governor Arthur Phillip, during his survey in 1772, and was kept as a reserve for the Aboriginal peoples who were "allowed" to occupy the foreshore area - which they called Carragheen - "without molestation" for a number of years.
But during Governor Darling's reign, this all changed when he decided to claim the land, which stretched from the headland back along Woolloomoloo Hill, for important government officials.
The first of these grants was in 1822 when 11 acres were given to Judge John Wylde, the last Judge Advocate and a Justice of the NSW Supreme Court.
But by 1828, Judge Wylde had done nothing with the land and Governor Darling was considering resuming it unless improvements were made.
This issue probably informed his decision that year - when allotting the land that later formed Darlinghurst - to impose certain "villa conditions" to allotments, such as the size and grandeur of the home and the landscaping of the gardens.
Governor Darling didn't have to force the issue with Judge Wylde, who soon sold a substantial chunk of his allotment - just over six acres - to Joseph Hyde Potts.
Potts didn't build on the land either, but he did rename the area Potts Point, ensuring he would be remembered to this day.
Felix Caleb Wilson, a settler in the Hawksbury region, north of Sydney, purchased the remaining five acres of Judge Wylde's allotment in 1836, and set about building the point's very first home, on the site where St Neot Avenue is today
Kellett House - Darlinghurst- New South Wales
Kellett House - Darlinghurst - New South Wales
The First NSW Premier Stuart Alexander Donaldson, moved into a 2 Storey Villa on a 3 Acre Lot, where The Hotel Mansions On Kellett Street and Bayswater Road sits Today.
The Villa was originally called Bona Vista, and had been built gfor Samuel Augustus perrty in 1831 and Donaldson renamed it Kellett House.
Elizabeth Bay House - Elizabeth Bay - New South Wales
Elizabeth Bay House - Elizabeth Bay - New South Wales
Elizabeth Bay House was built between 1835 & 1839 In the Regency Architectural Style & was originally surrounded by a 22 Hectare garden, in what was then the Fashionable Suburb of Woolloomooloo Hill.
The rooms, Sweeping staircase and lavish furnishings reveal the tastes of its original owner Alexander Macleay. The one time Colonial Secretary Of New South Wales, had magnificent gardens Expressed his passion for the natural world. By the 1840's a downturn in the economy ushered him towards financial ruin.
Alexander macleay arrived in Sydney from England in January 1826, with his wife Eliza, 9 of 10 surviving children, and his extensive entomological collection. At the time he possessed the finest and most Extensive collection of any private individual in England.
Architect John Verge produced a design for a splendid "Marine Villa" in the Greek Revival Style which was at its peak of popularoity at the time.
A Nearby grotto with accompnaying stone walls & steps, plus several trees, are all that remain of the original extensive Gardens. It helf Macleays considerable native and exotic Plant Collection, an orchard & kitchen garden.
The main axis of the house is aligned with the Winter Solstice.
For the remainder of the 19th Century & well into the 20th Century Elizabeth Bay House had a Chequered history, With the property being subdivided, the gardens were reduced to a small fragment. The house became home for a succession of tenants inclusing many artists.
In 1961 the National trust started to list and publicise important histporic places and Elizabeth bay house was One of the first 50 names.
in 1977 the house was extensively restored and refurbished. Initially so it could become the offical residence of the Lord Mayor of Sydney, it later became one of the first properties acquired by the Historic Houses trust.
Lindesay - Darling Point - New South Wales
LINDESAY HOUSE, DARLING POINT
1. LINDESAY Is A National Trust Property. It Has Georgian Interiors With Fine Australian & English Furniture, Which Are Complimented By An Elegant Parterre Garden And Well Tended Grounds With Uninterrupted Harbour Views.
2. It Was Built By The Colonial Treasurer Campbell Drummond Riddell In 1834. He Purchased 17 Acres Reserved For Him By The Acting Colony's Governor, Lieutenant Patrick LINDESAY.
3. It Is Believed That The Favour Of Reserving The Land Led Riddell To Name The House After Best Friend, & Fellow Scot, Patrick LINDESAY. It was The First House To Be Built In The Suburb, & Attracted Many Distinguished Occupants.
4. The House Had Many Famous Owners. It Was Purchased By Sir Thomas Mitchell In 1841. I'm The 1830's Mitchell Undertook Three Major Expeditions. throughout Australia, Took His Reports Back To England And Was Knighted For His Effort.
5. Sir Charles Nicholson Purchased LINDESAY In 1845, After Moving To Sydney In 1843 & Being Elected Ti The New South Wales Legislative Council. He Later Became Speaker Of The House. He Sold LINDESAY To William Bradley In 1849.
6. City Of Shdney Councillor John Macintosh Brought The Property In 1868. While He Was At LINDESAY, Mr Macintosh Built Two Other Houses On Darling Point - Braeside And Cintra - For His Children.
7. In 1911 John Macintosh Died At Kindesay A d It Was Sold Two Years Later To Alfred Wunderlich Who Subdivided The Land. In 1914 Dr Edaard Jenkins Blufht The House.
8. In 1926 The Jankins Family Moved To A Smaller House, At 35 New South . ahead Road, Vaucluse. LINDESAY Was The. purchased By Charles and Mary spy's, Who Lived The Rest If Their Lives In The House, And After another Had Died Ther So. Charles Handed Over The Property To The National Trust If Australi In 1963.
9. The House Is The First Domestic Example Of Gothic architecture ln Australia. The Interiors, Restored By The National Trust Of Australia Represent The Prominant Fanilies That All lived There.
10. LINDESAY Is Open To The Public On The First Thursday Of Every Month, With Guided Tours At 10am, 11am, & Noon. The Cost Is $10, Or Free For National Trust Members.
Elwatan - Vaucluse - New South Wales
This 1920s heritage home was restored in 2008, with close attention paid to the period details. The grand formal living and dining rooms retain their original features.
The seven-bedroom, five-bathroom Vaucluse home is split over three levels, with the property’s former stables converted to a self-contained apartment.
Entertain guests in the grand ballroom, where the arched windows offer views to Sydney Harbour Bridge, or relax on the rooftop terrace as you overlook the harbour.
Greenoaks Cottage - Darling Point - New South Wales
word cottage is a bit of an understatement for this nine-bedroom, seven bathroom home in Sydney’s Darling Point.
Built around 1850 by industrialist and benefactor Thomas Mort, the lavish property sits amid a beautiful established garden on a 1,307sqm block.
With period details, ornate high ceilings and original stained-glass windows it oozes old-world wonder.
St Marks Terrace - Darling Point - New South Wales
This 1849 property is Gothic Revival at its finest. The sandstone home sits alongside the historic St Marks Church in Darling Point, one of Sydney’s most sought-after suburbs.
Designed by famous Australian colonial architect Edmund Blacket, it features pressed metal ceilings, marble fireplaces and multiple living and dining rooms.
The eight-bedroom, five-bathroom home is currently configured as a main residence and three self-contained apartments.
The large home is set amid an expansive private garden with views to Sydney city
Historic Mansions Manors Villas And Houses In Sydney New South Wales
Sydney Historic Mansions.... Manors.... Villas... And Houses
Sydney Has Some Of The Most Amazing Mansions, Manors, Villas And Houses Dotted Around The City..... Some Of Them Over 200 Years Old.
Hidden Away From The Enquiring Eye Until It Comes Up For Sale. A Lot Of The Amazing Places Have Been Demolished To Make Way For Development....'
Unfortunately.....
- Lulworth House - Roslyn Gardens - Rushcutters Bay - New South Wales
- Elizabeth Bay House - Eizabeth Bay - New South Wales
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