House, 122 West Road

Statement of Significance

• This place has aesthetic value as a modified example of an inter-war residence.
• This place has historic value for its association with the development of Bassendean in the early 20th century.
• The place has historic value for its association with small family businesses that operated from the home, in this instance a bakery.
• The place has social value as a demonstration of the scale of a typical family home of the early 20th century.

Physical Description

Weatherboard and iron Federation Bungalow cottage with hipped roof. Roof and bullnosed verandah extended to form carport. Verandah features cast valance and brackets to timber posts. Front room under feature timber gable. New double garage on the south. Oiled weatherboard bakery shed with skillion roof form.

History

Bassendean was originally known as 'West Guildford' and West Road was the original boundary of the Guildford town lots. This portion of Bassendean, south of Watson Street, was subdivided for residential development c1905 when developer, Wesley Maley purchased a large parcel of land bordering the river. The names of roads in this subdivision known as ‘Riverside’, reflected Wesley Maley’s enthusiasm for the prize rams he purchased for his Katanning pastoral property, Moojebing. Maley purchased a flock of rams from
South Australian politician, J.H. Angus. Several of the rams were named in honour of Australian prime ministers and consequently the names Watson, Deakin, Barton, Fisher and Reid were applied to the roads in this subdivision. West Road was to be known as 'Main Parade' in the original plan for this subdivision but it was more logical to retain the name 'West Road' as the existing road continued into the new subdivision. The owner of the property in 1936 was R. Irvine of Devon Road who may have built a cottage on the site but
this has not been clearly established. The place is most closely associated with Walter George Bennett (c1914-1994) a pastry cook, who occupied the place from 1938.
Walter Bennett and his wife Gwendoline (c1916-1996) lived at the house until the 1970s. Given the current naming of the residence 'the bakehouse' and Walter Bennett's occupation it is probable that the place was used as a bakery although no details were found in the current research. Aerial photographs indicate that the building was originally roofed in green corrugated iron and there were several large buildings in the rear of the property which supports the conclusion that the place was used as a bakery. From the 1990s onwards the building has been significantly extended to the rear and on the southern elevation.

Integrity/Authenticity

Moderate
Moderate/Low

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.