Glen Lossie Homestead

Statement of Significance

Glen Lossie Homestead had a great deal of historical significance one of the earliest homesteads established in Kojonup and being associated with a number of eminent Kojonup residents over the years including: George Leake, George Maxwell, Thomas Chipper, Alexander Moir, Frederick Watts, Thomas Riley who built the stone barn, and James McHenry Clark who named the property "Glenlossie".

Physical Description

Glen Lossie Homestead is located on a portion of Location 7, west of Albany Highway, approximately 1.5km from Kojonup. The homestead block is a very small portion of the original Kojonup Location 7, which was 1,500acres, surveyed in 1845. It would seem that the present building has grown up around an earlier strucutre, built by Thomas Chipper between 1855-1889. In 1912, in the Cyclopoedia of Western Australia, the residence was described as 'a house of modern villa design, built out of stone and brick'. It had nine rooms, with vernadahs and accessory offices, an attractive front garden, a four-acre orchard, large stabling facilities, a woolshed and machinery shed.

Today the stone and brickwork have been rendered, but the basic appearance of the building remains the same, with some additions, e.g. a closed in portion of the front verandah. The facade of the building is symmetrical with two gabled wings linked by a long central section. Verandahs supported by timber posts run the length of the front elevation. The timbered gables appear to be originals as seen in a 1927 photograph.

One of the outbuildings is a substantial stone barn, built around 1888 by stonemason Thomas Riley, for the then owner, Frederick Watts. The barn has double wooden doors, and a series of four arched windows. The roof is corrugated iron.

History

The first owner of Location 7 (1,500 acres) in 1846 was George Leake. It would seem that George Maxwell, who was contacted to transport the mail between Kojonup and Perth in 1852, utilised a cottage built on the property. Thomas Chipper, who later gained the contract for the entire Albany/Perth mail service, is thought to have occupied the cottage for a time. He developed a staging post at Namarillup (the original name for the area) and he appears to have built a residence, the core of the present building. Subsequent owners of the property were Alexander Moir, and Frederick Watts, who added to the house, and made substantial repairs. He also commissioned Thomas Riley to build the stone barn.

A subsequent owner in 1904 was James McHenry Clark, who added to the north end of the homestead and renamed the property "Glenlossie". Charles Know Ross purchased the property in 1909. By then it was a substantial 9-roomed residence. Subsequent owners were Leonard Raymond Wilkie, Charles Herman Neumann, Walter Hawkins Penny (1926), and the Bell brothers (1943).

In 1949 the property became part of a CSIRO research station, and in 1968 the Elverton Pastoral Co Pty Ltd purchased the homestead block. By 1989 this block had been further subdivided, separating the homestead residence with the shearing shed/barn, with B.P. Rourke retaining the homestead portion.

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity - High
Authenticity - Medium - some modifications/additions.

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.