Model Brick Home

Author

Town of Cambridge

Place Number

08894

Location

6 The Boulevard Floreat

Location Details

Local Government

Cambridge

Region

Metropolitan

Construction Date

Constructed from 1934

Demolition Year

N/A

Statutory Heritage Listings

Type Status Date Documents
Heritage List Adopted 27 Nov 2018
State Register Registered 04 May 2001 HCWebsite.Listing+ListingDocument, HCWebsite.Listing+ListingDocument

Heritage Council Decisions and Deliberations

Type Status Date Documents
(no listings)

Other Heritage Listings and Surveys

Type Status Date Grading/Management
Category
Municipal Inventory Adopted 17 Dec 1996
Municipal Inventory Adopted 27 Nov 2018 Category 1

Statement of Significance

The following statement is taken from the State Register Entry for Place 8894 Model Brick Home prepared in 2001 by the State Heritage Office. Model Brick Home, a single-storey brick and tile residence in a simplified version of the Inter-War Old English style set in landscaped gardens and built as a model home in 1934, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: the place was one of two winning designs in the competition run by the Model Homes Committee as part of the Building Revival Campaign, an initiative to promote and stimulate employment in the home building industry during the economic depression of the 1930s; designed by architect Howard Bonner, the place is a fine example of an architect designed home from the inter-war period, exhibiting their influence of a simplified form of the Inter-War Old English architectural style characterised by the dominant steeply pitched gabled roof and distinctive curved line of the front elevation; and the place was one of the first two homes built in the Floreat Park No. 1 Estate, which was planned as a Garden Suburb by the City of Perth under the influence of Town Clerk, W. E. Bold, who promoted the principles of the Garden City Movement in Western Australia in the 1920s and 30s.

Physical Description

residence which, together with the Model Timber Home located at 12 The Boulevard Floreat, was one of the first two homes constructed in Floreat Park No 1 Estate, a residential subdivision designed on the principles of a Garden Suburb. Model Brick Home is located on The Boulevard, one of the major roads in Floreat. Adjacent homes are of similar age, proportions and style, and apart from Model Timber Home, are brick or rendered brick and tile. All houses are of approximately equal setback with landscaped front gardens and an avenue of mature street trees. At the rear of the property, a gate from the back garden opens onto a laneway which accesses an area of public open space. This area, which has no street frontage, is landscaped with trees and shrubs and provides an additional recreational area for the houses which back onto it. Two grassed laneways access Selby Street. Model Brick Home is sited on a rectangular residential lot. The front elevation of the house is set back approximately 7.5m from the front boundary and located towards the eastern side of the lot, with a driveway down the western side of the house to the garage at the rear. There is a curved entrance driveway at the front of the house on the western side. The front garden area on the eastern side features a concrete slab retaining wall which separates the driveway from the garden. The house comprises the original section constructed in 1933 and additions constructed in 1995. The extension has been designed to complement the original in terms of roof pitch, materials and finish and is not visible from the street. External fabric of Model Brick Home features painted rendered masonry walls on limestone footings. The roof is steeply pitched (approximately 45º) and gabled with a prominent gabled wall to the front elevation with a rectangular timber vent at the apex. This wall extends in a prominent curve beyond the edge of the house to the eastern site boundary. There is a rendered banded detail to the top edge of the curved wall. An arched opening in the eastern side of the front elevation provides access to the side of the house through a timber garden gate. The roof is clad with terracotta tiles. Square profile gutters and downpipes are not original and the original chimney has been removed. There is an open terrace with low walls at the front of the house accessed by five front steps. The terrace and steps are clad with slate which is not original. Two timber pergolas which have been constructed over the front verandah are not original. The original foundation stone is extant on the front wall of the house. Original windows are timber framed six paned casements with timber mullions. The front door is timber with an elaborate diamond panel in the centre and original brass door handle. The French doors to the front terrace have aluminium frames and are not original. The same roof line and wall details have been continued or the 1995 extension. There have been no significant alterations to the place since the 1995 additions.

History

In the nineteenth century the area to the north west of Perth known as the Large Lakes District was sparsely settled for agricultural purposes. The area currently known as Floreat comprised Locations Ak, to the west, and Al, in which Model Brick Home and Model Timber Home is currently located. Henry Trigg, builder and businessman acquired approximately 800 acres of this land and established a quarrying and lime burning enterprise on the property. In 1844 the property, known as the Limekilns Estate, was purchased by Walter Padbury and in 1869, the Limekilns Estate was sold to Henry and Somers Birch in for £1,000 and in 1880 to Joseph Perry for £1,950. The limekilns operated throughout the 1880s and 1890s and, until their closure in 1906, provided building materials for the developing residential areas of Subiaco and Leederville. The area between the Limekilns Estate and the coast remained crown land until 1855 when it was proclaimed the Endowment Lands. The Endowment Lands were originally part of the Perth Commonage, a large area bounded by the coast and extending from North Fremantle to north of Herdsman Lake. The purpose of the land was to provide income for municipal works through payment for use of the land for timber and stone. The Endowment Lands were vested in the Perth City Council in 1883, who were empowered to lease the land for a maximum of ten years. Settlement in the area between the City of Perth and the Limekilns Estate (present day West Leederville and Wembley) developed outwards from the city in a westerly direction in the period from the late nineteenth century to World War One. In 1917, the Limekilns Estate, which by this time comprised 1,290 acres (522 hectares), was purchased from Joseph Perry by the City of Perth for £18,000. This gave the City of Perth control of a continuous area of land from the city to the coast. The City of Perth Endowment Lands Act of 1920 enabled the City of Perth to develop and sell the previously allocated land. From the early 1900s, there had been proposals to construct a beach resort for city dwellers in the vicinity of present day City Beach. The emphasis, however, on development in this area differed from earlier development patterns, which had been dominated by speculation in land values with pressure exerted by private speculators. In the 1920s, the focus was put on the planning process with control exerted over road layout, proportion of open space, gardens and community service. The proponent for this was influential City of Perth Town Clerk, W. E. Bold. Bold was one of the State’s leading exponents of the Garden City Movement which had a direct influence on the planning of Floreat Park and City Beach. The United Kingdom's Housing and Planning Act of 1909 was recognition of the development of the discipline of Town Planning, which emerged as an outcome of the Garden Cities Movement in the early 1900s. The Garden Cities Movement developed in the UK in response to necessary improvements to residential amenities for workers in nineteenth century industrial cities. In 1910, the Royal Institute of British Architects held an inaugural Town Planning Conference in London. Copies of papers given at the conference were received in Perth together with a proposal that a lecture series be conducted in Australia by representatives of the Garden Cities and Town Planning Association. The issue was promoted by W E Bold and, in 1914, lectures were presented in Perth, Fremantle and Boulder by W R Davridge of the London County Council. Subsequently the first Australian Town Planning Conference and Exhibition was held in Adelaide in October 1917. These ideas influenced Bold to promote the development of two satellite towns in the area west of Selby Street to be separated by a belt of undeveloped land. In 1925, the Perth City Council set aside the area known as Bold Park for this purpose. The area originally included Reabold Hill, Perry Lakes and the Wembley Golf Course. In 1925, the City of Perth commissioned Land Surveyors Hope and Klem to design two town sites, one located on the former Endowment Lands and the other on the eastern side of the former Limekilns Estate. The result was two plans with extensive use of curved roads. The eventual subdivisions, however, were modifications of the Hope and Klem designs. A direct outcome of the scheme was the construction of the Boulevard as an extension of Cambridge Street, from Selby Street, through the new area to the coast. The Boulevard was officially opened by Governor Sir William Campion on 23 November 1928. The sale of land in City Beach commenced in early 1929. By the late 1920s, the effects of the international economic depression were felt by Western Australia's building industry. In order to promote renewed confidence in home building, the industry established a Building Revival Committee which had widespread support from local government, industry and the professionals. The committee proposed the construction of two model homes, one of brick and one of timber, as a means of focusing attention on the advantages of home construction. It aimed to demonstrate to the public the extent to which labour was employed and the widespread dispersal of wages which would result from home building; thus revitalising the building industry and economy in general. As a result the Model Homes Committee of the Building Revival Campaign was formed with representatives from the RIA, Master Builders and Contractors Association, Brick Manufacturers, Sawmillers Association, Economic Council, Hardware Association and the Perth sub-branch of Returned Services League (RSL). The committee hoped that material and labour would be donated, and it was decided that all profits would be used to provide relief from unemployment, particularly for youths. In the West Australian of 30 August 1933, the Secretary of the RIA, Mr. Reg Summerhayes, called for competitive designs for the houses with the commitment that the Institute would reimburse the winners for the preparation of drawings, specifications and architectural supervision. The houses were to be economical examples of ideal modern homes; the one of brick to cost no more than £850, and the one of timber to cost no more than £600. By the second meeting of the Model Homes Committee on 31 August 1933, the Perth City Council had agreed to donate two blocks of land in the satellite suburb of Floreat Park surveyed several years before. Although the Committee had twelve other blocks from which to choose, it selected the City of Perth offer. The winning designs were selected in the first week of November 1933. The winning entry for the brick home was by architect H. Howard Bonner. Explaining the salient features of his plan, Mr. H. Howard Bonner said; "…. that he planned the accommodation so as to segregate the living, sleeping and cooking portions of the house into separate units. Access from the kitchen to the front door was given without passing through any room. Each bedroom was situated next to the bathroom. The service to the dining room from the kitchen through the servery should be quick and efficient and at the same time prevent cooking odours from the kitchen permeating the dining room. In case meals were served on the terrace a door leading from the kitchen to the terrace was provided. Entrance to the front door was gained from a small flagged court with a flower bed as a central feature and the sleeping-out verandah was accessible from both bedrooms. The living-room opened out onto a flagged terrace topped by a pergola. Built-in features included a seat and writing desk in the living-room and shelves for silver and crockery in the servery. In the kitchen there were cupboards over and under the draining board and a tradesman's hatch in a handy position. A hinged board over the trough in the laundry provided an ironing table. The layout of the land, he continued, provided for a separate service yard, screened off from the house by hedges, paved paths enclosed by hedges on the other side leading respectively to a central pool enclosed by a garden, and a small summer house and garden seat." Messrs. H. W. Ennis and H. Pilgrim were nominated by the Master Builders and Contractors' Association to undertake the work of supervising construction, in cooperation with the architects. Materials and labour for the model homes, including shrubs for the gardens, were all donated. This was also extended to include the remission of sales tax on donations, and the Commissioner of Railways transported bricks over the government lines free of freight charge. The ceremony to lay the foundation stones (also donated) was held on Sunday 5 November 1933. The Lord Mayor of Perth, MR J T Franklin, officiated at the ceremony. Lieutenant Governor Sir James Mitchell and the Minister for Employment Mr. J. J. Kenneally laid the stones for the brick and timber houses respectively. Both model homes were opened at ceremonies held on 1 April 1934, again by the Lieutenant Governor and the Hon. J. J. Kenneally. The brick home was furnished, but the timber home was not. After the ceremony, the houses were opened to the public on various days, with afternoon tea provided by the Children's Hospital Women's Auxiliary. During the promotion of the model homes, land in the Floreat Park area was advertised for sale and development of the area soon commenced. In the first land auction held at Floreat Park on 14 April 1934, blocks sold for between £45 and £75. Model Brick Home and land was bought from the City of Perth by Arthur Reginald Wright, salesman, on 12 September 1934. The ownership of the property changed hands a number of times since this original purchase. Alterations to Model Brick Home were carried out in 1951. These comprised construction of a room 14ft (4.26m) x 8 ft. (2.43m) on the north western side of the building, and a concrete driveway with a carport in front of an existing garage on the western side of the property. Further additions were carried out in 1995/96. These included the rear addition of a family room, two bedrooms, laundry, bathroom and terrace, as well as the replacement of the earlier garage and carport with a garden shed/workshop and garage. The 1951 extension was removed at this time. The current owner provided information in 2018 that the internal and external condition of the place has deteriorated in recent years largely through water ingress.

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity: High Authenticity: High

Condition

Good- restored

References

Ref ID No Ref Name Ref Source Ref Date
Acc3054 PCC File 1941/29 PROWA;"Sale of Land at Floreat Park and Model Home Scheme". 1941
Aerial photographs, Landgate. Online Reference Documents 1953-2016

State Heritage Office library entries

Library Id Title Medium Year Of Publication

Place Type

Individual Building or Group

Uses

Epoch General Specific
Original Use RESIDENTIAL Single storey residence
Present Use RESIDENTIAL Single storey residence

Architectural Styles

Style
Inter-War Old English

Construction Materials

Type General Specific
Roof TILE Ceramic Tile
Wall BRICK Rendered Brick

Historic Themes

General Specific
DEMOGRAPHIC SETTLEMENT & MOBILITY Depression & boom
DEMOGRAPHIC SETTLEMENT & MOBILITY Land allocation & subdivision
OCCUPATIONS Domestic activities

Creation Date

16 Jul 1997

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Approved

Last Update

24 Nov 2020

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.