Reverend Purdy's House (fmr)

Statement of Significance

• the setting, mature planting, building form and local building
materials contribute to the high aesthetic value of the place.
Although the place has been altered internally and externally it still
retains clear evidence of its earlier form and features the local
‘vuggy’ limestone in its construction.

• dating from the 1930s the place has historic value as it represents
an early stage of Rockingham’s development.

• the place has historic value for its strong associations with
Reverend Thomas Purdy, Rector of the Parish of
Rockingham/Spearwood in 1927 and member of the Rockingham
Road Board.

• the place has social value as the house and grounds contributes
to the community’s sense of place.

The additions are of little significance

Physical Description

The house presents as a weatherboard and stone single storey residence set back behind a large open garden with a stone boundary wall. The façade of the house is orientated towards Rockingham Beach Road with informal vehicular access from the rear, along Kent Street.
The core of the original smaller house remains extant behind the current glazed frontage. The original house was a beach house and consisted of two rooms with wrap around verandah and a large limestone water tank in the rear garden. The original section of the house is of local ‘vuggy’ limestone construction.
A series of additions (including limestone, asbestos and corrugated metal additions) have been constructed to the rear and side elevations in various phases gradually increasing the size of the property to its current configuration.
The house is now of asymmetric plan form to the frontage. The main section of the frontage incorporates the enclosed original verandah with limestone dado wall, infill asbestos panels and full height aluminium framed windows and doors flanked by two smaller windows. None of the windows to the Rockingham Beach Road frontage are original. The recessed section of the house to the south west is of timber framed
construction with weatherboard cladding.
The roof is hipped and gabled clad in corrugated iron sheets with a timbered gable over the large window to the main front section of the house. The early simple roof form has become more complex in form with each addition to the place. The chimneys remain extant.
The original core of the house cannot be seen from the road but remains a feature of the internal planning of the house. The door/windows to the original façade have been removed with the openings remaining extant and now provide open access into the enclosed former verandah area. The planform of the two original rooms does not appear to have been altered and still retain the back to back fireplaces.
A large limestone water tank stand remains extant in the rear garden. The interior of the tank was used as laundry and bathroom facilities, with evidence of these uses still visible. The water tank itself no longer remains extant.

History

The land on which this residence is constructed was granted in 1907 to Charles Hastie. Rockingham Beach Road was formerly known as Marine Terrace. No development was undertaken on the lot and it was subsequently transferred to Reverend Thomas Henry Purdy in 1933.
Rev Purdy (1878-1963) and his wife Annie Gertrude Miriam, nee Burgoyne (1870-1952) were of English birth. They married in 1902 and moved to Australia in 1922 with their three sons. They lived in Maylands prior to settling in Rockingham in 1934. Rev Purdy had been appointed to the newly formed parish of Rockingham/Spearwood in 1927 but did not relocate immediately until accommodation could be organised. Electoral Rolls for 1936 and 1946
This residence was built in 1935 as the couple are recorded living there in 1936. The current owner has provided information that the Purdy residence was originally of a simple construction that was common for beach side homes, or ‘beach shacks’.
The original residence consisted of a large central room with wide verandahs on four sides. The central room and the adjoining kitchen to the south were constructed on the local ‘vuggy’ limestone. These two rooms remain and the fire place and chimney between these rooms are still intact. The enclosure and division of the verandah spaces may have occurred shortly after construction as evidence of balustrades
are still evident. At the time of construction a high stone tank stand was built behind the residence to hold a large 2000 gallon tank. Beneath the tank was the pump, laundry, shower and WC. The details of the architect or builder of the residence have not been determined.
Rev Purdy was very active in the community, standing as a representative on the local road board. He served as a member; 1936-1939, 1942-43 and 1945-46; and Chairman in 1939. He was also a driving force in the construction of St Nicholas's Church in 1945.
The property was transferred to Amy Marguerita Crisp in February 1944. Amy and her husband Theodore Percy Crisp retired to the residence in the 1950s but subsequently sold the property in 1956 to the Gales, a farming family from Northam who used the place as a holiday home.
During the 12 years in which the Crisps owned the property they undertook additions to the place including; the construction of a bedroom, bathroom and lobby to the back verandah; addition of a kitchen and dining room to the southern side alongside the kitchen, and conversion of the existing kitchen to a sitting room. These additions were apparently undertaken in a crude fashion not in keeping with the original structure. An asbestos lined garage and store was built toward the rear of the lot either by the Crisps or during the Gale’s ownership. No major alterations or additions were undertaken during the Gale ownership.
In 1963, the property was transferred to the current owners who undertook conversion of the property into three flats. This project involved alteration and removal of some of the original building fabric and addition of new small bathrooms and kitchens. A significant proportion of these additions were within the existing building footprint.
Since the creation of three flats there have been several programs of work including:
 1970 Replacement of the roof cladding with white zincalume
 1975 construction of a deck alongside the front elevation which used materials from the demolished front porch and insertion of full height aluminium framed glass panels in the central front elevation.
 1978 Reorganisation of the internal layout to create two flats which included the construction of a new kitchen on the southern end of the front verandah.
 1982 Demolition of the existing garage and construction of a new garage linked to the original tank stand and the residence.
 2002 Reconstruction of one of the bathrooms which necessitated a change in the roof line.
 2002-2005 Additions of a new porch, sunroom and new roof to the tank stand.
In addition to the above works the place has been upgraded to modern standards as required, for example the addition of aluminium sliding doors to the external openings and removal of asbestos.
The grounds have also been reconfigured since the current owners took possession of the property in 1963.
The mature trees on the property have been planted by the current owners, the oldest a large Tuart planted in 1963 in front of the southern wing. The peppermint trees on the southern boundary date from the early 1990s.
Aerial photographs indicate the circular ornamental pond in the front yard to date from the period of the Crisp’s ownership in the late 1940s/50s although this has not been confirmed.

Integrity/Authenticity

High/Moderate

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

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.