House, 65 Seaby Street, STAWELL
65 Seaby Street STAWELL, NORTHERN GRAMPIANS SHIRE
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Statement of Significance
The house at 65 Seaby Street, Stawell, makes a significant contribution to the predominantly single storey, Victorian styled streetscape of Seaby Street. This house has significance as an reasonably intact example of the Victorian style. Built in 1868 to a design by Robert Alexander Love for John Yabsley Wakeham, first store operator at Pleasant Creek in 1854 and prominent figure, the house has experienced some alterations that have been detrimental to the building fabric.
The house at 65 Seaby Street is architecturally significant at a LOCAL level. It demonstrates original design qualities of the Victorian style. These qualities include the hipped roof form, together with the return concave verandah that projects at the front and sides. Other intact or appropriate qualities include the symmetrical composition from the front, single storey height, rendered brick cavity wall construction with stone quoins and dressings, galvanised corrugated steel roof cladding, two substantial rendered brick chimneys, narrow eaves, central door opening with four panelled timber door and sidelights, timber and glazed French windows, timber verandah columns with timber framed cast iron valances and cast iron brackets, interior ceiling roses, ornate cornice in the entrance hall , and the commodious and dry cellar.
The house at 65 Seaby Street is historically significant at a LOCAL level. It is associated with residential developments in Stawell during the prosperous years of the gold rush in the late 1860s. In particular, this house was built in 1868 for John Yabsley and Elizabeth Wakeham, first storekeepers in Pleasant Creek from 1854. Wakeham was a prominent and influential figure in Stawell, finding fortune in mining interests that appear to have provided the funds to build this house. As a founding father of the town, Stawell closed for Wakeham's funeral in 1872. The house has further associations with the architect, Robert Alexander Love.
Overall, the house at 65 Seaby Street is of LOCAL significance.
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House, 65 Seaby Street, STAWELL - Physical Description 1
The house at 65 Seaby Street, Stawell, is visually connected to other significant, single storey, predominantly Victorian styled houses in the streetscape of Seaby Street. This house is set in a well-landscaped garden of exotic trees and shrubs, with perimeter flower beds. The front is bound by an introduced timber post and rail and wore fence that is approximately 1300 mm high. There is also an introduced gabled lychgate at the front, and a timber gate.
The symmetrical, single storey, rendered brick, Victorian styled house is characterised by a hipped roof form, together with a return concave verandah that projects at the front and sides. These roof forms are clad in galvanised corrugated steel. Two early and substantial rendered brick chimneys adorn the roofline. Narrow overhangs are features of the eaves.
The symmetry of the design is accentuated by the early central door opening and flanking early timber and glazed French windows. The door opening has an early four panelled timber door with sidelights.
Another feature of the design is the return verandah. It is supported by introduced timber columns with early timber framed cast iron valances and cast iron brackets.
The stone quoinwork and window dressings are also early.
Mike Butcher in Robert Alexander Love: Goldfields Architect provides for details on the house:
"The house is a very pretty cottage of brick cavity construction with stone quoins. The cavity is a full brick width and the walls appear to be tied at the window openings, doorways, but the cavity is bricked over at the top ... The house is modestly but well proportioned and generally in excellent condition, though some of the details have been lost over time. For instance, glazing bars have been lost from the windows and there appears once to have been a verandah rail and possible balusters. The double swing doors in the entrance hall have gone, but some of the ceiling roses and the ornate cornice in the entrance hall remain intact. Replacement of the verandah floors with concrete and painting the exterior walls has been detrimental to the fabric of the building through rising damp. There is evidence on the chimney coping that there were once ornamental corbels that have been removed. There is a commodious and dry cellar which appears once to have been entered from the corridor at the rear."
Heritage Study and Grading
Northern Grampians - Shire of Northern Grampians - Stage 2 Heritage Study
Author: Wendy Jacobs, Vicki Johnson, David Rowe, Phil Taylor
Year: 2004
Grading: Local
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FORMER LITERARY & SCIENTIFIC INSTITUTEVictorian Heritage Register H0531
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FORMER POLICE SUPERINTENDENT'S RESIDENCEVictorian Heritage Register H0986
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FORMER PLEASANT CREEK COURT HOUSEVictorian Heritage Register H0998
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