Daylesford, Bassendean

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Statement of Significance

Daylesford, Bassendean, a two-storey red brick, weatherboard and Marseille tile residence in the Federation Arts and Crafts style in a prominent location overlooking the Swan River, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: • the place is an excellent and finely detailed example of the Federation Arts and Crafts style, both in its external and internal presentation, and is a rare example of a two-storey Federation Arts and Crafts residence; • the place was built for Cyril Jackson, the first Inspector General of Schools in Western Australia. Jackson played a significant role in the history of education in Western Australia during his appointment (1896 to 1903), and was instrumental in the transformation and reorganisation of State’s education system into a modern public education system; • Jackson was influential in the formation of the West Guildford Road Board and became its first chairman holding the inaugural and subsequent meetings of the Board at this place until he left the state; • the place has an in-built, unusual and innovative ventilation system that was especially designed for Cyril Jackson; and • the place is representative of a small number of large and stately residences that were built by senior Western Australian public servants of the State in landmark locations, such as along the Swan River.

Physical Description

The majority of this dwelling is obscured by dense vegetation; very little is visible. Information on physical aspects of the building has been drawn from the State Heritage Office documentation prepared in 2012. Daylesford, is a two storey red brick, weatherboard and Marseille tile residence in the Federation Arts and Crafts style overlooking the Swan River set amongst established garden grounds. The front elevation has a single storey section to the south, attached to the main body of the house, which is two storeyed. There is a central, decorative porch. Ground floor walls are red brick over rendered foundations; the single storey section is in running bond while the remainder of the original brickwork is Flemish bond. The first floor walls are cream painted weatherboard. In the north-west corner of the front elevation the first floor weatherboards sweep down to form eaves over the ground floor windows. Ground floor windows have painted rendered sills, while first floor windows have timber sills with decorative timber scrolls below. At the front of the house the roofs of both the single and double storey sections are shallow hipped, while at the rear, the roofscape is a combination of hips and gables. At the rear, the east section of the first story is a projecting gable filled in with vertical panelling. The weatherboards on the east and north walls of this section also sweep down to form eaves over the ground floor, with the eaves supported on curved timber corbels. On the south wall of the east gable section, the base of the weatherboard cladding meets the hipped verandah roof of the ground floor. The concave hip of the verandah roof that adjoins the south wall is infilled with timber louvers. This verandah roof wraps around the building in the south to meet the single storey section of the building. The verandah posts are square with stop-chamfered corners set into brick pedestals. The floor is red painted concrete. A second verandah with a skillion roof clad with Wunderlich tiles has been added to the north elevation. It has circular hollow section posts and a brick paved floor The front porch is approached by two brick pathways: one from the garage and the other from the front of the block on an axis to the front steps. The porch is a decorative structure set out from the front of the house. Three central steps lead directly up to the front door, with very narrow raised concrete platforms either side. The width of the porch is filled with the front door and side lights. The four panel front door has glass panes above timber, a large central brass handle and brass knocker. The side lights consist of a row of timber panels at ground level, with three rows of four small fixed panes above. There are two matching fanlights above the front door. Running above the fanlights and side lights is another row of smaller square fixed panes. The house contains an unusual ventilation system - a series of primitive ducts channel cool air from ground level to outlets located 4' above floor level of each room.

History

Since the 1850s, the river side lots in the west end of the Guildford town site had been purchased by the more affluent and prominent citizens who constructed grand houses or mansions appropriate to their wealth and social status, this trend accelerated with the onset of the economic boom after the discovery of gold in the 1890s. In 1897, Swan Location Q, a large parcel of land in the West Guildford area on the banks of the Swan River and which comprised over 94 acres, was purchased by a Harry Anstey. Within a year, Anstey had subdivided this location up into a substantial number of lots, of which Lots 11, 12, 13 & 14 on North Road was purchased by Cyril Jackson in March 1898. Cyril Jackson had been brought out from England in late 1896 by the Western Australian Colonial Government to take up the inaugural appointment of Inspector General of Schools with the Department of Education. During his time in Western Australia, which lasted just six years, Jackson implemented policies based upon his philosophy of ‘New Education’ and was responsible for the transformation and reorganisation of State education into a modern public education system. Once Jackson purchased the land in West Guildford, he had a commodious and stately house - befitting his position in government - designed for him by Lewis Henry Duval, who lived in the house next door to Jackson. Lewis Henry Duval was the only son of Henry James Burgess Duval, the Deputy Superintendent of Fremantle Prison from 1853 until 1862, and his wife Mary Ann, who had arrived in Western Australia in 1853. In 1867 the family returned to England, where Lewis Henry trained as an architect before returning to Perth in the early 1880s. The residence, which Jackson named ‘Daylesford’, was built on what was originally Lot 13, with the outbuildings – including the kitchen and servants quarters, on Lot 14. The private jetty that Jackson also had built was on the south-eastern most corner of the property. The residence was accessed by a circular driveway lined with pine trees and an orchard and several timber outbuildings were located on the property. The building of brick on the ground floor and timber on the second storey a billiard room, an indoor conservatory, five bedrooms and an attic for Jackson's Indian manservant. A feature of the residence was a unique ventilation system for cooling the house. Jackson was a significant member of the Bassendean community as the first Chairman of the West Guildford Road Board and the first official meeting was held at Daylesford on 12 July 1901. Road Board Meetings were held at the house until 1903 when Jackson returned to England. The property was transferred to Rachel Lukin in 1903 and later owners and occupiers were the Burns family, John and Sara Thorpe. During the Thorpe's ownership in the 1960s the landholding was subdivided to accommodate 13 new houses and the creation of Daylesford Road.

Integrity/Authenticity

High High

Condition

Good

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Earlsferry

Condition

Fair-good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Statement of Significance

The following statement is taken from the Register Entry for the place compiled in 1994 Earlsferry has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: • the building is a prominent landmark in the Guildford/Bassendean area; • the building is a fine example of the grand homes built close to the river in West Guildford during the gold boom years; • the building is important for its close association with John Short, Sir Edward Wittenoom, and Karl Drake-Brockman, three important persons who contributed significantly to the development of the State of Western Australia; • the building demonstrates the form and ambience of the lifestyle of wealthy Western Australians at the turn of the century; and, • the building is one of the few remaining grand turn-of-the-century properties situated along the Swan River on the outskirts of Perth.

Physical Description

Two storey brick, iron and timber house in the Federation Queen Anne style. The brickwork is laid in Flemish bond with a tuckpointed finish. The house has decorative timber verandahs and a turreted corner facing the river frontage. The roof originally had roughcast gables with decorative iron finials which have since been replaced. The tall brick chimneys with terracotta flues remain extant. Wide verandahs surround three sides of the house with timber balustrading and friezes. Windows are a combination of 1-over-1 sashes and casement openings. In 1989 the house was badly damaged by fire: the roof and upper storey of the building was gutter, five bedrooms and an office were destroyed. The ground floor was damaged by smoke and water but the main reception rooms remained substantially intact. The damage was repaired by no restoration works were undertaken. The original roofing to the billiard room remained but the roofing in other areas was replaced in a form similar to the original but the original cast iron finials and half-timbered and roughcast gables were replaced with a simplified form.

History

Earlsferry, formerly known as Briarsleigh, was built for John Tregerthen Short in 1902. John Tregerthen Short (1858-1933) purchased a plot of land south of the railway line on 13 November 1902. At the time he purchased the property, Short was Chief Traffic Manager of the Western Australian Government Railways (W.A.G.R.) and married with four children. His choice of location recognised the future relocation of the Eastern Railway headquarters to Midland in 1904. The locality was also popular many leading citizens who built large houses with river frontages in Guildford. Short commissioned a two-storey red brick house, set back from the roads and railway, and facing the river. The architect and builder of the house are unknown, however Carter has suggested the house may have been built by Henry Duval who built Cyril Jackson's house (Daylesford) nearby. Short combined his W.A.G.R. career with active participation in civic affairs. He was elected Chairman of the West Guildford Road Board in 1903 (the meetings being held in his newly built house) and was a Justice of the Peace for Western Australia. By 1906/07, he had been appointed Commissioner of Railways, a position he held until his retirement in 1919. In July 1923, Briarsleigh was bought by Sir Edward Horne Wittenoom. Wittenoom was sixty-nine years of age, and nearing the end of a distinguished career, having been Acting Premier of Western Australia in 1897, and Western Australia's Agent General in London. He did not live in the house all the time and it seems likely that the house was let out for residential purposes from the late 1920s. Following Wittenoom's death in 1936, control of the estate passed to the West Australian Trustee Executor and Agency Company Ltd., which managed the property until 1941. Three years later, in November 1944, the property was sold to Mrs Mildred Foster, who lived there with her husband and her daughter until 1946. It was during this period that the property was renamed Earlsferry. On 4 April 1946, the property was purchased by Karl Edgar Drake-Brockman. In addition to his achievements as a Rhodes Scholar, Oxford law graduate, solicitor, and judge, Drake-Brockman was an accomplished gardener who cultivated the gardens at Earlsferry in part to sell the produce to a Perth Florist. In April 1950, an application by Drake-Brockman to the State Licensing Court to turn Earlsferry into a hotel was rejected and the property was sold to the Crown shortly thereafter. Under the ownership of the Crown, Earlsferry was converted to a home for mentally handicapped girls. At this time, Earlsferry underwent a number of changes that altered its original residential function. In September 1988, ownership of Earlsferry passed to the "Authority for Intellectually Handicapped Persons." In April 1989, the roof and upper floor of the building were gutted by fire. The damage was repaired but not restored to its original state. In 1990, Earlsferry was Classified by the National Trust of Australia (WA) and in the same year the place was sold to Lesley-Anne Thomas. In 1993, a conservation plan was prepared to manage the future development of the place and in 1994 Earlsferry was included on the State Register of Heritage Places. The landholding has subsequently been subdivided with a covenant to protect the heritage values of the place. In April 2009, the current [2016] owners purchased Earlsferry House. They started a restoration program which was guided by the conservation plan which including tuck pointing of external brickwork and the reinstating of wooden verandahs at ground floor level.

Integrity/Authenticity

High High

Condition

Good

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Guildford Road Bridge

Parent Place or Precinct

02915 Guildford Historic Town

Condition

Guildford Road Bridge is generally in good condition.

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Statement of Significance

The following statement has been drawn from the Register Entry for Place 14558 Guildford Road Bridge prepared in 2005. Guildford Road Bridge, a working timber and concrete structure, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: • the place is a landmark western entrance statement to the heritage precinct of Guildford that harmonises with the remnant vegetation of the Swan River precinct and the Federation style architecture of nearby buildings; • the place was constructed in 1937, at a river crossing point used since 1831, to service increased transport loads to the Perth hinterland as population increased, and to maintain access between Guildford and West Guildford (now Bassendean); and, • the place was designed and supervised by E.W. Godfrey, Transport Engineer for the Main Roads Department from 1928 to 1957 and is a good example of his work.

Physical Description

Guildford Road Bridge is constructed of timber piles and decking with a concrete overlay. The bridge is 140.2 metres in length between earth abutments consisting of 21 bays 6.096 metres in length and a navigation span of 12.192 metres. The principle components of the original bridge still remain, namely the timber piles, stringers and timber decking and the steel beams supporting the decking over the navigation channel. The bridge carries a two lane roadway 7.77 metres wide consisting of asphalt surfacing over a reinforced concrete decking laid on the original timber decking. The original 12 x 9 inch half caps were replaced with 380 PFC steel channels when the upstream dual use path was added to the bridge in 1994. Under the reinforced concrete vertical walls between the supporting piles, the earth abutments consist of horizontal timbers held by timber piles driven into the ground. The wing walls of the abutment supporting the earthen embankment consist of horizontal timber planks supported by driven timber piles. The original timber abutments have been provided with further support with the installation of reinforced concrete panels attached to the piles. Each of the pier supports, with the exception of the navigation span, is constructed with five driven 18 inch rounded timber piles. The piles at either side of the navigation channel (Piers 8 and 9) are each constructed from eight driven piles. The piles generally terminate on stiff sand. The 4’ x 6’ wide pedestrian walkway on the southern side of the bridge is constructed with 5” x 2” timber decking spiked to 6” x 4” timber stringers bearing on 9” x 5” timbers at 6’ 8” spacing bearing on the main bridge stringers. For the navigation span, the timber walkway decking is spiked to timber stingers supported by RSJs bolted between steel beam flanges. The original timber hand-railing has been replaced with steel vehicle safety barriers supported from the deck structure on the roadway side. Timber handrails remain on the outside of the dual use path. Bracing to support the half caps under the walkway was installed when the bridge was widened in 1959 (and the walkway was moved further downstream). The steel beam under the navigation channel was also installed at this time to support the walkway. The 2.5 metre dual use path on the upstream side also has timber decking, a steel vehicle safety barrier on the roadway side and timber hand railing on the outside.

History

Guildford Road Bridge (Main Roads WA 910) spans the Swan River, linking the towns of Guildford to the east and Bassendean to the west. Completed in 1937, this bridge was the third to be constructed in the vicinity after the first two fell into disrepair. In 1827 Captain James Stirling explored the Swan River and concluded that Guildford should be the site of the third Swan River Settlement after Fremantle and Perth. At that time, Guildford was located at the upper limit of navigation on the Swan River. In 1829, a town plan of Guildford was drawn up showing a street named Bridge Street, in anticipation of the construction of a bridge between Guildford and West Guildford. In 1831, a ferry service was established across the Swan at West Guildford. A horse ferry was built in 1834 and operated by James Dodd, owner of the adjacent Cleikum Inn. The development of land in the Avon Valley to the east – Toodyay, Northam and York – increased Guildford’s importance as a transportation centre during the 1840s. Two bridges were built in the area – Barker’s Bridge, between Guildford and Caversham to the north of Guildford, and the Helena Bridge over the Helena River to the South of Guildford – completed in 1854 and 1867 respectively. The ferry service between Guildford and West Guildford was abandoned in 1880. Residents of West Guildford had no immediate access across the Swan River, and they subsequently contributed subscriptions totalling £350 towards the cost of building a bridge linking West Guildford to the main township in 1874. A bridge on the site of Guildford Road Bridge was eventually completed in 1885/86 at a cost of £600. Following the demolition of the first bridge in 1904, a replacement was constructed in 1905 at a cost of £1770. Throughout the 1920s temporary repairs were undertaken on the bridge in order to alleviate increasing problems with subsidence. In May 1928, consideration of a replacement bridge was voiced by Executive Engineer Young to Assistant Engineer E.W.C. (‘Ernie’) Godfrey. E.W. Godfrey was appointed Bridge Engineer at the Main Roads Department in 1928, a position he held until 1957. Godfrey was responsible not only for the design of all road bridges in Western Australia but also for construction of major ones and their ongoing maintenance. Godfrey was an exceptional organiser, which enabled him to build various structures on difficult sites and often under budget. In 1930, the Main Roads Board declared that the existing bridge should be the joint responsibility of the Guildford Municipality and the Bassendean Roads Board, the Main Roads Board refusing to accept any further responsibility for it. During the next three years, lack of funds resulted in continued deterioration in the fabric of the bridge. Finally, in July 1933, a referral was made to the Minister for advice regarding a new bridge. Formal approval was given by the Main Roads Board for the construction of the new bridge in 1935. The new Guildford Road Bridge was of timber construction, consisting of a two-lane roadway 18 feet 8 inches in width, with a footpath of 5 feet in width. The bridge was completed in November 1937. The superseded second bridge was also destroyed in 1937. In January 1945, bituminous surfacing of the decking of the Guildford Road Bridge was completed. The decking was further gravelled and bituminised in 1951. The bridge was widened in 1959 and it was noted at the time that duplication of the bridge would be needed. In 1978, the gravel and bitumen surface of the Guildford Road Bridge had been removed and replaced with a reinforced concrete deck and 25mm bituminous concrete topping. By this time more than 27,000 vehicles per day were using the route across the bridge, causing congestion. It was resolved to construct a northern by-pass route linking Morley Drive with Morrison Road rather that duplicate the bridge which locals feared was a threat to the historic atmosphere of Guildford. Guildford Road Bridge was widened in 1994, in order to create dual use paths either side of the bridge. Concrete decking was replaced in 2000. Traffic levels continued to increase, and in 2001 an allocation of $760,000 allowed maintenance work to be carried out to strengthen and streamline the bridge. As well as prolonging the life of the bridge, the work aimed to maintain the bridge’s historical appearance through the use of recycled timber.

Integrity/Authenticity

High Moderate to high

Condition

Good

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Statement of Significance

Guildford Road Bridge is a landmark western entrance statement to the heritage precinct of Guildford that harmonises with the remnant vegetation of the Swan River precinct and the Federation style architecture of nearby buildings; Guildford Road Bridge is a good example of a work designed by E.W. Godfrey.

Physical Description

Timber bridge of jarrah piles with whole tree trunks supporting the roadway. Transverse members and braces are also of jarrah. The width of the bridge has been increased by the insertion of steel joists and struts to support pipes and the footpath above on both sides of the two-lane roadway. The existing bridge probably dates from the 1940s or early 1950s.

History

The present bridge stands on or adjacent to the site of the Swan River bridge built in 1883 as the result of a Government promise to the residents of West Guildford (now Bassendean). This original bridge is one of several successive replacements.

Integrity/Authenticity

Fair

Condition

Good

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Bassendean Oval

Child Places

• 18088 Basssendean Oval Entrance Gate
• 18088 Basssendean Oval Entrance Gate
• 18090 MacDonald Grandstand
• 18090 MacDonald Grandstand
• 18089 Bassendean Oval Grandstand
• 18089 Bassendean Oval Grandstand

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Child Places

• 18088 Basssendean Oval Entrance Gate
• 18088 Basssendean Oval Entrance Gate
• 18090 MacDonald Grandstand
• 18090 MacDonald Grandstand
• 18089 Bassendean Oval Grandstand
• 18089 Bassendean Oval Grandstand

Statement of Significance

The following Statement of Significance has been based on the documentation prepared in 2003 for the State Heritage Office. Bassendean Oval, a grassed playing field, with two timber and masonry construction grandstands, three entry gates with the earliest built in 1929 in the Inter-War Stripped Classical Style, a mature eucalypt, and a white timber picket fence around the oval playing surface, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: • the Bill Walker and R.A. McDonald grandstands are rare as extant examples of timber construction grandstands. The McDonald Stand has a well-known reputation for the foot-stomping of Swan Districts Football Club fans, achievable due to its timber floors; • the Bill Walker and R.A. McDonald timber construction grandstands, are elegant and graceful examples of the Inter War Utilitarian style. The exterior of the masonry construction entry gates is an attractive example of the Inter War Stripped Classical style; • the place demonstrates the importance sport has played in local communities in Australia, and contributes to the local communities sense of place as a traditional venue for local and inter-school sports events, and as the home-ground of Western Australian Football League (WAFL) team the Swan Districts Football Club; • situated on a corner and on the main road, the place is a landmark within the town of Bassendean, particularly the McDonald and Walker timber grandstands and the 1929 entrance gates, and the view into the place through the gates from Old Perth Road is a significant vista. Its trees and grass banks provide visual amenity to the town; and, • the place is associated with prominent football identities, Richard A McDonald, the founder and inaugural President of the Swan Districts Football Club, and four-time Sandover Medallist Bill Walker, who won the medal in 1965, 1966 and 1967.

Physical Description

A very well maintained grass oval enclosed by a low white picket fence and surrounded by several covered grandstands as well as uncovered rows of seating. At either end of the oval is a set of football goalposts.

History

Bassendean Oval was officially opened in 1929 and consists of two timber grandstands (1932 & 1938), brick two-storey clubrooms (c1932 & 1972), main entrance gate at West Road (1929) and other entrance at Brook Street (1929 & 1970). In 1901, the West Guildford Road Board selected a reserve to be set aside for recreation. Originally, the land selected had been surveyed with the yet unsurfaced Perth-Guildford Road crossing through it. The Board approached the Government and agreed to deviating the road around the reserve. In 1901, Guildford Lot 196, Reserve 7401, was gazetted and initially set aside for “Government Requirements”, in 1902, the reserve was officially changed to “Recreation”. In 1922, the West Guildford Road Board voted to change its name from West Guildford to Bassendean. In 1927, the first motions were made towards establishing a West Australian Football League (WAFL) football team at Bassendean, whose home-ground would be Bassendean Oval. In September 1927, plans were prepared by Herbert Horsfall, Civil Engineer, for the Bassendean Recreation Reserve. In September 1929, the works for upgrading the Recreation Reserve to become an oval for league football were implemented, and a contract was let for the clearing, grading and fencing of the grounds including the entrance gates. On 7 December 1929, most of the works at the Recreation Reserve were completed, and Bassendean Oval was officially opened by the Hon. Philip Collier, giving the Bassendean football team a home ground and headquarters. The opening of Bassendean Oval coincided with the centenary celebrations for the foundation of the Swan River Colony. As with the rest of the State, Bassendean had felt the effects of the Great Depression years, with many of the local industries being cut back and numbers of workers retrenched. However, in spite of these hard times, during the 1930s Bassendean experienced an accelerated round of building projects in the town. The Bassendean Hotel opened (1930), Grandstands and clubhouses were erected on the Recreation Reserve, a new fire station was built (also in Wilson Street), a Trades Hall was built in Broadway, the Bassendean Masonic Lodge was erected in 1934, in 1936 the new Road Board building was completed and opened, and new shops opened up along the Perth Road. Having been built in the 1930s (and in the 1920s), Bassendean Oval is therefore part of this modest building boom and is important in demonstrating the effort made at a local level of trying to maintain some semblance of social cohesion and interaction during these hard times. On 3 February 1932, R. A. McDonald officially opened the three-storey timber and corrugated iron grandstand, (later to be called the Bill Walker Grandstand, (after the former player four-time Sandover Medallist and coach) with a seating capacity of 800. The grandstand cost £2,646. To celebrate the occasion, an A-grade cricket match was played between Mt Lawley and East Perth. In 1934, Bassendean (PSA) was finally accepted into the WAFL (which had been renamed the West Australian National Football League (WANFL) in 1931) and played their first season in this year as Swan Districts Football Club. During the Second World War, Bassendean Oval was utilised by the Department of the Army, using the McDonald Stand as their headquarters. Coming off the excitement of SDFC making its first finals in 1937, it was not long before a second grandstand was needed to cope with the increasing spectator numbers coming to the oval on football days to support their local team. The SDFC made a request to the Bassendean Road Board that a second be built, larger than the first. Architects, Powell, Cameron and Chisholm designed the stand which initially had a seating capacity of 1000.40 On 23 July 1938, the new timber construction grandstand was opened, named the McDonald stand after Richard A. McDonald, the former chairman of the Bassendean Road Board, founding member of the West Guildford Masonic Lodge and inaugural President of the SDFC (1934 & 1937). In 1963, sand from local landmark, Success Hill, was being quarried for use at other sites through Bassendean, including Bassendean Oval. Bell Brothers were contracted by the Town of Bassendean to quarry sand from Success Hill, some of which was used to build up the banks at the oval. In 1957, the SDFC became the first WANFL club to be issued a liquor licence. The members-only clubroom was completed in time for the SDFC Christmas party on 20 December 1957. On 3 February 1980, a fire caused substantial damage to the McDonald stand, mostly to the underneath section where the bar, property and store rooms were located. The fire, which started in the western end of the stand, was reported to have been deliberately lit. Bassendean Oval has been upgraded and altered continually since the 1930s in response to the changing needs and requirements of players and the audience. While there have been concerts and events at the oval its primary function as a football oval and headquarters of Swan District Football Club has continued. The oval was included on the State Register of Heritage Places in 2003.

Integrity/Authenticity

High Moderate

Condition

Fair

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Bassendean Fire Station (fmr)

Statement of Significance

Bassendean Fire Station (fmr), a single storey brick and tile fire station displaying characteristics of Inter-War Stripped Classical styling (1934 and 1969/71), with associated outbuildings and ladder training tower in the rear yard, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: the place is representative of two major periods in the history of the Western Australian Fire Service: the intense post-Depression building program of 1934-38, when the station was first built; and the restructuring of Metropolitan fire services in the 1950s, when the building was altered to accommodate permanent staff; the place is representative of the development of fire station facilities in Western Australia during the twentieth century, through its initial establishment in a local government building in 1911, to the relocation of the brigade to a purpose-built station in 1934 and expansion of that station in 1969-71 to accommodate permanent staff for the first time; the place has high social value to the community of Bassendean for its firefighting services, its award winning brigade, and as the venue for many social events, dances, fundraising events; and, the place was designed by architect K.C. Duncan, who, in 1932, developed a standardised plan for fire station building in Western Australia, and was responsible for the majority of fire stations built in the State from 1930 to 1960. The recreation room and carport are of little significance.

Physical Description

Bassendean Fire Station (fmr), a single storey brick and tile fire station displaying characteristics of Inter-War Stripped Classical styling (1934 and 1969/71), with associated outbuildings and ladder training tower in the rear yard,.

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Statement of Significance

The following statement has been drawn from the State Register entry for Place 129. Bassendean Fire Station (fmr), a single storey brick and tile fire station displaying characteristics of Inter-War Stripped Classical styling (1934 and 1969/71), with associated outbuildings and ladder training tower in the rear yard, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: • the place is representative of two major periods in the history of the Western Australian Fire Service: the intense post-Depression building program of 1934-38, when the station was first built; and the restructuring of Metropolitan fire services in the 1950s, when the building was altered to accommodate permanent staff; • the place is representative of the development of fire station facilities in Western Australia during the twentieth century, through its initial establishment in a local government building in 1911, to the relocation of the brigade to a purpose-built station in 1934 and expansion of that station in 1969-71 to accommodate permanent staff for the first time; • the place has high social value to the community of Bassendean for its firefighting services, its award winning brigade, and as the venue for many social events, dances, fundraising events; and, • the place was designed by architect K.C. Duncan, who, in 1932, developed a standardised plan for fire station building in Western Australia, and was responsible for the majority of fire stations built in the State from 1930 to 1960.

Physical Description

Single storey red brick, tile and render structure displaying characteristics of inter-war striped classical styling. The fire station comprises buildings from at least two development phases: the original 1934 station building (northern section) and the 1969/1971 extension (southern section). The building, which displays some characteristics of the inter-war stripped classical style in the original section of the building in the appliance bay façade detailing, it is domestic in scale and detailing with brick walls, concrete render bands and a complex hipped roof. The single appliance bay to the original section separates the two wings whilst the appliance bay constructed in the later section is located at the end of the buildings. All entrances lead directly onto the footpath/roadway. The original appliance bay façade is a projecting rendered bay with stepped parapet and central gable pediment and pilasters to either side. The façade has a large door opening currently enclosed with a large roller shutter door. The main section of the 1934 building has a face brick façade to window head height with a band of rendered masonry above. A timber framed half-glazed door is set marginally off-centre, flanked by timber framed eight pane windows and a single pane fanlight above. A slender concrete sunshade with moulded edges supported on concrete brackets shades the door and window. A single concrete step leads to this entry. Openings are generally timber framed with timber framed doors and windows, except for one metal framed opening to the rear of the northern elevation. Side and front windows are generally double hung with concrete sills. The external doors are timber framed with rendered and painted concrete lintels and timber thresholds. The later 1969/1971 addition has a face brick façade and is dominated by the double appliance bay wing. The hipped tiled roof projects over the appliance bay forming an entrance area, with a rendered band with ‘FIRE STATION’ extending across it. The original red lettering has been removed, leaving residue to form the words. The appliance bays have metal roller doors. There are two metal framed windows in the façade of the office section and a timber framed and lined entrance door set in the return formed by the junction of the appliance bay and the office. Window openings are generally metal framed with sliding windows. The door openings are timber-framed with doors generally flush panel or timber lined.

History

Established in January 1911, the West Guildford Volunteer Fire Brigade used the premises of Mr Guppy’s Shop on Surrey Street (now Old Perth Road) opposite the present day Bassendean Oval. The Brigade trained on Perth Road and Rosetta Streets. When the West Guildford Town Hall was built in 1912, the West Guildford Volunteer Fire Brigade (renamed Bassendean Volunteer Fire Brigade in 1922) used the hall until the construction of the purpose built fire station in 1934. As the State recovered from the Depression of the 1930s, the WAFBB entered another period of intense building activity, resulting in 18 new stations being constructed between 1934 and 1938. In 1932, the architect K.C. (Keith) Duncan developed a standardised plan for fire station buildings in Western Australia. This was adopted by the WAFBB and implemented during the 1934-1938 phase of construction, meaning that the majority of new stations from this period were based on a standard plan, including Bassendean Fire Station (fmr).By the late 1920s, the expanding district led to the need for a new, modern, and purpose-built fire station in Bassendean. Discussions were held between the Bassendean Roads Board and the WAFBB for many years, culminating in the construction of Bassendean Fire Station (fmr) in 1934. The new station was sited closer to the main centre of Bassendean on Parker Street, built on land donated by a local family specifically for the purpose of building Bassendean’s new fire station there. The donated plot was, at that time, the highest point in Bassendean. The new building was built by W. T. Clark at a cost of £1,782. Also located on the site were a 50ft high steel tower, a 50ft long hose washing trough, and the 1910 Bayswater fire station, which was relocated for the second time, and used at the Parker Street site as a recreation room. The 1910 Bayswater fire station was demolished in 1998. Bassendean Fire Station (fmr) was formally opened on 10 February 1934, in a ceremony attended by the Honorary Minister in Charge of Fire Brigades Mr Kitson, the Chairman of the WAFBB, the Mayor of Fremantle representing the WAFBB’s metropolitan local authorities, the MLC for the Metropolitan Suburban Provinces, the Chairman of the Bassendean Road Board, as well as about 300 local residents and visitors. The Bassendean Fire Brigade operated from Bassendean Fire Station (fmr) for the next seventy nine years, until its closure in December 2013. Career firefighters started at Bassendean in th the 1970s. During its lifetime the brigade earned a reputation as one of the leading brigades in the State. Bassendean dominated the annual Volunteer Fire Brigades’ State Championships, being awarded the title of State Champion Team a massive 23 times. They also competed nationally, winning in Victorian Grand Aggregate Competitions four times. On a number of occasions, the brigade concurrently held both State and National Australasian Championships, including an unbeaten three year stint between 1948 and 1950. As well as bringing pride to the Bassendean area through its competition wins, the Bassendean Brigade was also involved in the local community through its fundraising (often raising money for competitions or new equipment) and social events such as dancing or dinners. During WWII, an air raid shelter was constructed under Bassendean Fire Station (fmr) beneath the present day front office. A special phone was connected to this room during the war so that calls could be received. Following this use, the room was used as a cellar. Bassendean Fire Station (fmr) continued to operate as a part permanent part volunteer station until December 2013 when the building was decommissioned by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES). Bassendean’s permanent staff was moved to Kiara. The closure of Bassendean Fire Station (fmr) was met by considerable opposition not only by the brigade itself, but the local community, and the local and state government.

Integrity/Authenticity

High Low/Moderate

Condition

Fair

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Success Hill Lodge

Uses

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Statement of Significance

The following statement is drawn from the entry prepared for its inclusion in the State Register of Heritage Places in 2001. Success Hill Lodge, comprising a double-storey brick and iron building constructed in 1896 (c.1970s, 1980s) in the Federation Queen Anne style, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: • the place is a fine, largely intact example of the Federation Queen Anne style and is the focus of a precinct of predominantly single storey residential and commercial premises; • the place contributes to the local community's sense of place by its • landmark quality in a residential area, and for its early history as a hotel with a colourful reputation; • the place was constructed in 1896 as the Lockeridge Hotel in a suburb that was developing as a result of the rapid population growth caused by the gold boom. The site was chosen in an effort to take advantage of the holiday traffic on the Swan River and the Fremantle-Guildford railway line; • the place has been associated with various branches of health care for much of its existence, having been a hospital in 1903, 1912-1914 and 1965-1973, aged men's home 1918-1947, and a psychiatric hostel since the early 1980s; • the place was associated with the Salvation Army as part of their social welfare program, specifically the care of aged men and, to a lesser extent women, from 1918 to 1947; • the place is valued by the local and wider community for its ongoing associations with health care, and its earlier associations with aged care and education; and, • the original hotel building was designed by Clarence Wilkinson and E H Dean-Smith, who were in an architectural partnership from 1895 to 1900 and designed a number of residential and commercial premises in Perth and Fremantle during this time.

Physical Description

Success Hill Lodge is located on River Street with the main street fronts facing Anzac Terrace to the south and River Street to the east, with rear access and side view on Eighth Avenue to the west. The place comprises the original two storey building with attached single storey kitchen and verandah (1896), two periods of single storey extensions (c.1970s, 1980s). The rendered, two storey building is located on prominent corner site. The render is a later addition to the original face brick construction. The building was designed to take account of its corner position with a wing to each street elevation and angled central corner section incorporating the verandah and balcony. The complex roof system consisting of hipped and gabled elements is clad in short sheet CGI with a small timbered gablet above the chamfered corner elevation. The balcony canopy is part of the main roof, supported on timber columns to both levels. Timber framed sash windows. A well planted garden is enclosed by timber picket fence. The single storey painted brick additions constructed in the 1970s and 1980s adjoins the western elevation of the original building. The addition have contrasting roof forms, the 1970s addition is low pitched at about 5 degrees and clad with metal deck sheeting. The 1980s addition behind is a hipped roof pitched at approximately 45 degrees also clad in long sheets of Colorbond metal deck sheeting.

History

Success Hill Lodge was built for Herbert Ernest Parry as the Lockeridge Hotel, to a design by architects Clarence Wilkinson and E. H. Dean-Smith in 1896. The first landlord of the hotel was Charles Pressentin. The hotel was intended to gain the patronage of picnic boating parties but it was not a successful venture and several licensees took on the property in its first years. It ceased to operate as a hotel in 1902 and since that time has been, a hospital on three separate occasions, a girl's boarding school, Salvation Army men's home, a residence, and a psychiatric hostel. Success Hill Lodge was extended on the western elevation on at least two occasions, c.1970s and 1980s, to provide accommodation for residents and staff when the place operated as a psychiatric hospital. During the later works the original face brick work of the main building was rendered. The site originally included two timber cottages on the northern side of the original hotel however the original landholding was subdivided and these two cottages were demolished c2004. The place is currently [2015] used as a family home.

Integrity/Authenticity

Moderate Moderate

Condition

Fair

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VR 1876 Post Box, Bassendean

Parent Place or Precinct

25501 Red Post Boxes Group

Statement of Significance

• The post box is an item of original Victorian street furniture still in use and represents the early colonial postal service. • The post box is one of the earliest extant examples of a cast iron pillar box in the State. • The post box is one of the few non-J & E Ledger cast post boxes in Western Australia, and as such is rare. • The post box is representative of the early development of the Bassendean area, the increased population of the district and the subsequent demand for regular postal services.

Physical Description

An approximately 120cm (4ft) high hexagonal red painted cast iron pillar post box with a horizontal posting slot. It is inscribed with the date of its manufacture, 1876, and displays the royal cipher VR, for Victoria Regina who was the reigning monarch at the time. The style is a variation of the original J.W Penfold design used in Britain in the mid-nineteenth century. The access door appears to have been modified and/or re-hinged. The post box appears to be in good condition, and is still used by Australia Post today (2015).

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Parent Place or Precinct

25501 Red Post Boxes Group

Statement of Significance

• The pillar box has historic value as a rare remaining element from the 19th century in the Bassendean community which demonstrates the establishment of the small settlement at this time. • The pillar box has aesthetic value as an example of 19th century design and manufacture which is in good condition. • The pillar box has social value as on at least two occasions the proposed removal of the pillar box has seen a strong community response to retain the box at this location.

Physical Description

This pillar box is a relatively simple and unadorned example of a 19th century traditional post box. This style is known as the ‘Penfold’ design. The hexagonal post box is approximately 120cm (4ft) in height with a horizontal posting slot beneath a domed and cantilevered, projecting cap. The horizontal opening below the cap has the word ‘LETTERS’ cast into the weather flap. Above the posting slot, the royal cipher - VR, for Victoria Regina (Latin for Queen Victoria) - and the date of manufacture (1876) is cast. Below the posting slot, a single moulded band is located and a key opening door allows access to the interior of the box. The door is hinged with two metal hinges. The entire box is painted red although some fading is evident and remnant paper from former signage is present. Branding for Australia Post is located on the front face of the box. The box appears to be in good condition [2017].

History

Within six months of the establishment of the Swan River Colony, a rudimentary postal system had been established, with the Harbour Master at Fremantle being appointed postmaster of the colony. Predominately occupied with the management of mail incoming and outgoing by sea, letters could only be paid for at his office. As the population grew, post offices were established across the State, initially housed in the local postmaster's residential or business premises, and later in purpose-built post office buildings. Mail was carried by contract, on horseback or spring cart, or by native mail-carriers. Mail routes were long, covering great distances to reach the scattered population, and expensive to maintain. The high charge of postage resulted in colonists preferring to send mail via private agency rather than use the colonial postal service. In 1854, adhesive postage stamps were introduced to Western Australia, regulating the price and making prepayment of postage compulsory. Prepaid postage facilitated the introduction and operation of post boxes - letter receivers located away from a post office or shop. First introduced in Great Britain in 1851/52 (in the Channel lslands) and Australia in 1855/56 (at Circular Quay in Sydney) Western Australia's first post boxes are thought to have been erected in Fremantle in 1868. The red hexagonal 'Penfold' design which was standard issue in Britain from 1866 to 1879. The Penford design was created by English architect John Penfold and were manufactured between 1866 and 1879. Pillar boxes were exported across the globe however this pillar post box was manufactured locally to a similar, but less decorative, design found in Great Britain at that time It is not known who manufactured these early boxes as there is no foundry mark on this box, or the two other surviving examples of the type. However it is thought that they were made in Western Australia rather than being imported from Britain or the Eastern States. It is presumed that post boxes were erected on an ad hoc basis, as no documentation has been found to support them being erected as part of an organised scheme. It appears that the post boxes were placed where demand dictated, in locations where the nearby population was not large enough to warrant a post office but which nevertheless generated enough post to warrant a box. Pillar boxes are cast with the initials of the reigning monarch and date of manufacture. Although abandoned in Great Britain in 1879 following complaints that letters were becoming trapped in the hexagonal design, the 'Penfold' design appears to have been standard issue in Western Australia until the Commonwealth took control of the postal system following Federation in 1901. Prior to 1901, postal services in Western Australia in the second half of the 19th century were overseen by the Colonial Post and Telegraph Office within the Colonial Secretary’s Office. Anton Helmich was the Post Master General of the Colony between 1847 and 1887 and he oversaw the introduction of adhesive postage stamps for the colony in addition to developing the provision of services throughout the colony. The decision to erect a pillar box at this site in Surrey Street c1876 was consistent with the location of the Pensioner Guard cottages in Surrey Street (built in the 1850s) and the relatively few settlers who lived in the locality known as ‘West Guildford’ until the 1920s. It has not been established when this pillar box was erected at the site. A pillar box is known to have been located near the former Lockeridge Hotel in 1910 indicating that pillar boxes were positioned around the townsite. In 1950, a newspaper article in The West Australian stated that the pillar box was to be removed and be replaced with a contemporary ‘mail receiver’. This did not occur and it is recorded in The Bassendean Town News of March 1979 that a proposal in 1975 to remove the pillar box by Australia Post was fought and won by the Bassendean Town Council. Since that time the pillar box has been retained and continues to be used for its original purpose.

Integrity/Authenticity

High High

Condition

Good

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Pensioner Guard Cottage

Condition

Good.

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Statement of Significance

From the 1 Surrey Street Conservation Plan, 2007. Surrey Street, Bassendean, comprising a brick rendered and shingle Pensioner Guard Cottage (1856-1857, 1991-1993) and brick rendered and tile residence (c.1893, c.1952), has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: • the Pensioner Guard Cottage is a rare surviving example in metropolitan Perth, and one of the few remaining throughout the state; • the Pensioner Guard Cottage is arguably the finest extant example of a Pensioner Guard Cottage in Western Australia; • it has significant associations with the Pensioner Guards who were an identifiable social group within the Western Australian Colonial community, during Colonial times when it was necessary to have forces of law and order visible in society, and the • Pensioner Guard Cottage informs of the unique way of life for a Pensioner Guard and his family from the 1850s; • the Pensioner Guard Cottage is significant for the identifiable form, scale and materials that inform of the earliest history of the Bassendean, during the Convict period, and is integral within the it’s townscape and character; • the Pensioner Guard Cottage evidences the use of local materials with convict labour; • it demonstrates the evolution of residential development on the site, from a two room cottage in 1856-1857 that housed a family of 10 by 1870, to the construction of the adjacent residence in c.1893, and the subsequent additions to that residence in c.1952, with the eventual demise as a residential function in the 1980s; and • it is a focal point for the Bassendean district’s historical sense of place and community pride associated with the role in the state’s history.

Physical Description

The place comprises Pensioner Guard Cottage (1856-1857, 1991-1993) and residence (c.1893, c.1952) and is situated central between North Road and Calnon Street, in Surrey Street, on the south side of the road. Pensioner Guard Cottage is located on the west side of the site, adjacent to the residence, both facing the road. Pensioner Guard Cottage is a modest vernacular building that responded to the living requirements of the pensioner guards, and the availability of materials. It evidences some influences of the Victorian Georgian style of architecture in the gentleness of scale, simple rectangular form and symmetrical facades, and traditional bearing walls. The two roomed building forms a rectangle. The rooms are connected, with the front and rear doors aligned north-south in the west room of the cottage. French doors, a later intervention, provide access to the rear ( The gable roof is clad with 1991-1993 (Rose Oak from NSW) timber shingles. The gables are detailed with overlapped reverse scalloped barge boards. The eaves are unlined. The timber roof structure on the interior evidences some of the original lime-washed timbers that were in existence in 1991-1993. The single chimney is almost central, and on the ridge line. It is a square face brick chimney that has been rendered and painted. It has a simple corbelled detail. The external walls are rendered. Documentary evidence reveals that the original brick walls are laid in Flemish bond and were mostly still face brick work prior to be rendered in 1991-1993

History

For a full history of the site and the cottage refer to the Conservation Plan prepared in 2007 by Laura Gray and Irene Sauman. The decision to take convicts in the Swan River Colony was in response to a significant number of the influential colonists demanding labour to assist in development of the struggling economy. Convicts arrived in the Swan River colony from 1850 to 1868 accompanying them were the Pensioner Guards, soldiers who had fought in British armies, but were on a pension. They had either served a twenty year term, or they had been made redundant as British armies were reduced in number. The Pensioner Guards were part of the British government's commitment to the West Australian colonists that free settlers would be sent out to dilute the convict presence. The guards were offered free passage to Western Australia for themselves and their families. They were employed as guards on the convict ships and once in the colony their duties were not particularly onerous. Employment was offered to them in the Convict Establishment as warders, but their main purpose was to act as a disciplined body of men who could be called upon by the civil authorities to quell any disturbance. The first contingent arrived in the second ship, the Hashemy, November 1850. In Western Australia Pensioner Guards were settled on the fringes of towns, especially towns in which there was a convict depot. Their blocks of land varied in size between two and ten acres, and each block had a two roomed cottage (value £15) erected by convicts, or ticket-of-leave labourers. The land and house became the property of the guard and his family provided he stayed and worked the land for seven years. Successful groupings of small land owners from the military caste were formed at North Fremantle, and at York, Toodyay, Bunbury, Kojonup, Greenough Flats and Albany. The construction of the four cottages in West Guildford was supervised by Lieutenant Edmund DuCane, Royal Engineer, whose reports of his completed work are thorough. DuCane was responsible for the eastern settlements of Guildford, Toodyay and York. At the time of the construction of the cottages Guildford was a ticket-of-leave depot, rather than the convict outpost it was to later become. Therefore most of the labour used to construct the cottages was ticket-of-leave men, supervised by Sappers. In August 1855, DuCane's half yearly report noted that Guildford had an average of 67 ticket-of-leave men at his disposal and they had been engaged in burning bricks for 12 Pensioner cottages, and sawing timber. It was originally planned to build 12 Pensioners' cottages at West Guildford, but only four were actually built. The cottages took several years to complete and were not occupied until the 1860s. The four Pensioner Cottages were located on Lots 114 to 117. The first occupants were Pensioner John Law Davis (Lot 114), Pensioner Henry Chartres (Lot 115), James Brown (Lot 116) and Pensioner William Oliver (Lot 117). The three Pensioner Guard occupants acquired title to their lots in 1864 and 1865 after the required seven years occupancy, but James Brown purchased Lot 116 for £7-10-0. On 27 November 1857, Pensioner Guard John Law Davis was appointed caretaker of the four Enrolled Pensioner Force cottages at Guildford which were unoccupied. Davis, his wife, Amelia Sarah and infant daughter, Amelia Law occupied the cottage on Lot 114. John Law Davis acquired title to Lot 114 in October 1864 at no cost after his seven years of occupancy. On his death in 1870, the cottage transferred to his son William and in 1893 the property was transferred to Edmund Ralph Brockman who it is understood to have built an additional larger cottage on the site for his daughter Frances Brown and her husband Aubrey Brown. The original pensioner guard cottage provided the kitchen and dining room for the new cottage. The couple lived there until the death of Aubrey in 1909 when Frances sold the property. By the 1930s, there were only two cottages remaining and by 1947, only one. In the 1950s, the property was used as a boarding house and alterations were undertaken to the 1890s cottage and the pensioner guard cottage. During the 1960s and 1970s, the property changed hands and the land was subdivided creating a smaller lot for the two cottages which were acquired by the Town of Bassendean in 1988 with the intention of creating a museum within the 1890s cottage and restoring the Pensioner Guard cottage as a rare example of its type. Conservation works were undertaken in the 1990s and in 1993; the restored Pensioner Guard cottage was opened by the Mayor of Bassendean, John Cox. Since then the place has been open to the public and further plans to develop the place as a tourist destination have been put forward by the Town of Bassendean Historical Society and interested community groups. In 1994, the Pensioner Guard Cottage was included permanently on the State Register of Heritage Places.

Integrity/Authenticity

Moderate Moderate

Condition

Good

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Bassendean Oval Grandstand

Parent Place or Precinct

07403 Bassendean Oval

Condition

Fair to good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Parent Place or Precinct

07403 Bassendean Oval

Statement of Significance

• Bill Walker Grandstand has historic value for its association with the establishment of the Bassendean Oval sports facility in the Inter-War period. • The place has aesthetic value as an elegant and graceful example of the Inter-War Utilitarian style and is a rare example of a timber grandstand in the metropolitan area. • The place has historic value for its association with local footballer and four time winner of the Sandover Medal, Bill Walker.

Physical Description

The grandstand is a 2-3 storey structure constructed from timber with structural columns and a steel framed roof structure, with a seating capacity of approximately 800 people. The roof is a hipped gambrel form with a central gable to the south, clad in corrugated zincalume in single length sheets with colonial profile guttering. The walls are timber framed and clad with large format smooth rusticated weatherboards. The north elevation is fully enclosed with timber framed panelling, awning windows and solid timber doors. High level vents are located underneath the eaves across the elevation. A steel and timber flight of stairs central to the elevation leads up into the grandstand. The east and west elevations are partially enclosed as the line of the top of the wall follows the grandstand seating. A steel and timber stair is located on each elevation. A timber door is located to the west elevation under the stair. The southern elevation is completely open with timber grandstand seating facing the oval. Protected seating is provided for the teams and umpires at the base of the grandstand with a low fence to the oval side and a flat pitch skillion roof sheet with corrugated zincalume. The entrance to the change rooms under the grandstand is located within the centre of the elevation. The roof structure is mainly timber with a large steel beam and curved angle brackets to the full extent of the southern elevation.

History

In 1901, Guildford Lot 196, Reserve 7401, was gazetted and initially set aside for “Government Requirements”, in 1902, the reserve was officially changed to “Recreation”. On 4 March 1904, the Bassendean Oval was vested in the Town of Bassendean. After the reserve had been partially cleared, a concrete cricket pitch was laid, followed by tennis courts and a shelter shed. In 1922, the West Guildford Road Board voted to change its name from West Guildford to Bassendean. In 1927, the first motions were made towards establishing a West Australian Football League (WAFL) football team at Bassendean, whose home-ground would be Bassendean Oval. In September 1929, the works for upgrading the Recreation Reserve to become an oval for league football were implemented, and a contract was let for the clearing, grading and fencing of the grounds. On 7 December 1929, most of the works at the Recreation Reserve were completed, and Bassendean Oval was officially opened by the Hon. Philip Collier, giving the Bassendean football team a home ground and headquarters. The opening of Bassendean Oval coincided with the centenary celebrations for the foundation of the Swan River Colony. As with the rest of the State, Bassendean had felt the effects of the Great Depression years, with many of the local industries being cut back and numbers of workers retrenched. However, in spite of these hard times, during the 1930s Bassendean experienced an accelerated round of building projects in the town. The grandstand was one of these projects. On 3 February 1932, R. A. McDonald officially opened the threestorey timber and corrugated iron grandstand, (later to be called the Bill Walker Grandstand, (after the former player four-time Sandover Medallist and coach) with a seating capacity of 800. The grandstand cost £2,646. To celebrate the occasion, an A-grade cricket match was played between Mt Lawley and East Perth. The Bill Walker stand was officially dedicated and named as such in 1976, prior to that it was referred to as the Bassendean Grandstand. In 2000, the Bill Walker Stand was in need of repairs owing to significant termite damage and was not able to be used for the 2000 football season while major conservation works were undertaken. The grandstand was included in the State Register of Heritage Places as part of the entry for Bassendean Oval.

Integrity/Authenticity

High Moderate

Condition

Fair

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Basssendean Oval Entrance Gate

Parent Place or Precinct

07403 Bassendean Oval

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Parent Place or Precinct

07403 Bassendean Oval

Statement of Significance

• The entrance gates have aesthetic value as a simple and intact example of the Inter War Stripped Classical style as applied to a public building and for their contribution to the streetscape. • The entrance gates have historic value for their association with the development of the Bassendean community in the Inter War period and the provision of sporting facilities for the community. • The entrance gates have social value for the Bassendean community as they are associated with the many events held at the ground and they contribute to the community sense of place.

Physical Description

A rendered concrete structure whose main feature is four arched openings. The outer two archways are bigger than the central two archways. Connected to the rear of the western archway is a small single storey, flat roofed building. The façade of this building has two rectangular openings which people can access by going under the western archway to buy tickets etc. The central two archways act as the entrance to the oval. Behind these archways is a covered enclosure where tickets are checked. Above the central archways is a curved feature which displays the name of the oval (Bassendean Recreation Reserve) and holds three flag posts placed at regular intervals. The eastern archway acts as the exit from the oval and is uncovered. All four archways are closed off with metal gates. There is a centenary plaque attached to the pillar between the central archways and a commemorative plaque in the grassed area in front of the gates.

History

In 1901, Guildford Lot 196, Reserve 7401, was gazetted and initially set aside for “Government Requirements”, in 1902, the reserve was officially changed to “Recreation”. On 4 March 1904, the Bassendean Oval was vested in the Town of Bassendean. After the reserve had been partially cleared, a concrete cricket pitch was laid, followed by tennis courts and a shelter shed. In 1922, the West Guildford Road Board voted to change its name from West Guildford to Bassendean. In 1927, the first motions were made towards establishing a West Australian Football League (WAFL) football team at Bassendean whose home-ground would be Bassendean Oval. In September 1927, plans were prepared by Herbert Horsfall, Civil Engineer, for the Bassendean Recreation Reserve. The plans included the entrance gates (sometimes referred to as the Heritage Gates) at Brook Street showing the wording ‘Bassendean Road Board, Bassendean Oval, Grandstand Reserve’. In September 1929, the works for upgrading the Recreation Reserve to become an oval for league football were implemented, and a contract was let for the clearing, grading and fencing of the grounds including the entrance gates. On 7 December 1929, most of the works at the Recreation Reserve were completed, and Bassendean Oval was officially opened by the Hon. Philip Collier, giving the Bassendean football team a home ground and headquarters. The opening of Bassendean Oval coincided with the centenary celebrations for the foundation of the Swan River Colony. The entry gates, constructed of rendered concrete, consisted of two change boxes, two double cyclone gate exists and two sets of turnstiles cost £390. In 1934, Bassendean Football Club was finally accepted into the WAFL (which had been renamed the West Australian National Football League (WANFL) in 1931) and played their first season in this year as Swan Districts Football Club. Bassendean Oval has been upgraded and altered since the 1930s in response to the changing needs and requirements of players and the audience. A new entrance gate was constructed near Brook Street in 1970 reducing the use of these gates. The gates were included in the State Register of Heritage Places as part of the entry for Bassendean Oval.

Integrity/Authenticity

High Moderate

Condition

Fair

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MacDonald Grandstand

Parent Place or Precinct

07403 Bassendean Oval

Condition

Fair

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Parent Place or Precinct

07403 Bassendean Oval

Statement of Significance

• R. A. McDonald Grandstand has historic value for its association with the establishment of the Bassendean Oval sports facility in the Inter-War period. • The place has aesthetic value as an elegant and graceful example of the Inter-War Utilitarian style and is a rare example of a timber grandstand in the metropolitan area. • The place has historic value for its association with local identity and inaugural President of the Swan Districts Football Club, Richard A. McDonald.

Physical Description

The RA McDonald Stand is similar to the Bill Walker Grandstand but can seat up to 1000 people. The stand is 3 storeys constructed from timber and steel. The roof is hipped and asymmetrical with corrugated zincalume single length sheets and colonial profile gutters. The walls are clad with large format smooth rusticated weatherboards. The eaves to the northern elevation are lined on the rake with a board material likely to contain asbestos. Windows are timber framed with two highlight fixed panels over and 3 panels under, which are 2 centre pivot panels and 1 fixed panel. Later additions include a bullnosed corrugated colorbond skillion roof to the western half of the northern elevation and a lean to, of corrugated colorbond, skillion roof to the east elevation. The southern elevation (Oval side) is grandstand seating with a central entrance between a flight of stairs within a recessed section of the grandstand. The weatherboarding to the bottom of the southern elevation has been replaced with corrugated colorbond sheeting. The roof structure is steel framed with timber purlins, the steel framing may not be the original fabric.

History

In 1901, Guildford Lot 196, Reserve 7401, was gazetted and initially set aside for “Government Requirements”, in 1902, the reserve was officially changed to “Recreation”. On 4 March 1904, the Bassendean Oval was vested in the Town of Bassendean. After the reserve had been partially cleared, a concrete cricket pitch was laid, followed by tennis courts and a shelter shed. In 1922, the West Guildford Road Board voted to change its name from West Guildford to Bassendean. In 1927, the first motions were made towards establishing a West Australian Football League (WAFL) football team at Bassendean, whose home-ground would be Bassendean Oval. In September 1929, the works for upgrading the Recreation Reserve to become an oval for league football were implemented, and a contract was let for the clearing, grading and fencing of the grounds. On 7 December 1929, most of the works at the Recreation Reserve were completed, and Bassendean Oval was officially opened by the Hon. Philip Collier, giving the Bassendean football team a home ground and headquarters. The opening of Bassendean Oval coincided with the centenary celebrations for the foundation of the Swan River Colony. The Bassendean Grandstand (later Bill Walker Grandstand) was opened at the oval in 1932. In 1934, Bassendean (PSA) was finally accepted into the WAFL (which had been renamed the West Australian National Football League (WANFL) in 1931) and played their first season in this year as Swan Districts Football Club. On 12 February 1935, the first annual meeting of the SDFC was held in the Bassendean Town Hall. Coming off the excitement of SDFC making its first finals in 1937, it was not long before a second grandstand was needed to cope with the increasing spectator numbers coming to the oval on football days to support their local team. The SDFC made a request to the Bassendean Road Board that a second be built, larger than the first. Architects, Powell, Cameron and Chisholm designed the stand which initially had a seating capacity of 1000. On 23 July 1938, the new timber construction grandstand was opened, named the McDonald stand after Richard A. McDonald, the former chairman of the Bassendean Road Board, founding member of the West Guildford Masonic Lodge and inaugural President of the SDFC (1934 & 1937). McDonald was also instrumental in getting the club into the WANFL competition. On 3 February 1980, a fire caused substantial damage to the McDonald stand, mostly to the underneath section where the bar, property and store rooms were located. The fire, which started in the western end of the stand, was reported to have been deliberately lit. By the end of March, the stand was re-opened, with some repairs, costing around $20,000, having been carried out with the replanking and repainting of the outside and repairs to the seating. Since that time the grandstand has continued to be the venue for the football audience and has gained a reputation for the foot-stomping of Swan Districts Football Club fans, achievable due to its timber floors. The grandstand was included in the State Register of Heritage Places as part of the entry for Bassendean Oval.

Integrity/Authenticity

High Moderate

Condition

Fair

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Bassendean Masonic Lodge (fmr)

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Statement of Significance

Bassendean Masonic Lodge (fmr), a single storey brick, tile and corrugated iron building in Inter-War Free Classical style in a sparse suburban setting, has cultural heritage significance for the following reasons: • the place is representative of the social input Freemasons have made in local communities across Australia, having housed Freemasons of both the Bassendean Lodge and the Bassendean Chapter who were part of and contributed to their local community; • the place is a fine representative example of a Masonic Lodge rendered in the Inter-War Free Classical style; • the place represents a time when the Masonic movement in Western Australia had strong membership; • by virtue of its scale, imposing proportions and siting, it is an imposing local landmark; and, • the place is highly valued by the local community, which was made evident by their reaction to the development proposals of the Town of Bassendean.

Physical Description

A majestic looking building of brick and tile construction incorporating a prominent gable with pediment with many decorative elements. The façade is face brick, divided into three sections by rendered pilasters, each section containing a 3-sectioned timber framed opening. Each opening arrangement consists of a casement opening with obscured glazing, two high lights above and a further small top hung opening above. Angled rendered sills and rendered lintels are positioned directly under the frieze. The gable is the main decorative feature of the façade, rendered and painted bright white, incorporating dentils to the corbelling and around the pediment. Simple geometric moulding within the gable and a vented element to the apex. No entrance to the façade, with entry provided along the side elevation. The side elevations are divided into bays by stepped buttresses with rendered raked cappings. Each bay containing a high level timber framed window with angled brick sill and rendered lintels. Access is via double timber doors with double height fan light above.

History

The Bassendean Masonic Lodge (fmr) was erected in 1934 by the members of the Bassendean Lodge No. 102 (formerly West Guildford Lodge 102) and Bassendean Chapter 20 for use by both as their Masonic home. The details of the Bassendean Masonic Lodge (fmr) building were finalised at the Building Committee meetings of 24 October and 29 December 1933. W. Bro. Eric Jones, who was the West Guildford Lodge Secretary and 1st Principal for Bassendean Chapter, was requested to prepare plans, and the erection of the hall was to be supervised by Bro. G. McDonald. The building committee prepared the tenders for the various trades, selected the contractors and ordered materials. The bricks (49,000) were supplied by Whitemans Brickyard, and W Bro D Dells carted them to the site for 8 shillings per 1,000 bricks and Bro W H H Adie laid them at a cost of £1-17s-6p per 1,000. Since its construction very few alterations or additions have occurred to the building. In 1946, it was proposed to build a porch on the south-west side of the hall, but, apart from the plans showing the proposed porch, there is no other documentary or physical evidence to confirm that this was constructed. In 1961, some internal renovations were carried out to the hall, and in 1972 a suspended ceiling was installed in the Lodge room. The building was transferred to the Town of Bassendean in 1988 and until 2012 it was used intermittently for meetings and functions. In 2012, the place was converted into a private residence with portion allocated for use as professional rooms. The works were undertaken in 2012/2013 with majority of the works to the interior of the place. The Bassendean Masonic Lodge (fmr) was used continuously as a Masonic hall until 1988, when both the Bassendean Lodge No. 102 and the Bassendean Chapter No. 20 held their last meetings.

Integrity/Authenticity

Moderate High

Condition

Good

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Red Post Boxes Group

Child Places

• 01279 Kalgoorlie Railway Station
• 07406 VR 1876 Post Box, Bassendean
• 07406 VR 1876 Post Box, Bassendean
• 05304 Old Busselton Post Office Site & Post Box

Physical Description

The group comprises four operational red post boxes: - VR 1876 Bassendean - VR 1891 Busselton - VR 1894 Kalgoorlie Railway Station - VR 1897 Kalgoorlie Hotel

History

The first pillar box in Western Australia is thought to have been erected in Fremantle in 1868. From 1891, all Western Australia’s pillar boxes were cast by the J & E Ledger Foundry, therefore the boxes which predate this time, including VR 1876 Post Box, Bassendean were cast by other (mostly unknown) foundries and differ slightly in design. J & E Ledger cast post boxes from 1891 until 1912. Forty five (45) Ledger post boxes remain extant in WA, with the majority being located within a heritage precinct or museum. Ledger’s post boxes fit into one of three designs, each of which relate to a specific reigning monarch. The three types are: • VR boxes cast between 1891 and 1900 – carrying the royal cipher VR, for Victoria Regina (Latin for Queen Victoria, 1853 to 1901) - These boxes are similar in design to the earlier Penfold-type boxes. They are simple red hexagonal cast iron structures, originally cast with a finial on top. • ER boxes cast between 1901 and 1909 – carrying the royal cipher ER for Edward Rex (King Edward, 1901 to 1910) – These boxes are larger than the earlier VR versions. They are cylindrical, with a finial topper, and have a black swan cast on the front. • GR boxes cast between 1910 and 1912 – carrying the royal cipher GR for George Rex (King George, 1910 to 1936) – These boxes are similar to the ER boxes in that they are tall, cylindrical boxes, cast with a black swan on the front. It appears that cast iron post boxes were slowly taken out of postal circulation in the twentieth century and removed from their original locations. The majority are no longer used for postal services and are now located within heritage precincts or museums. For more information about cast iron post boxes in Western Australia, see Hobson, Sue, Cast Iron Pillar Boxes of Western Australia: An Early History of the J & E Ledger Foundry (Scott Print, Perth: 2015)

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