House, 17 James Street

Statement of Significance

• This place has aesthetic value as a modified example of the late Federation style.
• The place has historic value for its association with the development of this area of Bassendean in the early 20th century.
• This place has social value as the house demonstrates the form and scale of housing in the early 1900s.

Physical Description

A single storey brick and tile dwelling. The hipped roof has tall painted brick chimneys. The roof line continues down at a broken pitch to form the verandah canopy and garage roof. The canopy is supported on turned timber columns with timber brackets. The façade features three section sash windows with 1-over-1 sashes divided by timber or rendered mullions. Much of the façade is obscured by shade cloth.

History

This portion of Bassendean was subdivided by a group of investors in 1898 under the promotional name of 'West End'. The group of investors included some of the most well known members of colonial society: S.H. Parker, G.H.Leake, H. Anstey, Dr D. Kenny, J. James, J. Grave, H.E. Parry, Dr. J. Hope and W. Paterson. Three of these men; Parker, Leake and Paterson; were at various times members of parliament. James Street was
most likely to have been named after Sir James Stirling the first governor of the colony although it may recognise one of the syndicate members, John James. From the available information this residence was constructed in 1915 for labourer, William Henry Maslin
(c1862-1958) and his wife Sarah Elizabeth Sugden Maslin, née Olfe. The couple had married in 1895 and had three children. They remained at the house until the early 1920s and subsequent long term occupants were, Arthur G King (1922-1932) and Bert Smith (1935-1949). Aerial photographs indicate that the roof cladding of this house was most likely to have been corrugated iron which was changed in the 1970s. the garage adjoining the house is a later addition.

Integrity/Authenticity

High
Low

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.