Manchester House, 234-236 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Butler, Graeme1985
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Total copies: 1
Title:
Manchester House, 234-236 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
Creator:
Date of work:
1985
Reference number:
BIF-CITY 103964 1
Level of description:
Item from Collection: Heritage Collection (HC)
Type of materials:
Graphic materialsTextual material
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Series: Central City (BIF-CITY)
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UnrestrictedOpen access.
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UnrestrictedPlease contact City of Melbourne Libraries about obtaining permission to reproduce images.
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RESEARCH ADDED BY GRAEME BUTLER 2021:DATE: 1912;ASSOCIATIONS:Jury, George A;G. and R. Wills, warehousemenDESIGNER: Bates Peebles & Smart;BUILDER: Taylor, J R; R. M'Donald.GRAEME BUTLER 1985 MELBOURNE CENTRAL ACTIVITIES DISTRICT CONSERVATION STUDYStatement of SignificanceHistoryThe old (1849) established Adelaide importing and manufacturing firm, G & R Wills and Co. made a stylish entrance to Melbourne in the construction of this warehouse to the design of Bates Peebles and Smart. Two contractors were involved, J.R. Taylor in 1911 and R. McDonald in 1912, and the nominated owner applying for the permit was George A Jury who was possibly an agent for Wills. Wills and Co. remained there into the 1920s; the building being leased to firms like Pelaco Ltd shirt makers, Gollin & Co. Pty Ltd, and a multitude of manufacturers' agents. By 1940 Notts Novelties had rooms here and old tenants like ironmongers Chandler and Co and Gollin's had stayed on. By the 1970s G & R Wills & Co Ltd had branches in three states and agencies in the rest. Their trade names included Patons (yarns), Yakka (clothing), Coats (threads), Kayser (underwear), Exacto, Sotex, Jantzen and Bradmill.DescriptionSimilar in composition and styling to Chanonry, 14 Collins Street, and by the same architect, Manchester House is a sophisticated display of restrained Neo-Baroque details set against plain but bold forms, and achieved with an interplay of materials such as red brick and stucco, juxtaposed with intricate wrought iron balustrading. The slow curving ox-bow arch segment hints at the Baroque in the balconette profiles whilst the four main wall piers break at the parapet and allow the shallow window bay, held between the centre two piers, to show its profile on the skyline, in company with their own. The intermittent curve of the balconettes and that of the window bay outline are complementary as alternating but similar forms, placed within adjoining façade bays. Steel-framed windows to the west elevation, if original, are early although timber framed windows, with opening sashes more suitable for office accommodation, have been used on the south façade.IntegrityGenerally original except for a plethora of painted and illuminated signs, an added air unit and a new shop front.StreetscapePart of warehouse row with similar fenestration patterns, scale and related period detail.Statement of SignificanceOne of the highly successful Neo-Baroque adaptations executed by the eminent architects, Bates Peebles and Smart in the Edwardian period also for a time the Melbourne branch of an established national clothing firm, so typical of the lane's 20th century occupants..GRAEME BUTLER 1985 MELBOURNE CENTRAL ACTIVITIES DISTRICT CONSERVATION STUDYBUILDING IDENTIFICATION FORM cites CITY OF MELBOURNE BUILDING PERMIT APPLICATIONS 2996.LEWIS, M- AUSTRALIAN ARCHITECTURE INDEX:Record 76507 Bates, Peeble & Smart; Jury, George A Melbourne VIC Warehouses Taylor, J R - 443 Collins 6/11/1911 McDonald, R - 161 Flinders lane 21/2/1912 1911 11 6 2996 MCC registration no 2996 [Burchett Index]. Fee 6.0.0 brick warehouse Little Flinders - 234/6.CITY OF MELBOURNE BUILDING PERMIT APPLICATIONSIndex Lit Collins St - Spencer Sthttps://www.ancestry.com.au/imageviewer/collections/60672/images/44777_349577-003261918-1984 minor works.VICTORIAN HERITAGE INVENTORY H7822-1807First land sale 1837, Block 5, Allotment 12, John McNaughton. 1839 - building. 1877 - four-storey building, shed and yard; WH Watson & Sons. 1888 -two four-storey building, William Watson & Sons Ltd. 1905 - seven storey building, GR Wills & Co., warehouse..NATIONAL TRUST OF AUSTRALIA (VIC)Manchester House was constructed in 1911-1912 to a design by architects,Bates Peebles and Smart, and marked the entry of the old Adelaide clothing manufacturers, G & R Wills and Company, into the Melbourne clothing industry centred on Flinders Lane. It is a substantial reminder of the role of the rag trade in Flinders Lane early this century.Classified: 06/06/1994.HERITAGE BRANCH, MINISTRY FOR PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT 1987 CITY OF MELBOURNE CENTRAL CITY NOTABLE BUILDINGS CITATIONSManchester House was constructed in 1911-1912 to a design by architects, Bates Peebles and Smart, and marked the entry of the old Adelaide clothing manufacturers, G & R Wills and Company, into the Melbourne clothing industry centred on Flinders Lane, Designed in a neo-baroque form, it is a substantial reminder of the role of the rag trade in Flinders Lane early this century.NEWSPAPERS (TROVE)1912The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954)Thursday 21 March 1912 - Page 3https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/241498441CITY IMPROVEMENTS. FLINDERS LANE.The familiar but sombre bluestone front of the old Watson's Chambers, In Flinders Iane, north side," near Swanston street, has disappeared, and in its place la rising up a modem brick. steel frame and concrete edifice which should prove worthy or the site. The old structure, which was destroyed by fire, had six storeys, and was about 70 feet high; the new one will have no fewer than eight floors and measure 128 feet from footpath to pediment, not Including a further elevation over the 2ft wells. The long-threatened height restrictions of the City Council are not yet framed, and It Is apparent in this instance, as in the case of the now Commercial Travellers' Club building, that owners are ready to ascend skyward where a good opportunity offers before any limitation comes into force.An Interesting feature of the new lane skyscraper Is that It Is within what is well known as the fire danger zone of the metropolis. Its predecessor went down In ashes, and opposite it was the centre of the ruinous conflagration of 1897. With these facts in mind, Messrs Bates, Peebles and Smart, the architects, have made a determined effort to plan a structure which will not burn. The walls of the first two storeys will be of bluestone, and the six above them of brick.Having 50 feet of frontage to Flinders lane, and 160 feet along Manchester lane, the building has an invaluable asset of natural light, and this will be fully availed of by the Introduction of wide, full-length dormer windows. The glazing on the Flinders lane front will be broken only by narrow brick piers. The floors will be supported on a single line of steel girders running down the centre of the building. Being of reinforced concrete, the floors will be immune from fire risk.Even for covering the surfaces, wood will not be used. Above and below each floor will be lined with a new patent material Introduced by the Permasite Company, of Moore street South Melbourne. This takes the form of hollow coke-breeze and concrete bricks, the hollows being placed end to end to afford a free passage of air. Below the floor they will give a level surface to the ceiling, flush with the steel girders, and above they will be finished off with pa tent Permasite flooring.The flat roof will have the same hollow, non-inflammable lining, affording, together with the reinforced concrete basis, a stout resistance to the summer sun.The bricks have been cordially welcomed in this respect, by architects, who recognise In them something of a solution of the problem of how to make flat roofs both cool and durable. The quantity of coke breeze bricks to be used throughout the building is 21,030.As a further precaution against fire, a special and sufficient water main will be fitted throughout the building, and the Grlnnel patent sprinkler, which proved such an efficient safeguard against fire in neighboring structures, will bo Installed.When complete, with electric lifts and other fittings, the new structure will cost about £30,000. It Is to be occupied by Messrs G. and R. Wills, warehousemen. Mr R. M'Donald Is the contractor..1925The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954)Tuesday 17 November 1925 - Page 1https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/243713313G. & R, WILLS CLOSINGFlinders Lane Stock To Be SoldThe old-established softgoods firm of Messrs G. and R. Wills, Whose headquarters have been located for many years in Adelaide, is closing down its Melbourne branch at 234 Flinders lane immediately. The stocks, which are valued at many thousands of pounds, will be offered for sale on November 26.No decision has yet been made regarding the warehouse, a fine modern building erected in 1913. Slackness of trade is the reason for the firm's decision. Loss of employment, if any, will be confined to the warehouse employes, `the firm having no factories :-in Melbourne. A member of the Softgoods' Association said to day that the past twelve months had been the worst in the history of the trade. I interviewed our Adelaide correspondent, Mr F. W. Jolly, a director St the firm, said that tho unsatisfactory condition of the Victorian trade did not warrant the continuation, of the Melbourne branch. Henceforth the Victorian trade would be catered for from Adelaide. .Business in South Australia, he added, was most satisfactory, and was almost as good as-that in 1920.
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Research and reports
Record number:
1209223
| Type | Reference No. | Extent | Status/Desc |
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| Original | 103964 1 | 1 JPEG : 243 KB ; A4 | Single Item (May not be issued, may not be reproduced) |