West Subiaco Masonic Hall

Author

City of Subiaco

Place Number

26051

Location

76 Herbert Road Shenton Park

Location Details

City of Subiaco

Local Government

Subiaco

Region

Metropolitan

Construction Date

Constructed from 1928

Demolition Year

N/A

Statutory Heritage Listings

Type Status Date Documents
Heritage List Adopted 22 Jul 2014

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 24 Sep 2002 Considerable Significance (Level 2)

Statement of Significance

The West Subiaco Masonic Hall, 76 Herbert Road, Shenton Park, is of cultural heritage significance: • As a representative part of the rapid development of Masonic halls at a time when the Masonic movement in Western Australia had a strong and growing membership; • As a good example of the many modest Masonic halls built to serve the local community during that period; • For its strong association the Freemasons of the the West Subiaco Chapter who were part of, and contributed to, their local community; • As a local venue for community activities and events from the time of its construction through to the present day; • As a modest local landmark at the south-west corner of the Jualbub Lake and park.

Physical Description

The West Subiaco Masonic Hall is a red brick building, which originally featured a deep rendered panel under the eaves to the main (West) façade. The effect of this panel has now been diminished by painting the panel and brickwork to this façade in the same colour. The place was not designed to any particular architectural style and the primarily relief to the simple rectangular form is a splay-sided bay at the western end of the original hall area. This has a robust parapet, which features a projecting cornice under a series of plain recessed panels. Below the cornice the words Masonic Hall are spelt out in distinctive Art Nouveau lettering. Near ground level, a commemoration stone was placed at the centre of the bay to record the completion of the hall on 6 November 1928. (unveiled by the M.W. Grand Master the Most Reverend C.O.L Riely, Arch Bishop of Perth). This bay was originally located at the centre of the main façade, but later (matching) additions on the southern side of the hall disrupted this symmetry. On the northern side of the projecting bay there is a simple, raked-roof, porch with an entrance on the southern side. This partly enclosed porch has paired corner posts set on half-height painted face-brick walls to the north and west. The original half-height opening on the western side has been panelled over, but the arched valance is still visible. At the rear of the original hall the face brick walls are splayed across the corners, with a plain central buttress to the central panel. The main roof has a hipped form with gablets at either end of a north-south ridgeline at the front. Towards the rear, this intersects with a simple gable roof with an east-west ridgeline. A mixture of steep and shallow pitch skillion roofs extend over small side and rear wings. The external windows are all single-paned high-level windows, providing the level of privacy required for Lodge ceremonies. The grounds have unfenced grassed verges, red concrete paths to the main street frontages, and three mature eucalypts to the Herbert Road frontage. The rear yard (off Evans Street) has a pipe rail and wire mesh fence with a neat garden of shrubs and vines partly obscuring the large, flat-roofed, mid-late twentieth century extension at the south-east corner of the site.

History

The documentary evidence confirms that this place was constructed for the West Subiaco Masonic Lodge, No 113, in 1928 and officially opened on the 6th November of that year. The combined cost of the land and construction was in excess of £1,000, with some savings achieved by the construction of most of the furnishings by the members of the Lodge. West Subiaco Masonic Hall formed part of a major period of development of Masonic halls in Western Australia and was one of five opened in 1928 and fifteen opened in the period 1927 to 1929. In all, a total of 54 Masonic halls were constructed across the state during in the inter-war period. The architect for the place, Percy Harrison, was a foundation member of the West Australian Institute of Architects (1896), President of WAIA (1907-1909) and a prominent Mason. Other Masonic halls for which tenders were called by Harrison included those at Dangin and Cunderdin (1923), Toodyay and Collie (1924), Wyalkatchem, Mundaring and Kununoppin (1925), Dumbleyung (1927), West Subiaco (1928), Subiaco and Goomalling (1929) and Manjimup (1933). There does not appear to be any consistent design used by Harrison for these buildings, but from the limited photographic evidence available online, the West Subiaco Masonic Hall appears to have a similar form and detailing to the Wyalkatchem Masonic Hall. The other local lodge designed by Harrison - the Freemasons Hall in Roberts Road, Subiaco - was a much more imposing two-storey building, which was very formally designed in the Inter-War Classical style. In addition to lodge meetings, the place was also a venue for community events such as: • The West Subiaco Tennis Club Dance (June 1931) • Community music events and guest speakers presented by the West Subiaco Infant Health Association and the No 1 Sea Scouts, Crawley, as part of a “Pleasant Sunday Afternoon” series) (July to October 1934) • Red Cross social afternoon (November 1939) • Red Cross, Shenton Park branch meetings (meetings advertised from late 1939 and through the early 1940s). The documentary and physical evidence confirms that the place has been extended to the south and east since it was originally constructed.

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity - High: The place continues to be occupied as a masonic hall and community venue. Authenticity - High: The exterior has retained a high level of original detailing. Rarity/Representativeness - The West Subiaco Masonic Hall is representative of the development of Masonic halls in numerous suburbs and towns across Western Australia during the inter-war period. In particular, it is representative of the development of modest halls for Chapters with relatively modest resources, and provides an interesting contrast with the construction of much more imposing premises in Subiaco only one year later (which was achieved by the co-operative efforts nine smaller local lodges and Chapters).

References

Ref ID No Ref Name Ref Source Ref Date
Heritage Assessment of 76 Herbert Road, Shenton Park prepared by Greenward Consulting City of Subiaco April2014

Place Type

Individual Building or Group

Uses

Epoch General Specific
Original Use SOCIAL\RECREATIONAL Masonic Hall

Architectural Styles

Style
Other Style

Construction Materials

Type General Specific
Wall BRICK Face Brick
Roof METAL Corrugated Iron

Creation Date

26 Sep 2018

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Approved

Last Update

26 Sep 2018

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.