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Ethelboro, 491 Spencer Street, West Melbourne

Allom Lovell & Associates, 1981-2005Jul-99

Record details

Title:

Creator:

Allom Lovell & Associates, 1981-2005

Date of work:

Jul-99

Reference number:

108859

Level of description:

Item from Collection: Heritage Collection (HC)

Type of materials:

Graphic materials

Part of:

Series: North Melbourne and West Melbourne (BIF-NORTH)

Access restrictions:

UnrestrictedOpen access

Use restrictions:

Refer to individual item records for Use Restrictions.Please contact City of Melbourne Libraries about obtaining permission to reproduce images.

General notes:

The rate books and Sands & McDougall directories are unclear as to the history of the house at 491 Spencer Street. A house on this site, then numbered 89, is recorded in the rate books as early as 1865, described as a brick house with four rooms, valued at £26 and owned by William Clark, who also owned adjacent properties. There appears to have been a wooden house at the rear, with 2 rooms and valued at £14. From 1866 David Clark is recorded as the owner, presumably a relative, and the Clark family continued to own the property until the 1880's; in 1880 the owner is listed as Mrs Clark, presumably a widow, who resided next door at No. 87 for a brief period. By 1890 the owner was listed as Mrs A Cook (she appears in the Sands & McDougall directories from c1885), by which time the Average Annual Value of the property had increaded to £70, suggesting that the original house had been replaced or substantially refurbished and enlarged. The wooden house is still recorded as being at the rear at that time.Ethelboro is a double storey rendered brick Italianate style residence. Windows at first floor level are semi circular arched with moulded architraves, while that at ground floor level is a tripartite double hung sash with segmented arched heads and no architraves. The house has a double storey verandah terminated by wing walls embellished with ornate consoles, the timber verandah decoration is not original. The roof is concealed behind an ornate pierced parapet with a central panel bearing the name of the house in raised rendered lettering above a dentilated cornice.It is of local aesthetic and historical interest. The house is representative of residential development of the nineteenth century Boom period, an important phase in the history development of West and North Melbourne. Superficially altered externally, the building is a typical example of a Boom style terrace form residence, and is an important heritage element in the streetscape.

Names:

City of Melbourne

Topics: