Kong Meng & Co. Warehouse, later Chinese Clubhouse, 200-202 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne
Graeme Butler and Associates01/07/1989
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Kong Meng & Co. Warehouse, later Chinese Clubhouse, 200-202 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne
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Date of work:
01/07/1989
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BIF-CITY 105886
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Item from Collection: Heritage Collection (HC)
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Series: Central City (BIF-CITY)
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RESEARCH ADDED BY GRAEME BUTLER 2022:__________________________________________________Period: Early VictorianDATE: 1860-1;ASSOCIATIONS: Lowe Kong Meng, Sam Yup Society, Num Pon Soon Society;DESIGNER: Knight & Kerr;BUILDER: Thomas Glaister & Co..GRAEME BUTLER 1989, LITTLE BOURKE STREET PRECINCT CONSERVATION STUDYStatement of SignificanceKong Meng & Co, Store and Sam Yup Society Clubhouse200-202 Little Bourke StreetHistoryBuilt: 1860-1Lowe Kong Meng, merchant and Chinese community leader, was born the son of a Penang merchant, Lowe A Ouee, and the descendent of dwellers of Sze Yap, near Canton..Born a British subject, he quickly mastered both the English and French languages and became an obvious choice as a leader of the Chinese in Victoria, urging his countrymen to adopt the English way. Added to his many commercial and community successes was the awarding of the civil order, Mandarin of the blue button, by Emperor Tung Ch'ih in 1863.1This building was created in Lowe Kong Meng's name by its architects, Knight & Kerr in 1860-1, as a 'store' for 'Meng Keng &. Co.'2 Despite this Kong Meng & Co.s premises remained on the south side of Little Bourke Street, just east of Russell Street, and the building's main use over the following years was as clubrooms for the Sam Yup Society, a group representing three districts in Can ton province. Peter Kerr wrote in a miniature auto biography of the 'small building' be designed for Kong Meng in Little Bourke Street, noting how `...comparatively few know of the existence of a classic building in the haunts of the Chinese...'. The builders were Thomas Glaister & Co. of Melbourne. 3The clubrooms are still maintained at 200 Little Bourke Street but from late in the 19th century (after Kong Meng's death in 1888), other uses occupied 202. As with most of the city's surviving early residential buildings, this new commercial use possibly signalled the eventual closing- in of the ground level colonnade, removal of two thirds of the front ground-level wall and loss of the presumed domestic-scale windows, to extend the ground floor area for use with a cook shop or restaurant. Also, the entrance shifted from the centre to the right. 4 Hang Heong Lowe conducted a restaurant there in the late 1890s and the Oriental Cafe, with Yin Bun Low & Co., in the early 1900s, using the address as their storeroom during the 1920s and 1930s. 5DescriptionViewed as a creation of 1860 this ornate design looks more akin to the boom period of the 1880s, albeit with the subtle changes introduced in the closing-in of the ground level and the architectural tastes of the new occupant, the Num Pon Soon society (representing a district in Canton). Fortunately, its first form remains clearly visible as a masterly revival of the High Italian Renaissance style with Corinthian columns and pilasters at the upper level superposed on Ionic pilasters at the lower level. Distinct Chinese details. include the applied key-pattern frieze over the upper level windows, the presumed introduction of the square opening between them, the wave pattern at first floor level and, with the closing in of the ground level, the glazing mullions have taken up an Eastern pattern (now covered with signs).External IntegrityGenerally original, given the dosing in and altering of the ground-level colonnade. The shop door is new, the stone plinth has been painted and signs cover the decorative window mullions. Parts of the upper level are painted sympathetically.SignificanceArchitecturally an elegant disposition of classical elements which is rare among city buildings of this age and historically, linked with a society and an individual, who both exerted great influence among Victorian Chinese. As a streetscape element it is inseparable from the buildings adjoining on the east, in particular the mission church.Notes:I AUSTRALIAN DICTIONARY OF BIOGRAPHY; Sutherland. vol.I. p558. vol.2. p.5672 CITY OF MELBOURNE BUILDING PERMIT APPLICATIONS 708 21/12/18603 NATIONAL TRUST OF AUSTRALIA (VIC) File 126: ibid4 see Sutherland, etching5. DIRECTORIES OF VICTORIA, MELBOURNE-SANDS AND KENNY, SANDS & MCDOUGALL 1900, 1915: 1924-35.VICTORIA HERITAGE REGISTER H0485https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/780Statement of SignificanceWhat is significant?Num Pon Soon Society Building is a two storey stuccoed brick building built in 1861 to the design of notable architects Knight and Kerr. It was built as a clubhouse for the Sam Yup Society ("three district" society) which later became known as the Num Pon Soon Society. The society, one of the earliest district associations established in Victoria, helped miners and others from the Num Hoi, Pon Yu and Soon Duc districts in the Guangdong province of China. The clubhouse was built through donations from members of the society with assistance from Lowe Kong Meng, successful merchant and leading member of the Chinese community. Lowe Kong Meng was not a native of the Num Pon Soon districts, but he played a major role in a number of Chinese organisations and, with his knowledge of English and his standing in the wider Melbourne community, he organised the building of the society's clubhouse as well as assisting in legal and financial matters.Many Chinese came to Victoria during the gold rushes of the 1850s, large numbers of whom were young men from the Canton Delta area of the southern province of Guangdong. Economic hardship and political upheaval forced many to emigrate and provide for family back in China. Many hoped to return home. District, clan and trade associations played an important role for expatriate Chinese, providing accommodation, places of worship, meeting places and other facilities and support.The ground floor of the Num Pon Soon building sits on a basalt stone plinth and was originally an open Doric colonnade but has been subsequently enclosed. The architrave has evolute spiral mouldings. The upper storey balustraded loggia has fluted columns and pilasters employing the Corinthian order. Chinese influences include a timber and gild Num Pon Soon panel inscribed with Chinese characters above the first floor central square window featuring a stained glass stylised floral motif and timber framed etched glass "Palace style" lanterns on the balcony. The parapet has a mannerist pediment which includes the name Num Pon Soon.The ground floor of the building is leased for commercial purposes. It retains its vaulted corrugated iron ceiling. A shrine room is situated at the front of the first floor which includes an altar used to honour ancestors, as well as other ritual objects and furniture. The first floor also includes living, dining and accommodation space. The attic rooms on the second floor of the building were also used for accommodation.How is it significant?Num Pon Soon Society Building is of historical, social and architectural significance to the State of Victoria.Why is it significant?Num Pon Soon Society Building is of historical significance for housing the earliest known surviving Chinese shrine in Australia and possibly the earliest outside of Asia. It also has significance as the earliest surviving Chinese community building in Victoria. It has strong associations with Chinese immigration to Victoria and is a tangible link to the Chinese who came in large numbers to the Victorian goldfields during the second half of the 19th century, and is evidence of their strong presence in Little Bourke Street since that time. The retention of the ancestors' shrine and other artefacts and furniture adds considerably to an understanding of the function of the building as a meeting place and a place of worship for the Num Pon Soon Society. The building and its contents are a physical reminder of the importance of district associations to expatriate Chinese in western countries from the late 18th to the early 20th centuries. It is additionally significant for its links to Lowe Kong Meng (1831-1888), one of the most prosperous and successful early Chinese settlers in Melbourne.Num Pon Soon Society Building is of historical and social significance for its associations with the traditional practices and customs of expatriate Chinese. Its highly intact shrine room provides tangible evidence of the lives and religious and ceremonial practices of the Chinese immigrants. The shrine room continues to play an important cultural, religious and social role for many members of the Chinese community, and Num Pon Soon Society members in particular have a strong attachment to the place.Num Pon Soon Building is architecturally significant as a distinctive example of a Classical style building with Chinese influences designed by two of the most talented Public Works Department architects, J. G. Knight and Peter Kerr. The smaller scale of the Num Pon Soon building provides an interesting comparison with Knight and Kerr's major work of the period, Parliament House, the first stages of which were designed in 1856..GRAEME BUTLER 1985 MELBOURNE CENTRAL ACTIVITIES DISTRICT CONSERVATION STUDYBUILDING IDENTIFICATION FORM cites source 76, Page 13.GRAEME BUTLER 1989, LITTLE BOURKE STREET PRECINCT CONSERVATION STUDYsee Statement of Significance.NIGEL LEWIS DECEMBER 1976, HISTORIC AND ARCHITECTURAL SURVEY OF THE CENTRAL CITY OF MELBOURNE BOURKE STREET, EAST AREA 8 OF THE SURVEY COMMISSIONED BY THE HISTORIC BUILDINGS PRESERVATION COUNCILNAME: Chinese Club House 'Numpon Soon'ADDRESS:200-202 Little Bourke StreetTITLE DETAILS:CONSTRUCTION DATE: 1861·1862ALTERATIONS/ADDITIONS: Shop façade originally colonnadedARCHITECTS: Peter KerrBUILDER: UnknownPROPRIETOR: Lowe Kong MengFIRST OCCUPIER/USE: Chinese lodging house and meeting roomsPREDOMINANT O/USE: Chinese club houseCURRENT O/USE: do.MAIN CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS: BrickINTACTNESS/CONDITION: In good condition and intact except for above alterationHISTORICAL IMPORTANCE: Very early Chinese community buildingRECOMMENDATIONS: This building is recommended for addition to the Historic Buildings Register. It is the earliest surviving Chinese community building in Melbourne.It is also a remarkable early building of finely detailed classical design..NUM PON SOON M23 L42200-202 Little Bourke Street.The first listing in the Rate books for this building is in 1862. Sands and McDougall's Directory of 1861 has the entry 'Chinese Club House' for this address, so the building was probably built in 1861. The Rate book entry for 1862 states that the owner is Kong Meng. Kong Meng was the president of the Sam Yup Society at this time and the building was entered in that name after Kong Meng's death. The Sam Yup Society later became known as the Num Pon Soon Society 2. Num Pon Soon is the name of a district in Canton Province in China I , whereas Sam Yup3 is the collective name for three districts in Canton province. The building is still owned by the Society and continues to be used as a meeting house.Lowe Kong Meng (1831-1888) came to Melbourne from Mauritius in 1853, and after a short visit to Calcutta commenced business (1854) in Little Bourke Street as an importer of tea and other delicacies. Mr. Kong Meng was the leading Chinese merchant in Melbourne, and was a British subject by birth. In 1860 he married the daughter of the late Mr. William Prussia, of Tasmania, and in 1863 received from His Imperial Majesty, Ham Foon, Emperor of the Chinese, the honour of being elevated to the rank of Mandarin of the Blue Button, civil order4.The only information regarding an architect is in the entry for Peter Kerr in Sutherland's Victoria and its Metropolis, v.II, p.522. It notes that of his private buildings "one of which is a small building situated on the north side of Little Bourke Street between Swanston and Russell Streets designed for Mr. Kong Meng, the place being such that comparatively few know of the existence of a classic building in the haunts of the Chinese."The National Trust file states that three rooms have been added at various times. The only alteration to the facade is the enclosing of the open colonnade on the ground floor. A sketch of Little Bourke Street in 18885 shows this as an open colonnade. The verandah is also shown as open on the 1905 -06 Mahlstedt map and thus the alteration was made after that date. The ground floor now operates as a Chinese grocery shop and the floor retains the checked black and white marble paving and vaulted corrugated form-work ceiling.It is interesting as a combination of Kerr's strict classical vocabulary with the Chinese function and decoration of the building. The fenestration of the first floor provides an air of mystery to the building and the later shop windows on the ground floor complement the overall design and bely their later addition.RECOMMENDATION:This building is recommended for inclusion in the Historic Building Register. It is a finely detailed classical building of the early 1860's and has an important social and historical role in Melbourne's Chinese sector. This building is in an excellent state of preservation and is worthy of registration.I. Joss Houses of Melbourne - Thong Keat Har. History Essay. Melbourne, Melbourne University School of Architecture, 1962.2. National Trust of Australia (Victoria). Classification file on this building. Dr. C. Kellaway - researcher.3. Sam Yup means three districts whereas See Yup means four districts – the two are quite distinct societies.4. Sutherland: Victoria and Its Metropolis. v.II, p.5675. Loc. cit., v.l, p.558p73 Municipal rate books [RB] and DIRECTORIES OF VICTORIA, MELBOURNE-SANDS AND KENNY, SANDS & MCDOUGALL listings.VICTORIAN HERITAGE INVENTORY H7822-1316https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/9231Extant building built 1861. Used as Chinese lodging house, meeting rooms, clubhouse. Owner: Lowe Kong Meng, President of Sam Yup Society & prominent merchant/ importer, leader of the Chinese community in Victoria. Urged his countrymen to adopt English ways.Significance:THE CHINESE CLUB HOUSE KNOWN AS NUM PON SOON WAS CONSTRUCTED BETWEEN 1861 AND 1862 TO A DESIGN BY ARCHITECT PETER KERR. THIS DESIGN WAS COMPLETED FOR LOWE KONG MENG, MERCHANT AND CHINESE COMMUNITY LEADER. IT WAS INITIALLY CONSTRUCTED FOR USE AS A CHINESE LODGING HOUSE AND MEETING ROOMS. ITS MAJOR IMPACT IS IN TERMS OF ITS FACADE TO LITTLE BOURKE STREET WHICH IS CARRIED OUT IN A RESTRAINED CLASSICAL DESIGN. THE BUILDING IS CONSTRUCTED OF BRICK AND THE FACADE IS CEMENT RENDERED.THIS BUILDING IS IMPORTANT IN BOTH ARCHITECTURAL AND HISTORICAL TERMS. THE AUSTRALIAN DICTIONARY OF BIOGRAPHY DESCRIBES LOWE KONG MENG AS "A POPULAR AND ENLIGHTENED LEADER IN MELBOURNE'S CHINESE COMMUNITY". HE WAS ELECTED BY THE VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT AS A COMMISSIONER OF THE MELBOURNE EXHIBITIONS OF 1880 AND 1888 AND ONCE AGAIN ACCORDING TO THE ADB HE WAS DESCRIBED AS "'CULTURED', 'SUPERIOR,' 'INFLUENTIAL' AND 'HIGHLY ESTEEMED.'" "HIS LEADERSHIP OF THE CHINESE COMMUNITY IN VICTORIA WAS ALSO RECOGNISED BY EMPEROR T'UNG CH'LH, WHO CONFERRED ON HIM THE TITLE OF MANDARIN OF THE BLUE BUTTON CIVIL ORDER, IN 1863." THE ARCHITECT PETER KERR IS PERHAPS BEST KNOWN FOR HIS WORK IN THE DESIGN OF PARLIAMENT HOUSE, MELBOURNE. HE WAS A PUPIL OF SIR CHARLES BARRY, ARCHITECT OF THE BRITISH HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT AND WAS ULTIMATELY RESPONSIBLE FOR A NUMBER OF SUBSTANTIAL PUBLIC BUILDINGS IN VICTORIA. THIS BUILDING RELIES LARGELY ON ITS RESTRAINED APPEARANCE, IN PARTICULAR ITS USE OF TWO STOREY COLONNADING. ITS CURRENT GENERAL LEVEL OF SOUNDNESS SPEAKS WELL FOR THE CRAFTSMANSHIP WHICH WENT INTO ITS CONSTRUCTION. IT HAS BEEN ALTERED ON THE GROUND FLOOR BY THE CLOSING IN OF THE COLONNADING TO PROVIDE A SHOP FRONT. HISTORICAL NOTE: CHINESE FIRST CAME TO VICTORIA IN LARGE NUMBERS DURING THE GOLDRUSHES OF THE 1850'S. LIKE THE THOUSANDS OF CHINESE WHO WENT TO THE USA, CANADA AND NEW ZEALAND IN THIS PERIOD THEY CAME OVERWHELMINGLY FROM SMALL FARMING VILLAGES IN THE CANTON DELTA AREA OF KWANGTUNG, CHINA'S SOUTH MOST PROVINCE..NATIONAL TRUST OF AUSTRALIA (VIC)Statement of SignificanceNum Pon Soon Chinese Society Clubhouse,a delightful two storey structure, was erected in 1861 and has been attributed to Peter Kerr, who was an architect with the Public Works Department from 1866 to 1890. Lowe Kong Meng, one of the leaders of the Chinese community at the time, advocated the building of the clubhouse and contributed towards its erection. Today the main upstairs room is used for meetings of the Society and the ground floor is sub-let for commercial purposes.Originally colonnaded on both levels, this building is a fine example of conservative classicism. Its importance lies in the high quality of design and workmanship in the decoration and the unusual motifs. These include the ground floor cornice with enriched evolute spiral moulding, the composite columns, the enriched torus moulding on the first floor cornice and the Chinese inspired first floor windows and lanterns . The building has always served as a Chinese Club House in this important Little Bourke Street precinct.Alterations have been made to the ground floor which was probably an open colonnade.Classified: 'Regional' 05/06/1958Revised: 'State' 03/08/1998.HERITAGE BRANCH, MINISTRY FOR PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT 1987 CITY OF MELBOURNE CENTRAL CITY NOTABLE BUILDINGS CITATIONSThis building was built to Architect Peter Kerr's design in 1861 for the Sam Yup Society, later known as the Num Pon Soon Society, as a Chinese Club House and the upper floor is still used as a meeting house. The building is a significant small scale classically detailed early Chinese community building. It is an interesting combination of Kerr's strict classical vocabulary with the Chinese function and decoration..GRAEME BUTLER 1989, LITTLE BOURKE STREET PRECINCT CONSERVATION STUDYRecommendation for enhancement:Recommended External Finish(comprehensive paint sampling is still required)It is likely that the original finish was a combination of stones (evident as the wall material behind each outside pilaster and basalt as the plinth) and light coloured natural cement with some evidence of Keene's cement used as the porch dado.Early paint colours < samples taken from ground level only, a maximum of two samples per surface cited- inadequate to gauge wall colour scheme >include:(Taubmans Custom Colours, flat or low sheen acrylic)Beechnut for the porch dado,Pastel Blue for the pilasters,Burnt Sugar for the pilaster pedestals,the wall behind the inside pilasters was Minjab Beige, and joinery and window mullions Camperdown Green.For a building of this importance a comprehensive analysis should be carried out and the stone surfaces cleaned of paint using approved water and organic solvent methods. NOTE: colour schemes for each await receipt of photographs from processing early next week..VICTORIA HERITAGE REGISTER H0485Published Extent of RegistrationNOTICE OF REGISTRATIONAs Executive Director for the purpose of the Heritage Act 1995, I give notice under section 46 that the Victorian Heritage Register is amended in that the Heritage Register Number 485 in the categories described as a Heritage Place and Heritage Object/s is now described as:Num Pon Soon Society Building200-202 Little Bourke StreetMelbourneMelbourne CityEXTENT:1. All of the building known as the Num Pon Soon Society building marked B1 on Diagram 485 held by the Executive Director.2. All of the objects specified in the Num Pon Soon Society Collection Inventory, April 2005, held by the Executive Director and all the objects marked in the list of additional items, December 2007, held by the Executive Director.3. All of the land marked L1 on Diagram 485 held by the Executive Director being the land described in Memorial Book 553 No. 160.Dated 4 April 2008
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| Type | Reference No. | Extent | Status/Desc |
|---|---|---|---|
| Original | 105886 | 1 PDF : 1,266 KB ; A4 | Group of Items (May not be issued, may not be reproduced) |