Church of St. Nicholas, Australind

Statement of Significance

The following statement is drawn from the Register Entry for inclusion of the place in the State Register of Heritage Places in 2009:

Church of St Nicholas, Australind a single-storey timber building with a corrugated zinc coated steel roof set in a landscaped garden, built c.1844 as a residence in the Old Colonial Georgian style and converted to use as a church in 1850, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons:
• The place is a substantially intact and rare example of the type of dwelling erected by Australind colonists following their arrival in Western Australia;
• The place is a rare example of a colonist’s first cottage which has retained its original form rather than becoming part of later extensions;
• The place has value as a landmark in Australind due to its continuity of form since the 1840s and function since 1850; together with the adjacent properties of Upton House and Henton Cottage, the three properties form a significant precinct;
• The pews are a good example of colonial church furniture and other items, including altar table, font, and pedestal, and contribute to the aesthetic and historic significance of the place;
• The place is closely associated with several families who were significant in the establishment of Australind town, district and the wider Shire of Harvey; prominent among these are the extended family of Marshall Waller Clifton, Chief Commissioner for the Western Australian Company who instigated the settlement at Australind; the place is also associated with John Allnutt who instigated the establishment of the Congregation Church in the former residence and was its first lay reader; and William and Sarah Narroway who resided in the building from 1844 to 1850;
• The place is valued by the community of Australind and the surrounding district for its association with the Congregational church from 1850 to 1914 and the Anglican Church from 1914 to the present (2008); and,
• The place has potential to reveal information on building techniques used by the European settlers at Australind, representing techniques commonly practised in the 1840s.

Physical Description

The church is a simple one room space of timber frame construction with jarrah weatherboard cladding. The roof is hipped with corrugated iron cladding with timber crosses. Doors are ledged and the windows timber framed. Internally it is simply furnished with exposed roof timbers and features memorial plaques to pioneering settlers.

The church was damaged in December 2012 by a vehicle crashing into it but has since been repaired.

History

The Church of St. Nicholas stands on land originally purchased by James Narroway from the Western Australia Company. It was built in 1840 as a small cottage residence which Narroway shared with his wife Sarah. Later in 1848 it was used as a church by John Allnut, who held services in his home over the road until the Narroway cottage was made available as a church. Services were conducted there for a number of years, after which it was used for a school and then leased by the Church of England (Anglican Church) who eventually acquired the building in 1915. It was named St. Nicholas and cared for by the Clifton family and is reputed to be the smallest church still standing in the country.

On the Festival of St. Nicholas in 1993 the church became a parish in its own right and a new Rectory was built in 1994.

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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.