Cordeaux Street- A travel back in time

Cordeaux Street, like Railway Street, Browne Street and many other Campbelltown streets, has changed enormously since the early days of the town. The southern side of the street in particular has completely changed from what it looked like even 50-60 years ago. Not one building between Queen Street and Moore-Oxley Bypass from before 1970 remains on that side of the street. Fortunately, we have photographs, newspaper articles and personal memories that help keep the memory of what it once looked like. 

The street was named after William Cordeaux, a government commissioner and wealthy owner of Leppington Estate. He built Leppington House on this property. 

I thought I would recreate what Cordeaux Street between Queen Street and Moore-Oxley Bypass would have looked like from the period of 1920 to around 1970. On the southern side, beautiful houses once dominated the street. The exception to housing was the Club Hotel on the corner of Queen Street. The Venture store building completed and opened in 1974 started the move from residential to commercial occupation. However, the northern side of this part of Cordeaux Street has changed little over the years. Mawson Park, St Peter's Anglican Church and St Peter's Rectory have dominated the northern side for either most or all of Campbelltown's existence.

Let's travel back in time and explore Cordeaux Street. We will start with the Club Hotel on the south-east corner of Queen and Cordeaux Streets. A hotel was built on this site as early as 1830 by Thomas Hammond. He named it the King's Arms. From 1832 the licence was held by John Hurley. It was then called the Sportsman's Arms and rebuilt in 1893. In 1865 it was supposed to have displayed the body of bushranger Harry Mann's before it was buried in St John's Catholic Cemetery. The hotel was later called the Club Hotel, until its demolition in 1986.

Club Hotel in 1926.

Moving up the hill on the southern side of the street at number 3 was a house referred to as Byrne's House or 'Roselle'. There is a photograph of this house taken in 1871, but I am unable to identify who lived there then. From the 1920s to 1943 it was lived in by Mr and Mrs William Joseph Byrne. They called it 'Roselle'. Byrne was a retired farmer from Appin, and he had moved from Dumaresque Street. William died in 1942 and his wife the following year. I am unable to determine when this ancient house was demolished. The site later became the Nepean River County Council Office until the change to the Prospect County Council Office. This building was demolished in 2016 and is now a vacant block.

Byrne's House. Photo not dated.

Adjacent to Byrne's house was another building with an interesting history. This house at number 5 was once part of a private school run by Miss Clarke. The school was a very large room at the back and attached to the house. Miss Clarke ran the school and lived in the house. Her sister, Mrs Tallentire, owned the home and lived with them. The house and attached school were photographed in 1885. By the 1930s, William Loftus and his wife were living here. William was a sergeant of police. After the Loftus', the Langdon family moved in. The house became a guest house for bank workers and teachers and the Langdon's named it 'Rema'. Muriel and Everett Langdon were known in town for their kindness and generosity to those less fortunate. The front of the house was later used as a doctor's surgery before it was demolished around 1975-76.

"Rema" at number 5 Cordeaux Street. (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

This view is of the back of number 5 (left) and number 7 (right). This is an interesting view as it shows Miss Clarke's school at the rear of number 5. (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

At number 7 was the residence of the Marlow family. They were living there as early as the 1930s. A staunch conservative, Percy Marlow was a dedicated Mayor of Campbelltown, serving three terms for a total of 13 years. He was a prolific photographer and also excelled at carpentry. Percy and his wife Annie owned a general store at the corner of Queen and Lithgow Streets in the early part of the 1900s. In later years Percy loved visitors and would encourage people he knew to sit on the bench on the verandah of number 7 and chat about what was happening in the world. He died in 1971 aged 93 and he was still living at number 7 Cordeaux Street.

7 Cordeaux Street. (Bagley Collection, Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

The Marlow family in the garden of their home at number 7. Percy Marlow is on the left. (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Number 9 Cordeaux Street was a building familiar to most Campbelltown residents. This was the residence and surgery of Dr William Mawson and his assistant Dr Karl Owen Jones. The building was known as 'Mulwaree' and was built by Mawson in 1913. William Mawson was the brother of Antarctic explorer Sir Douglas Mawson. Dr Mawson possessed a great singing voice and had a lifelong love of music. The house and surgery were later used by that wonderful character Dr Ivor Thomas. Dr Thomas was remembered for his love of fast cars and fast driving, his stutter, and smoking whilst performing medical procedures, with the ash from his cigarette always threatening to fall somewhere on the patient's anatomy! Dr Parnell later practiced here in the 1970s.

"Mulwaree" at 9 Cordeaux. (Bagley Collection, Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

The next house up the street belonged to Fred Walter Wilkinson. He was a plumber and had served his country in the First World War. His plumbing workshop was nearby in Queen Street. Built in the early 1930s, the house at number 11 had a dark sandstone frontage. Fred Wilkinson died in 1970.

Fred Wilkinson's house at number 11. (Bagley Collection, Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Number 13 was occupied during the 1920s and 30s by the Baldock family. Alfred Ernest Baldock was an auctioneer and stock and station agent and appears to have moved to Cordeaux Street around 1920. The house was named 'Kia-ora'. Alf Baldock died in 1936.

"Kia-ora" is on the right and "Hyman's Cottage" on the left. Photo is not dated. (Bagley Collection, Campbelltown and Airds Collection)

The Baldock's neighbours at number 15 were the Hyman family. Albert Augustine (Bert) Hyman was a clerk who worked in Sydney and whose wife Mary ran a shop in Queen Street. Bert was of slender build and an accomplished singer. The Hymans were in this house as early as 1928 and they continued living there after Bert's death in 1954.

"Hyman's Cottage" with Mrs Hyman (left) and Mrs Briedale (right). Photo is not dated. (W.Wilkinson Collection)

The last house on that side of the street before what was then Oxley Street was a house known as 'Roseangeles'. It was built in 1923 and owned and occupied by Andrew Lysaght and his family. Lysaght was Attorney-General in Jack Lang's NSW Government from 1927-1931. The huge weatherboard house was surrounded by a fine garden and a number of tall palm trees. Sadly, the house was demolished in 1970.

Roseangeles (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Another view of Roseangeles (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

As previously explained, the northern side of the street was very different. It was dominated by Mawson Park and St Peter's Church. The park has been an open space since Campbelltown was settled in 1820. The church was completed in 1823 and once stood adjacent to Howe Street that ran all the way to Cordeaux Street until the late 1960s. The first St Peter's Rectory was built in 1840 and it stood close to the church. It stood slightly to the south of the present rectory. In 1887, the old rectory was sold on the condition that it be demolished and removed. A new rectory was built soon after.

A view of Cordeaux Street from St Peter's tower in 1928 showing numbers 1-7 Cordeaux Street (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

McGill, Jeff et al 1995

Campbelltown's Streets and Suburbs

Allen, Andrew 2018

More than Bricks and Mortar: Remembering Campbelltown's Lost Buildings

McBarron, Ed

Campbelltown 1930-40. Patrick Street and Environs.

In Grist Mills Vol.4, No. 1, pp3-9

Lost Stables

They were living on borrowed time. Standing in a prime location for 105 years, the CBC Bank stables defied the developers longer than expected. Progress eventually prevailed and this icon from a past age was no longer. Thankfully, it was photographed just days before the demolition.

The development application that sounded the death knell for the stables was submitted by the land owners Janango Pty Ltd. In August 1986, Janango submitted an application to erect a single storey commercial building. The stables had been identified and listed in the Campbelltown Council's Historical Register as having historical significance. They also had a Heritage Order placed on them along with the bank building. It could not save them. A council inspection noted the poor condition of the building and they recommended the stables be demolished. Their favourable location no doubt was also considered. 

Attempts had been made in the lead up to their destruction to save the site. A proposal was put forward to have them as the centre-piece of a courtyard development. Its success would have meant a stay of execution for the iconic stables. Nothing came of this and the stables were demolished not long after they were last photographed in September 1986. 

Do you remember the old CBC Bank stables?

The stables photographed on 10 September 1986 by Brad Harris (Campbelltown City Library)

                     An undated photo from the A. Walker Collection (Campbelltown City Library)

Written by Andrew Allen

Source: 

ALLEN, Andrew 2018

More Than Bricks and Mortar: Remembering Campbelltown's Lost Buildings

Campbelltown: Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society

           

The Old Police Station

 

The Campbelltown Police Station was once situated in Railway Street. Dates for its construction vary from 1880, the late 1880s and 1890. It replaced an earlier station around the corner in Queen Street near the Courthouse.

The police station was built in typical late nineteenth century style for police stations. It had cast iron brackets decorating its ten verandah columns. To the north of the station were the cell blocks and stables. These cell blocks were linked to the courthouse in Queen Street by a tunnel. A police sergeant's residence was situated next to the station until it was demolished in 1970.

The station operated until August 1985, when it became far too inadequate for Campbelltown's growing population. A fibro extension to ease the congestion did little to fix the problem. 

The old station was eventually demolished in 1988 and it was controversial. The Attorney General's Department owned the building but regarded the station as having no real historical significance. The National Trust however recommended that it be retained. Members of the public were vocal about its pending demolition including Deputy Mayor John Hennessey, who claimed "this is nothing short of public vandalism". A new court complex now stands on the site. A more modern and much larger station was built in Queen Street.

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

ALLEN, Andrew 2018

More Than Bricks and Mortar: Remembering Campbelltown's Lost Buildings

Campbelltown: Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society

Macarthur Chronicle, 17 November 1987, p17

Merryvale

Merryvale (formerly known as Oakleigh) taken in September 1979

Built in the 1870s, Merryvale was a lovely old Victorian house at Minto. It stood adjacent to the old Saggart Fields School that was built in 1870. The house was originally known as Oakleigh.

Merryvale had stuccoed brick walls, open work cast-iron columns on the front verandah and symmetrically placed French windows. The verandah was on three sides of the house, and a timber portion right across the back of the house which included kitchen, bathroom, laundry, pantry, and a bedroom at each end of the verandah running around the brick part. For years it was surrounded by a magnificent garden with many mature trees.

Charles Rudder owned the farm and lived in the house from 1914 to 1920. Jack Westbury purchased it in 1920 and lived there with his wife and two daughters until 1939. He was mayor of Campbelltown from 1936 to 1938. Westbury ran dairy cattle and poultry on the farm before he was forced to sell his farm due to mounting debts.

Mayor Westbury

By the early 1980s the house was still in good condition as it had been occupied until then. Unfortunately, after it became unoccupied during the rest of the decade, vandals destroyed much of the house. At the beginning of 1990 a few Campbelltown councillors pushed for the planning department to ask the NSW Heritage Council to place an Interim Conservation Order on the site. The order never eventuated, despite an inspection later that year. In April 1992 Council approved demolition of the house.

Merryvale stood 200 yards (182 meters) from the intersection of Campbelltown and Redfern Roads, Minto. The site today is 4 Merryvale Road.

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

Grist Mills, Vol. 4, No. 4

Macarthur Advertiser, 21 February 1990 p12

Letter written by Joan Murphy (nee Westbury) to Campbelltown Council, 2 June 1980

Demolished Schoolhouse

It stood on its own in a paddock for 135 years. Then, one day in 1973 this notable landmark fell victim to progress, after resisting demolition for many years. St Peter's Church Schoolhouse was demolished to make way for the construction of Moore-Oxley Bypass.

Tenders were called for the erection of the Church of England Schoolhouse in 1837 with the building completed the following year. It replaced and stood next to where an earlier school was built in 1823 and conducted by Thomas Robinson, who also taught in the new building, until 1839.

The building was regular tuck-pointed red brick with four windows along each side, small paned, in four sections, with a stone lintel and sill. Inside was a large stage that was used for many different performances and over many years. The schoolhouse had an outside toilet nearby, that undoubtedly created trepidation on a dark moonless night as approached.

Besides a schoolhouse, the building was also used for corrective purposes with magistrates regularly meeting to dispense justice. In later years it was used as a parish hall and in the 1950s as a pre-school run by Mrs King. Scouts also used the school and paddock for activities in the 1960s.

The location of the schoolhouse was Moore Street between Reddall and Cordeaux Street in Campbelltown. Today the south-bound side of Moore-Oxley Bypass would run straight over the site. Sandstone bricks from the school were used in a feature wall in the nearby new rectory.

(All photographs are from the Bagley Collection, Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society Collection)

Written by Andrew Allen

Source:

ALLEN, Andrew 2018
More than Bricks and Mortar: Remembering Campbelltown's Lost Buildings
Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society: Campbelltown

The Good Intent

Earlier this year I wrote a brief article for the Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society's newsletter 'The Kernel' on the Hotel Good Intent. Below is the full article.

The Good Intent opened its doors to the public on March 24, 1939. It was built on the site of Alpha House which was demolished the previous year. The license was transferred in the names of Mr and Mrs Kerr from the nearby Commonwealth Hotel to the Good Intent.

Aubrey John Raymond, better known as “Titus” Oates, became the licensee of the Good Intent after winning the lottery. “Titus” seems to have been a divisive personality in the town. Many enjoyed his company and regarded him as a generous man. Others are less complementary. Whatever the views, no one could doubt his courage as a pilot. During the 1949 coal miner’s strike, he would go a on a “beer barn-storming mission” flying his Comper Swift, to ensure the beer supply at the Good Intent was kept flowing! He would fly as far as Adelaide locating supplies for the hotel. In 1954 “Titus” sold the Good Intent hotel, in order to enter television production and film making.

 

 

The Good Intent was one of the more popular pubs in Campbelltown during its existence, especially on Sundays. It was a two-story brick building at the front and had three levels at the rear. A large car park was situated on the southern side of the building. The pub was set on a large block of land and included a brick shed, living quarters and a large garden at the rear. In 1973 a drive-in bottle shop was added.

The hotel closed its doors for the last time on April 17^th, 1982. This was an unpopular decision and many regulars defied the demolition signs on the hotel doors and arrived for their usual drink on the Sunday morning- the day of the demolition. They were eventually coaxed out of the bar by a security guard. It was demolished to make way for Campbelltown Mall.

 

 

Written by Andrew Allen

A Bird's Eye View

 

Local identity Lennie Hayes recently donated this wonderful aerial photograph of Campbelltown taken about 1959. The scene is dominated by Crompton Parkinson's factory in the foreground built in the 1940s. It was the first major company to build in Campbelltown. Many of the buildings have sadly been demolished. Some streets such as Milgate Lane (first street to the left of Crompton Parkinson) and Railway Street (extreme left) have lost all their buildings. How many buildings do you recognize?

Thanks for your donation Lennie and saving the photo from the scrapheap!

Written by Andrew Allen

"Sweet" Memories of the Cordial Factory

"Here was made the finest soft drinks in the land...the sweet sickly smell of syrup and sugar permeating the atmosphere for a hundred yards or so". This was how former Campbelltown resident John Hepher described Hayes Cordial factory- an institution in the town for many generations.

In fact cordial manufacturing has been part of Campbelltown's history since early times. Newling and Walker were operating a cordial factory in Queen Street in 1880. In the 1880s Gilbert Bray and Company operated a cordial factory and later manufacturers included Samuel M. Jenner and Joseph Pickles Seddon. Seddon arrived in Campbelltown in 1895 and took over the business from a Mrs Hurley (another reference has a Mr Druitt as the owner). When the Campbelltown Co-operative Creamery Company opened in 1899, it shared premises with the cordial factory and was also managed by Joseph Seddon. The site for this was in the area bordered by Queen Street, Patrick Street, Railway Street and the railway line.

Joseph Seddon standing in front of the cordial factory with an unknown man in the delivery cart (Photo: Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

In 1924 Gus Hayes worked for Seddon and when Gus died suddenly, his son Reg left school to work there. The factory had been known as Hayes and Seddon and then Hayes and Howell after that. After Reg joined Seddon, he bought Howell out. Joseph Pickles Seddon retired about 1927, living for another ten years in a cottage in nearby Railway Street. Reg Hayes now owned the business and it became Hayes Cordials.

Reg Hayes holding a child near his loaded truck (Photo: Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Reg employed two young lads to help him in the factory: Paul O'Loughlan and David Milliken. Now both aged in their seventies, they recently described what it was like working there:

David: "In those days to make ginger beer and ginger ale, you had to boil the ginger root then get the syrup off. Once the mixture was boiling in the huge copper pots over the fire, we would stir it up and skim the ginger. Burn you to death when you tasted it although it was really good! He used to make special lemonade for the hotels which was a lot stronger then ordinary lemonade. It was in a green shaded bottle, which was how you knew it was pub lemonade and available in shops. You would have to line up the bottles, add a little syrup in each one, then put them in the machine for carbonating. The dry ginger ale was beautiful. The ginger beer was just the best ever. All the cordials were handmade, the lemonades, orange, lemon, passion fruit, it was all made from fruit provided by "Just Fruit" up at Keith Harris at Thornleigh.

There was a big bottle washer that used caustic soda, which you didn't play with too much. It was a good machine. Sometimes the bottles were too dirty and you would have to get there with a brush and clean the bottles by hand. That was another bad job. I must have spent hours and hours cleaning the bottles with a brush."

Paul: "I commenced helping Reg before I started school. I was the bottle washer helper. His washing machine was the old style full length machine which was on a belt and you put the dirty bottles on at the front. It would go around the cycle, take off the labels and clean the bottles. Every now and then the exit end would get clogged up with labels and Reg, not being a small man, required someone of smaller structure to get in and clean it out, and I was the key for that. I enjoyed it very much and at the end of the day there was always a bottle of lemonade or creaming soda to take home to mum."

The building was far from glamorous. It was originally just a slab timber building that was later extended by Reg Hayes with corrugated iron. The original wooden building had beautiful old timber stairs and undressed sapling roof-ceiling rafters. It had sandstone flagstones on the floor. These flagstones were reputed to be the original ones used on the Campbelltown Railway Station which was built in 1858.

The cordial factory not long before its demolition. The road is Short Street and the site now a car park. (Photo: Bagley Collection, Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Progress eventually caught up with the building and the business in 1970. Reg Hayes sold the business to Jim Goldfinch who set up in the industrial area. The property was purchased by Campbelltown Council for a car park near the Railway Station. The site today is the tar car park between Short and Hurley Streets.

Update

I've been contacted by the Coogan family in relation to the information contained in the caption below the bottom photograph. The demolished building in the foreground was the home of Col Coogan. Its address was 21 Short Street and was on the corner of Short and Patrick Street. The large building next to it was not the cordial factory but a shed belonging to Col Coogan. The cordial factory is the building with the pointed roof behind it.

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

Campbelltown-Ingleburn News, September 8 1970

Interviews with David Milliken and Paul O'Loughlan held at Local Studies, H.J. Daley Library and available on the library website

LISTON, Carol 1988
Campbelltown: The Bicentennial History

Campbelltown News, November 26 1937

McLean's Store

McLean's was the sort of shop that you could find almost anything. Their slogan of 'You Can Get It At McLean's' was generally accurate. Charming little shops such as this are mostly a thing of the past, unable to compete with today's supermarket giants. Let me share with you some of Rod McLean's memories of McLean's Handy Store and Tea Rooms that was located at 11 Railway Street in Campbelltown. 
 
The exact date of construction of the building that later became McLean's shop is not clear. We do know that it was considerably old and constructed of sand stock bricks. There were rumours that the building had operated in the 1800’s in various industries. One was that sly grog was sold from it.
 
The shop had been operated for some years by the Winton Brothers prior to and during the Second World War. The Winton's were famous for their ice creams and banana splits. They would use large metal scoops to get the ice cream out and so a generous helping always excited the awaiting children!
 

An advertisement from the local newspaper in 1948. Check out the phone number at the bottom of the ad.

In 1946 Alf and Elsie (known as Bobby) McLean purchased the shop. The business prospered by selling seven days a week. It offered morning and afternoon teas, sandwiches, drinks, ice creams and sweets, cigarettes and tobacco as well as catering services for weddings and group gatherings.
 
The business was a source of employment for a number of local girls. In the early 1950s Alf commenced a fruit and vegetable service to outlying farms around Campbelltown including Appin, Wilton, Menangle and Douglas Park. The service started with a 1928 Chevrolet Table Top and later to a Ford Blitz. This service continued for some years and was later taken over by Alf Billington.
 
The main building consisted of the main shop, a storeroom on the eastern side and a living room behind the shop with two bedrooms. The rear of the building was later converted into two flats. After the death of one of the residents, due to a motor accident in 1958, son Roderick and his wife Miriam moved in till 1962.
 

 

 Photo taken in the 1960s after the verandah was removed (Rod McLean Collection)

According to Rod McLean one of the characters around town would often come into the shop in an old Army coat asking for some metholated spirits to rub on his arms as the doctor had instructed (with vigorous demonstrations of arm rubbing).

Being opposite the Police Station came in handy at times, especially when known trouble makers were about!  At the start of school terms, boarding students getting off the train and returning to St Gregory’s College made the most of the short time they had to stock up on sweets and biscuits, before boarding the bus to school.

In the 50’s most of the new residents coming to look at land and houses in expanding Campbelltown would stop at the tea rooms for their first “cuppa” in Campbelltown  before venturing into town, or out to Sherwood Hills or Bradbury Avenue.

In 1966 or 67 the property was sold and before too long Council released a plan of the location which encompassed a number of house sites for parking in Railway Street. McLean's was demolished, joining a number of others in Railway Street to succumb to the bulldozer. The shop's address of 11 Railway Street has little relevance today as there are no buildings on that side of the street between Short and Hurley Streets.

My thanks to Rod McLean for providing information and photos of the shop.

Written by Andrew Allen

 

 

 

 

Rosslyn

Rosslyn in the 1920s or 1930s (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

If you've driven along Badgally Road recently you would've noticed work being carried out on the Claymore Urban Renewal project. There was once a two storey homestead that occupied a site where this work is going on. The house and farm was called 'Rosslyn' which later became 'Claymore' and which gave the suburb that it is now part of its name.

Samuel Humphreys purchased two lots of land from William Fowler in 1882. This was the land where Rosslyn house stood. After Samuel and his wife Jemima died, the mortgage payments on the property weren't being made and the Savings Bank of NSW took it over. The bank then sold it to Samuel Bursill Senior who sold it to his son Samuel Bursill Junior in 1920. It was the Bursill family who then named it 'Rosslyn'. It was named after Ross and Keith Smith, early Australian aviators. The family lived there until the mid 1930s. It had been a dairy farm.

In her book Badgally Road Campbelltown: The Other Side of the Line, Marie Holmes writes that she believed the house to be built in the 1860s. Photographs show a fine colonial building that had a deep stone flagged verandah and also turned wooden columns. There was also a verandah at the back. The second floor had balconies at the back and front. There were 6 rooms plus a pantry, bathroom and laundry. The bedrooms were on the above level.

Marjorie Morris (nee Bursill) lived in the house with her family in the 20s and 30s. She told the story of how they used what was called an Aladdin Lamp which they placed in the centre of the kitchen table. Their pet magpie would sometimes roost in the open window and would often fly down to join the family. As he swooped the draught of air put the lamp out and they would have to sit in the dark until the lamp cooled down and they could light it again.

The farm and house passed through a number of hands after the Bursills. In 1958, the farm and house name were changed to 'Claymore' by Kenneth and Sarah Vanderbilt. Alterations were made in the 1960s to the upstairs verandah and more columns were added. In 1970, the property was sold to the State Planning Authority who in turn transferred it to the Housing Commission for the development of Claymore suburb. On 28 January 1971, when the house was vacant, a fire gutted the home and left it derelict. Water to fight the fire had to be pumped from a nearby dam. The house was demolished in the late 1970s. It was located on what was Claymore Reserve before the redevelopment took place.

The front view of the house in 1977 after the fire. It was now known as 'Claymore'.


Written by Andrew Allen

Source:

HOLMES, Marie 2000
Badgally Road Campbelltown: The Other Side  of the Line
Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society

Ivy Cottage

I'm forever wishing I could go back in time. To be able to walk the streets of Campbelltown 50, 100...even 150 years ago would be amazing. One of the buildings I'd make a priority to visit would be Ivy Cottage in Allman Street. There was nothing grand about it. Just a simple little cottage but one full of charm and character that many happy families called home.

Local storekeeper William Gilchrist purchased land in Allman Street and built Ivy Cottage on it for his brother, Rev. Hugh Gilchrist, a Presbyterian minister appointed in 1838 to take charge of Campbelltown and many other surrounding towns. The cottage became the Presbyterian Manse and served as such until about 1882. The cottage would've held weddings in its early years as Presbyterian marriages were not conducted in church but in private houses.

An undated photograph of Ivy Cottage (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

After Gilchrist's death in 1852, his brother sold Ivy Cottage to Alick Osborne. It then passed through many owners including John Hurley who rented it out after the death of his wife Mary in 1859. John and Ellen Thurston were living there in 1865. In 1882 it was owned by a W.J. Wilson followed by a Patrick Cullen who died in the cottage in 1893.

The cottage became home to the Vardy family some time around the early 1900s. It's unclear exactly when they moved in. The Vardy family numbered 12 with Michael and Mary the parents. Michael and Mary had lived at the cottage for a period prior to 1877 when it was still the Manse. When his father died, Michael inherited Springfields at Menangle, and he moved there. He returned to Ivy Cottage when he retired.

Members of the Vardy family outside Ivy Cottage c.1920 (Tess Holm Collection. Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Photographs of the cottage show a building that was symmetrical with a picket fence around it. A newspaper advertisement in 1861 describes it as containing a dining room, drawing room, 3 bedrooms with attics, detached kitchen, servants' room and sheds. Also a flower garden in front and a spacious kitchen garden at the rear.

The cottage was occupied by members of the Vardy family right up until the late 1950s. In 1957 unmarried siblings, Cyril and Gertrude, still resided there. For many years piano music could be heard playing inside the cottage. Gertrude was the sister who played the most and apparently played so loudly as she was deaf. The piano was owned by her mother Mary who would play for many years as the organist for the Catholic Church.

Unidentified group of women and children on verandah of Ivy Cottage (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Another sister was Cora who lived with her husband in the same street as Ivy Cottage. Her husband would look after the garden at the back of the cottage and in the forties and early fifties kept between 200 and 250 hens in the backyard to supply the Egg Board.

Ivy Cottage was sold for re-development after 1957 when Cyril Vardy died and Gertrude moved out. I'm unable to locate an exact date for its demolition. It stood at 31 Allman Street.

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

Sydney Morning Herald, 10 October 1861 p8

HOLM, Tess et al 1985
Campbelltown 1930-1940: Dumaresq Street and Environs

THORNTON, Kathryn
People, Places and a Piano
In Grist Mills, Vol. 24, No. 1, February 2011 pp 3-9

Demolished Heritage Buildings of Campbelltown
November 2005

New Railway Street Photographs

Paul O'Loughlan has kindly provided the library with photographs of two buildings that once stood in Railway Street, Campbelltown. In a previous post on Railway Street, I wrote about how it has almost completely changed compared to what it once looked like and not that long ago. The sites for both these buildings that once stood in Railway Street now form part of the car park bordered by Railway, Short, Patrick and Hurley Streets.

The photograph above was once 29 Railway Street and was taken in 1962. Paul O'Loughlan lived here with his family. This house was built in 1872 and had numerous owners over the years starting with Elizabeth Graham. The O'Loughlan family were the last to live there until it was demolished in 1967. According to Paul the house was built of sandstone and was freezing in winter. There is a red post box on the exact site today.

This photograph was taken in September, 1959 and is of 23 Railway Street. The front section was re-developed about 1959-60. It was eventually resumed by Campbelltown Council in 1975 to extend the car park. The building included a hairdresser, doctor's surgery and a first floor flat.

Pictured in the photo are from left Jack O'Loughlan, Laura O'Loughlan and Paul O'Loughlan. It's not known if the O'Loughlans owned the VW Beetle!

Written by Andrew Allen

Alpha House

Alpha House was originally known as Patrick's Hotel and not long after the Coach and Horses Inn. It was built in 1842 by Anne Byrne and was then owned in the 1840s by Charles Morris who had a mill coaching service.

The building had many uses during its existence. There is evidence that it was once used as a court house and even a gaol. The building was also used for Presbyterian church services by Reverend Gilchrist. It was once known as Hammond's Grammar School and about 1860 it acted as a School of Arts. It then became well known as the home of local politician John Hurley MLA. Hurley died here in 1882. The Hurley's continued to live there at least up until the death of John's wife in 1892. Some time prior to 1930 it was used as a private school run by Miss Whittingham. She boarded upstairs and used a room as a classroom.

The building was wonderfully palatial.  It had two storeys at the front and three at the back and eight bedrooms, four sitting rooms, a large ballroom and hall, cellars, detached kitchen and laundry. There was also a coach house and stabling for 16 horses. It was made of brick with its front verandah flagged in sandstone and the slate roof supported by Georgian pillars of wood.

After Miss Whittingham left, the building was used by Daniel Longhurst up until 1938. Demolition of the building commenced on 5th July that year to make way for the new Commonwealth Hotel which was to later become the Good Intent Hotel. Bricks from Alpha House were used in its construction. The Good Intent was demolished in 1982 to build the new Campbelltown Mall which opened in 1984.

Luckily there are a few photographs of Alpha House. They show us what a grand building it was.

                                               Alpha House taken in 1871

Looking North on Queen Street with Alpha House on the left. Taken in 1875.

This is a later photograph (1920) of Alpha House (Courtesy Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

1937 photograph of Richard Watkins in front of a horse-drawn baker's cart in Queen Street with Alpha House in the background (Cooper Collection. Courtesy Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Written by Andrew Allen

The Engadine

Every morning and afternoon as I drove to and from work I'd pass The Engadine on the corner of Broughton and Lindesay Streets. I loved its charm. Although not very old, its beauty stood out amongst an ever increasing environment of sterility. Unfortunately development was again the priority and The Engadine fell to the bulldozer- another of Campbelltown's treasures disappeared forever.

The Engadine was built in 1924 by Minto grazier Kelvin Cuthell and designed by local architect A.W.M. Mowle. Mr Cuthell came to Campbelltown in 1914 with his mother and lived in Mossberry House. His mother died in 1915. He enlisted in the 6th Light Horse in 1915 and was detached to signals corps in 1918. On arriving home, he lived at Smeaton with the Sedgwick family before marrying Daphne Woodhouse in 1924. They then built and moved into The Engadine. Kelverton Cuthel died in 1930 and after Daphne died in 1945, her sister Iris moved into the house, remaining there until her death in the 1970s.

The Engadine was a dark brick symmetrical house with a terracotta tiled hipped roof, having a projecting bay at each end at the front. The front verandah had ornate balustrading and painted Truscan style columns; the verandah had been partly enclosed. The house had diamond patterned leadlight casement windows and small paned timber and glass door leading from the front verandah. When news of the pending demolition reached the Campbelltown community someone wrote to the local newspaper: "It's got the most magnificent stained-glass windows. I wanted to try to buy it to save it but I didn't have enough money."

The Engadine was included in Campbelltown City Council's Heritage Study 1999 for possible inclusion as a heritage item on the Local Environment Plan, but was rejected. It was demolished in March 2012.

Below is a photograph taken of Mrs Daphne Cuthell with her dogs, "Pat" and "Mike" on the verandah of The Engadine. Below that is a photograph I took of the demolition in March 2012.

                        Cooper Collection (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Written by Andrew Allen

Sources:

Macarthur Advertiser 27/3/2012

FOWLER, Verlie 2010
The Engadine- and its Architect
In Grist Mills Vol. 23, No. 1 pp8-9

Mumbong

'Mumbong' was a cottage that stood on the northern end of Queen Street approximately opposite Chamberlain Street. It was located about where the Shell service station is today. It was sadly demolished like many other wonderful old buildings in the town and therefore robbing us of appreciating its charm.

I don't know when 'Mumbong' was built but it had stood a number of years before the Haydon family lived there from around 1900. Aline Haydon was born at the cottage in 1910. She remembered it was a stone house with 3 bedrooms, a front room, a huge big dining room and a kitchen and bathroom.

Arthur Payten and his family moved in after the Haydons around 1918.

It is not known why the house was called 'Mumbong'.

Mumbong taken before 1920 (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

Written by Andrew Allen

Year of the Bulldozer

The year 1970 saw a spate of demolitions of historical buildings in Campbelltown. It started with the beautiful home "Rosangeles" in January, followed in March by the police sergeant's residence in Railway Street and the old St John's Presbytery in July. The rapid population expansion of the city resulted in a need for more car parking spaces. Unfortunately these wonderful old buildings paid the price for this demand.

The following is a little bit about each building that felt the full force of the bulldozer that year:

Rosangeles

This house stood at the south west corner of Oxley and Cordeaux Street. It was built in 1923 by Andrew Lysaght who, at that time, was the State Member of parliament for this area. The house had from all accounts been built to last by Lysaght. The verandah posts were cut from the bush at Appin at the time and all of the fine maple panelling in the house was cut from one tree by the Sydney firm of George Hudson. The house was surrounded by a fine garden and a number of tall palm trees.

Rosangeles at the time of its demolition in January 1970 (From the Campbelltown Ingleburn News February 3, 1970)



Police Sergeant's Residence

This building was located next to the police station in Railway Street. It was demolished to make way for extensions to Hurley Street and eventual traffic access improvements around the adjacent station. The sandstock bricks in the old residence were used in the footpath in front of "Glenalvon" in Lithgow Street.


St John's Presbytery

Land was purchased in 1839 in which a presbytery was to be eventually erected. A log belfry stood on this land until it was replaced by this building. It stood in Cordeaux Street. The two-storey brick building with shingled roof, shuttered windows and wooden columns also housed the Appin priest. The presbytery was located not far from the current presbytery where a car park now occupies the site.

The Presbytery taken around 1900 by Percy Marlow (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)


Do you have a photograph that shows the police sergeant's residence in Railway Street? The Campbelltown Ingleburn News contains a grainy image unsuitable for this blog. We'd love to see a clearer image.

Sources:

Campbelltown Ingleburn News Feb 3, 1970; Mar 24, 1970; Jul 14, 1970
St John The Evangelist Parish Campbelltown- 150 Years

One Missing

These days Campbelltown is immensely proud of the row of colonial terraces opposite the Queen Street entrance to Campbelltown Mall. They add so much character to a street that has unfortunately seen too many demolitions in the name of progress over the years. We owe a lot to former mayor Clive Tregear for saving these three wonderful old buildings through his defiant stance in the 1960s. It might come as a surprise to you that one of the group didn't survive the bulldozer however. It was known as Ealing Cottage.

Ealing Cottage stood where the vacant block of land now is between the former Legacy House to the north and Coaching House to the south. It's address was 296 Queen Street. According to historian Carol Liston, the building was possibly built in the 1850s. The portion of land was purchased from the Bradbury Park Estate in 1844 by Samuel Lovely, conveyed to him by Patrick McMahon in 1853, who may have built the cottage to carry out his business as a wheelwright.

The cottage was already standing by the early 1870s. The image above shows the building in 1871 taken by the photographer William Boag. It looked similar to this right throughout its existence. The cottage passed through a number of hands until 1884 when it was used as a shop and residence and occupied by G Lindsay. The 1891 census shows that the householder for this portion was William Rose and the building was occupied by four men and two women. An Ellen Rose Wilkinson owned it from 1912 to 1956 and she then sold it to Berty Richard Rixon and his wife. They then sold it to the Cumberland County Council in 1962 for 6,100 pounds.

Ealing House is on the far right of this photograph taken in 1950 by Ivor Thomas (Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society)

The brick cottage became known as Ealing House in its later years. It was described as a single story cottage with verandah. Unfortunately it was deemed to have "no architectural or historical significance" and was demolished shortly after the land was acquired by the Cumberland County Council.

Do you have memories of this building? Please share them with us.

Source:

LISTON, Carol 1990
Queen Street Terraces, Campbelltown: Historical Investigation