Don Bank facts for kids

Don Bank (also known as the Don Bank Museum) is a very old house in North Sydney, Australia. It used to be a home but is now a museum. It was built between 1853 and 1858 for Edward Wollstonecraft. The house is also called St. Leonard's Cottage. The local council, North Sydney Council, owns the property. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999. This means it is an important historical place.

Discovering Don Bank's History

Edward Wollstonecraft came to this area in 1819. He was given a large piece of land in 1825. Don Bank was built on a part of this land. Edward was known for shipping and whaling. He built another house called Crows Nest Cottage.

People used to think Don Bank was built much earlier. But new information shows it was built around July 1853. It was made bigger in November 1854. At that time, it was called St. Leonard's Cottage.

In 1853, a lawyer named William Carr bought the land. Don Bank was built for his wife, Charlotte Carr. It was first a four-room house. Later, between 1856 and 1858, more rooms were added. These included a dining room and a kitchen.

Exploring Don Bank's Design

The Garden and Surroundings

Today, Don Bank is surrounded by tall office buildings. But it still has a lovely garden. The main entrance faces Napier Street. There is also a back entrance from Oak Street. A public garden next to the house makes it feel green and peaceful.

Other old houses are across from Don Bank on Napier Street. They are built in a similar style. This helps Don Bank keep its old-fashioned look. The garden has a timber fence. It feels like a quiet spot among the busy city buildings.

When Don Bank was first built, it had amazing views. You could see all the way to Neutral Bay. The front garden has a big grassy area. There are many trees and shrubs. You can see an Illawarra flame tree near the front gate. There are also two Lord Howe Island palms along the path. Other trees include a coastal banksia and a crepe myrtle.

Inside the Historic House

Don Bank, 2018

Don Bank is a single-storey house. It is built in the Victorian Georgian Revival style. This means it looks like houses from the Victorian era. It has a wide front door. French doors open onto a verandah at the front. The original roof was made of shingles. Now it has a corrugated iron roof. The verandah has beautiful timber work. This type of work is quite rare today.

The house has a classic design. It has a central hall with rooms on each side. The front verandah runs along the whole front of the house. Each room has its own French doors to the verandah. These doors have full-height shutters. The verandah has timber floorboards. The roof was re-shingled recently with she-oak.

Verandah, 2018

The inside of the house still has its original room layout. There are two rooms on each side of the central hall. More rooms were added later. A kitchen wing was also attached. The central hall connects the front and back verandahs. It lets you get to most of the rooms. Some walls still have their original boards. Calico cloth was added to some walls in the 1980s. This was done to show how walls might have looked back then.

Many parts of the main rooms are still original. They are in good condition. The dining room, an older room, and the kitchen were updated in the 1980s. This included new plaster on walls and plumbing. Caretaker's rooms were also added.

The house has had some changes over the years. But its main layout is still the same. Some parts of the building show water stains. This is from a gutter system. Different types of timber floorboards show how the house was built over time. During the 1980s, new floors were put in where old ones were damaged.

Why Don Bank is Important

Don Bank was officially listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999. This means it is a very important historical site. It is protected so future generations can learn from it.

See also

• Australian residential architectural styles