Woodloes Homestead

Statement of Significance

Woodloes Homestead, a Victorian Georgian home with shingled roof, an attic, and verandahs to four sides, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons:
it is a rare example of an early architect designed house south of the Swan River in the Perth area;
the original owner (and architect), Francis Bird, was a key figure in the development of the Western Australian timber industry, and one of the largest employers in Western Australia;
the place maintains a connection with the Canning River that is currently uninterrupted (except for a recent security fence) and is thus almost unchanged from the original relationship; the quality of timber workmanship is exemplary;
the place is a rare example of the type of dwelling constructed by wealthy Western Australian families in the Victorian era, largely intact, with sufficient information being available to allow appropriate conservation work to be undertaken;
the house sits on a site that was part of a much larger plot containing a landing stage crucial to the development of the Mason Bird timber industry, providing river transport to Perth and Fremantle prior to the advent of rail transport, an historical connection that was important in the development of the locality; and,
the relatively rare bunya bunya pine (a local landmark), the fig tree and two olive trees amongst the other historic, mature trees identified as a collection, are important for their contribution to the aesthetic values of the property and the setting of the house and are representative of exotic species that were popularly planted in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Western Australia.
The shed, gazebo, blacksmith shop, water tank and reconstructed church are considered to be intrusive and do not possess cultural heritage significance.

Physical Description

The building is a square plan Victorian Georgian homestead consisting of six rooms at ground floor, an attic room and a cellar. The building is typical of homesteads of the period with a central passage and rooms on either side.
The building has steeply pitched she-oak shingle roof that is penetrated by two white painted brick chimneys and a small dormer window to the eastern pitch. The she-oak shingles were replaced by galvanized corrugated iron in Dec 2018/Jan 2019. There are open verandahs to all four sides supported by timber posts. The verandah sits on limestone masonry dwarf walls and has timber boards. The construction is primarily rubble limestone with brick quoining around openings.
Internally the building is largely original. There has been some change during the 1970s restoration, with the partial removal of the original lath and plaster ceilings and partial new timber floorboards. The décor is an interpretation of a Victorian period home.
The homestead is located on a site adjacent to the Canning River. The landscaping and character of the site has been altered, however some remnants of the original plantings remain, including a mature Bunya Pine, which is considered to be a fine example of its type.
The site currently contains a number of more recently acquired features, which are not original including a replica of the Congregational Church (also known as the Church with a Chimney) and a post box.

History

The history of Woodloes Homestead is entwined with that of Benjamin Mason and Francis Bird. The Mason Bird & Company was a prominent, albeit
short lived, business operation in the early Western Australian timber industry. After felling timber in the Darling Ranges the company would float the timber on flat bottomed barges down the Canning River to Mason’s Landing which existed a short distance upstream from Woodloes.
Francis Bird arrived from England into Fremantle in October 1869. Upon arriving he invested in the Mason Bird & Co, which supplied the timber for much of the State’s early infrastructure including the timber for the roof of Perth Town Hall, Fremantle Lunatic Asylum (now Fremantle Arts Centre) and the Geraldton to Northampton Railway. 

Following the liquidation of the Mason Bird & Company partnership on the 18 June 1873 it appears Francis Bird continued on his own for some years.
Francis Bird, who was a trained architect, designed and built Woodloes Homestead in the early 1870s; some accounts place the date at 1874. 
 He named the house after one in which he lived for a portion of his early adulthood in England. 
Francis Bird married Augusta Maud Earnshaw in 1871. Seven of their fifteen children were born at Woodloes. Three children died at birth and at least one of these is believed to have been buried there. In 1882 Francis Bird sold Woodloes Homestead and became Chief Government Architect in 1883.
In 1882 Woodloes was purchased by Joseph Shaw. The Homestead had nine owners between 1883 and 1974. The lot was subdivided from the original land holding several times and subsequently became much reduced to its current size. In 1974 it was purchased by the City of Canning with the intention of providing a venue for the Historical Society and establishing a museum.
A schedule of repair works was prepared by D. Brearey, the Town of Canning Property Officer, dated 31st March 1976. The works were undertaken over a number of phases and were completed in 1978. These works included (but are not limited to) removing the iron sheet roofing and reinstating shingle roof cladding; defective paint and render was removed to better reveal the stonework; and Jarrah finishes were repaired and partly replaced including floors, skirtings, door thresholds and framing. Woodloes was opened to the public on the 5th June 1978.
To the north-west of the site there is the Congregational Church (also known as the Church with a Chimney), which was rebuilt at Woodloes in the 1990s when Albany Highway was widened by 17 metres. Some materials from the original church were used in this reconstruction. The Church is managed by the Canning District Historical Society and hired out for functions.

Integrity/Authenticity

High: although it is now a museum, its original use as a residence remains evident

Alterations: Various alterations including changes to the dormer windows,
removal of interior walls, removal of a gable over the entrance and replacement of roof shingles with corrugated iron sheets occurred over the history of the building. However the building form has always remained substantially as originally constructed.

Intactness of fabric: The building was restored in the 1970s with an extensive
amount of reconstruction of elements due to the poor condition of the existing
fabric. Some detailing is as original however some aspects of the building are not as originally constructed.

Condition

Good - well maintained

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.