Terrace Houses

Statement of Significance

The row of eight terrace houses at 18-32 Catherine Street, Subiaco is of cultural heritage significance:
• As a relatively rare example of two-storey, Federation Filigree terraces in Western Australia;
• For its use of rare decorative elements, being the stucco swans to the triangular pediments and the palmette design of the balcony panels;
• As an example of the standard of rental accommodation built for tradesmen and labourers in Subiaco during the first decade of the early twentieth century;
• As evidence of the major development of investment properties in Subiaco by Minnie and William Lloyd in c.1902-1906;
• For its association with the entrepreneurial activities of Minnie Lloyd, who later went on the establish one of the first private lying-in (maternity) homes in Subiaco in 1909, and who then played an important role in local maternity services until her death in 1924;
• For its important historical and aesthetic associations with the terrace houses at 2-8 Catherine Street (which were entered in the State Heritage Register in 1997);
• As a symbol of the major investment in the conservation of Subiaco as part of its emerging revitalisation in the late 1970s to early 1980s.

Physical Description

The terrace houses were built in the Federation Filigree style. Key architectural elements include:
• The originally unpainted and tuck-pointed brick walls, which feature a plain rendered stringcourse to both ground and first floor levels;
These are now painted, which diminishes the traditional, Federation era character of the place.
• The matching flat parapets across the top of the western elevation of 18-24 and 26-32.
These have square ‘posts’ over the party walls, each capped by a round ball. At the centre of each parapet there is a triangular pediment set under an acroterion with a terracotta urn.
The face of each of the two triangular pediments is decorated with a central shield that bears a black swan and is flanked by moulded leaves and flowers.
The black swan was an iconic image of Western Australia from the time of early European settlement and its use reflects the striving for an Australian identity during the Federation era. While Australian flora and fauna was often used in stained glass and, to a lesser degree, in internal decorative plater detailing, its use as a prominent external element is a relatively rare in residential buildings.
• The definition of the individual terrace houses by the projecting party walls to the front verandahs;
These feature slightly projecting, ‘bracketed’ vermiculated panels that visually “support” the balcony roof and floor.
Facing onto the balconies and verandahs, each party wall has a tall recess with a semi-circular head.
• The iron lace detailing to the balconies;
The palmette design of the balcony panels has been identified in Australia’s Iron Lace (Brian Turner, 1985, p.101) as a rare example of its type.
This is complimented by frieze and fringe panels to the ground and first floor levels (featuring centre-drops at the lower level only)
• Two double hung windows to each ground floor façade, with plain segmental heads and raked sills;
• Central French doors to the first floor façade, set under a plain highlight;
• Heavily moulded seven-panel front doors, set under plain highlights;
At the front of the verandah, the location of each entrance door is ‘framed’ by a square timber verandah post with chamfered edges and a projecting capital moulding.
The terrace houses each have a very small front yard, set behind a continuous iron palisade fence (dating from c.1980). This garden area has now been extended across the footpath (with paved access to the gates only).

History

Building lots along Catherine Street had been laid out by 1891, but initial development was slow and there were no buildings along the eastern side of the street until 1904. In February of that year a block on the corner of Catherine and Gibney (later York) Streets (Lot 23 and Part Lot 22) was purchased by Minnie Lloyd. Minnie’s husband, William Lloyd, commenced work almost immediately on the construction of the first group of four terrace houses, advertising for bricklayers for the site in March of that year. By May 1904 he was advertising a house on the corner of Catherine and Gibney (now York) Streets for rent:
A FIVE-roomed HOUSE, bath, copper, troughs, splendid position, one minute from tram or train, only £1 weekly to good tenant. W. LLOYD, Gibney and Catherine sts., Subiaco
In April 1904 Minnie Lloyd purchased the adjacent block along Catherine Street (Lot 24 and part 22) and building work continued with the construction of a second group of four houses, creating the current terrace of eight.
Newspaper advertisements calling for experienced tradesmen, and advertising rental properties, confirm that the Lloyd family were particularly active as builder-developers in Subiaco in the period 1902-1906. However, it appears that they over-extended themselves financially as, in December 1906, “32 new, well-built, and finished Villas and Houses, situate the best localities of the popular suburb of Subiaco” (valued at a total of £20,765), were offered for sale under the Bankruptcy Act, as means of clearing Minnie Lloyds debts. These related to residential lots in PSL 196, 213, 254, 276, 278 and 284.
This debtor’s sale valued the eight terraces on Lots 22, 23 & 24 at £4,100 (approx. £512 each). This was similar to the Lloyd’s second row of four terraces at 2-8 Catherine Street, which were built in 1905 (approx. £625 each), but considerably less than their much larger and more favourably located terraced houses at 15-27 Hay Street, which were built in 1904-05 (approx. £923 each). Interestingly, the value of the Catherine Street terraces was similar to the value placed on some of the Lloyd’s freestanding residential developments, such as a ‘double fronted brick dwelling’ at 80 Heytesbury Road (£550).
In early 1907 the terrace houses at 18-32 Catherine Street were more specifically described as:
Lots 23, 24, and part of 22, Catherine-street ….. 132ft. and a good depth to a r.o.w. Improvements consist of a terrace of eight two-storey brick houses, each containing four rooms, kitchen, bathroom, and laundry.
It seems that neither these, nor the terrace houses at 2-8 Catherine Street, sold quickly as, in February 1908, they both advertised again – this time as part of a foreclosure on mortgages taken out by Minnie Lloyd.
Subsequent changes of ownership have not been researched for this report, but the pattern of occupation through to the mid-twentieth century indicates that they were primarily used as rental accommodation for the working classes, including tradesmen (such as a butcher, baker, bootmaker, plasterer, painter, barman, wicker worker, furnace man, and fitters and turners), as well as general labourers. The occupants also included a number of widows. Generally there was a relatively high turn-over of occupants (with most staying less than 10 years), but longer term occupants included the families of a butcher, Richard Kyrwood (no 18, c.1925 to 1939), a mental hospital attendant, John Maddigan (No 20, c.1917 to 1954) and a flour miller, Frederick Davis (No 32, c. 1924 to 1963).
From the late 1970s renewed interest in the Subiaco lead to the conservation/ refurbishment of many of its early twentieth century houses. By this time 18-32 Catherine Street had been purchased by Thomas Malone and Elizabeth Clarke, who undertook considerable restoration works with the assistance of Brian Klopper, architect. Works believed to have been completed at that time included two-storey rear extensions, internal upgrades, fabrication of cast iron panels to replace missing elements (based on surviving examples), a new iron palisade fence, replacement of some of the external joinery (with closely matching details), new verandah tiles and new stained glass to the entrances. The tuck-pointed face-brick walls may have been painted at that time or as part of an earlier refurbishment.
Subdivision approval was granted in 1982 and the houses were subsequently sold to individual owners. Since that time owners have undertaken further alterations, which are primarily visible in the public arena through varied colour schemes. The major alterations to the principal façade have been to No. 28, where the French doors and windows have been replaced in a slightly different style.
Reference- Heritage Assessment of 18-32 Catherine Street, Subiaco prepared by Greenward Consulting for the City of Subiaco June 2014

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity - High - The houses within the group continue to be used for residential purposes.
Authenticity - Moderate to High – The houses have been conserved in a sympathetic manner, although some external elements reinterpreted or modified. The major alteration to the character of the place has been the painting of the tuck-pointed face brickwork.
Rarity/Reprsentativeness - 18-32 Catherine Street is a relatively rare example of its type in Western Australia.
The rapid population boom in Sydney and Melbourne, which began with the commencement of the gold rushes in the 1850s and continued through until the 1890s, encouraged the extensive development of terrace housing in the inner suburbs of these cities. However, this prolonged mid-late nineteenth century population boom was not reflected in the other Australian cities and, while examples of two-storey terrace houses were found in most major settlements, it was not the common form. In the 1890s and early 1900s, the population boom that followed gold discoveries in Western Australia encouraged some speculative development of terrace housing in Perth, Fremantle, and newly developing suburbs such as Subiaco – however this was at a time when the style was falling out of favour in the eastern states and it never became a common form. Two storey terraces, in particular, remained relatively rare.
Only three sets of two-storey residential terraces dating from the period around 1900 have been identified in present-day Subiaco:
• 2-8 Catherine Street, Subiaco (attached group of 4)
• 18-32 Catherine Street, Subiaco (attached group of 8)
• 15-27 Hay Street, Subiaco (attached group of 6)
All three of these were developed by Minnie and William Lloyd in 1904-05.

Condition

Refurbished in 1982.

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.