Former Greencape Lighthouse telegraph operator's residence:
The little prefabricated Californian redwood building now standing at 42 Mitchell Street, Eden, arrived in Australia from America, destined for the newly constructed Greencape Lighthouse complex erected by Albert Wood Aspinall between 1882 and 1883. That facility included a telegraph office built on the spot known as Queen’s Hill and in 1883, it was reported that it "...is an important telegraph station and an operator is always on duty..." Despite this, however, the living quarters originally provided for the master were “…not very comfortable…” so arrangements were made to provide “…one of those American redwood houses which can be fitted together and taken to pieces almost as easily as a child’s puzzle…”
The importation of prefabricated or “portable” buildings to the Australian colonies began as early as the 1830s and with the ongoing shortage of labour and materials, particularly in the wake of the 1850s gold rushes, demand continued to grow. The peak year was 1853, but trade continued throughout the 19th and into the early 20th century. Australian architectural historian Professor Miles Lewis of the University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning noted that "...they are a telling reflection of peculiar historical conditions which made the transportation of such buildings physically and economically feasible..."
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Designs ranged from simple cottages right through to larger, more impressive houses and grand villas along with civic buildings, with pattern books and catalogues allowing purchasers to browse and buy at a distance. Timber was the most prevalent material of the prefabricated buildings brought to Australia, although cast iron and corrugated iron were popular, and other materials were also utilised, including papier-mâché. Today, according to Professor Lewis, South Eastern Australia retains more extant 19th century examples than anywhere else in the world, and, as the Mitchell Street cottage illustrates, still more are being identified as recognition grows.
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The cottage when it formed part of the Loch Garra building at Davidson’s whaling station, Kiah River.
Image from Whalemen of Twofold Bay, by Rene Davidson.
After landing in Australia, the cottage was transported to the isolated Greencape peninsula where it was erected behind the telegraph office in September 1883. However, a less than glowing report about the new addition claimed that "Such a building is totally unsuitable for the purpose it is destined to serve and probably after a very heavy gale both house and occupant will be missing, for the wind sweeps this headland with a force inconceivable by dwellers of Sydney..." Fortunately, the ominous warning proved unfounded and after William R. Bragg moved in as the first of the lighthouse's telegraph and signal masters to occupy the building, it remained in use on the site for thirty-two years.
Then, in 1915, the little four-roomed cottage was offered for “…purchase, demolition and removal…” After being bought by master whaler George Davidson, it was relocated to the family’s Kiah River station where it was added to the existing “Loch Garra” residence.
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In 1930, the roving cottage was once again on the move. This time, after being dismantled, it was transported across Twofold Bay to the township of Eden where it was erected at its current Mitchell Street location. There, for almost three-quarters of a century, it was home to George Davidson's daughter Elsie and her husband Norm Severs, and remained as their family home until Elsie passed away in 2004.
In 2010, when the little prefabricated building was placed on the market, it was described as a "...classic three bedroom timber cottage...constructed from American timbers
The cottage in its present location in Mitchell Street, Eden.
© Angela George. All rights reserved.
transported to Australia in the latter part of the 19th century..." It was reported that "The stumps are vertical blocks of wood with grooves cut in them, into which the walls are fitted..." The building is not listed on the Local Environment Plan.
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NOTE: This property is privately owned. Inclusion in this project does not indicate or imply any general or specific permission for the general public to have or seek access.
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© Angela George. All rights reserved.
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References and bibliography :
Australian Town and Country Journal
Davidson, Rene, Whalemen of Twofold Bay, Rene Davidson, Eden, 1988
Domain, Far South Coast lift out, 2010
Eden Magnet
Freeman, Peter, pers. com.
Kesby, Robyn, pers. comm.
Lewis, Miles, ABPL 90019 Australian Building Analysis - Prefabrication in Australasia, n.d.
Lewis, Miles, The Diagnosis of Prefabricated Buildings, Australian Historical Archaeology, 3, 1985 pp56 - 69
Lewis, Miles, Jolimont in Context, Latrobeana - Journal of the C. J. La Trobe Society Inc., Vol. 9, No. 1, February 2010, pp 2 - 12
Raymond, Pat, pers. comm.
Scheiffers, Sue, Pioneer Prefabricated Buildings, Heritage Living, National Trust of South Australia, February 2012, pp. 12 - 13
Sydney Morning Herald
https://www.onmydoorstep.com.au/heritage-listing/2045/prefabricated-iron-cottage