Strickland House, Vaucluse facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Strickland House |
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Strickland House, pictured in July 2012.
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| Location | 52 Vaucluse Road, Vaucluse, Municipality of Woollahra, New South Wales, Australia |
| Built | 1830–1858 |
| Built for | John Hosking |
| Architect | John Frederick Hilly |
| Architectural style(s) |
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| Owner | Government of New South Wales |
| Official name: Strickland House; Carrara; Strickland Convalescent Home for Women; Strickland House Hospital for the Aged | |
| Type | State heritage (complex / group) |
| Designated | 2 April 1999 |
| Reference no. | 722 |
| Type | Mansion |
| Category | Residential buildings (private) |
| Builders | William Wentworth |
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Strickland House is a special historic building in Vaucluse, Australia. It used to be a fancy home and a place where people could recover from illness. Today, it's used for events, filming, and is a public park that visitors can enjoy.
The house was designed by John Frederick Hilly and built between 1830 and 1858. It was also known as Carrara and later as the Strickland Convalescent Home for Women or Strickland House Hospital for the Aged. The Government of New South Wales now owns the property. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.
Contents
A Look Back: History of Strickland House
The land where Strickland House stands has a long history. It goes back to before Europeans arrived in Australia. Later, it was part of a large piece of land given to William Wentworth. He gave this part of his land to his daughter, Thomasina, in the 1830s.
The house itself was built by John Hosking, who was Sydney's second mayor. He owned the property from 1855 to 1876. After him, other important families lived there, like the Moores and the Allens.
In 1914, the NSW Government bought the land. They wanted it to be a public park. Soon after, it became the Strickland Convalescent Home for Women. This was a place for people to get better after being sick. It stayed a hospital until 1989. Since 1990, it has been used for events, filming, and as a public park.
John Hosking: Building Carrara
The original house, called Carrara, was built in 1856. It was a grand villa with beautiful gardens. The house had a striking two-story curved section. It was built close to the water, with a sandstone wharf nearby.
John Hosking (1806–1882) was the Mayor of Sydney. He hired John Frederick Hilly in 1856 to build what is now Strickland House. Hosking was born in England and came to Sydney as a child. He became a successful businessman. In 1829, he married Martha Terry. The Hosking family lived at Strickland House until 1876.
In 1877, an advertisement described the house and gardens. It said the property was "scarcely to be equalled in the colonies." It was a home with "comfort, convenience, and respectability."
Henry Moore: Life at Carrara
Henry Moore (1815–1888) moved into Strickland House in 1879. He lived there with his wife, Elizabeth, and their adult children. Henry Moore was a successful merchant and a member of the NSW Parliament.
A housemaid who worked for the Moores described life at the house in the 1880s:
I was quite excited as I walked up to the big white house. Just outside the front door as if they were guarding the house were two enormous carved marble dogs bigger than lions. The large front hall was also of marble. The grounds were beautiful and beautifully kept. There were four gardeners, besides the coachman and the groom and in the house a cook, lady’s maid, two parlour-maids, three house maids, kitchen maid, laundry woman and maid.
Life at the house was very gay. I grew fond of the three young ladies. They entertained a great deal. They were famous for keeping open house.
The Master Mr Moore was a dear old man. He had come out and settled in Australia in the early days. He owned a wharf at Miller’s Point in Sydney and was reputedly very wealthy, the result of his successful business in whaling ships. He was certainly very generous with his money.
The Moore family enjoyed their time at Carrara. They often invited guests and hosted parties. Henry Moore died in 1888, and his family moved away.
The Allen Family and Tudor House
After Henry Moore's death, Arthur Wigram Allen and his brother Boyce Allen bought the property in 1888. Arthur was a well-known lawyer in Sydney. His family was famous for their legal firm, Allens. Boyce Allen lived in the house with his family for over ten years.
Boyce Allen (1856–1945) was one of eleven children. His father, George Wigram Allen, was a prominent lawyer and politician. Arthur, Boyce's brother, was also a lawyer and a keen photographer.
In 1888, Boyce married Isabella Dundas. They moved into Strickland House right after their wedding. They had six children. A niece of Boyce Allen described the house and its beautiful location:
Carrara (Strickland House) was about 8 miles from town and 4 miles from where we lived. It looked west across Rose Bay and had one of the most beautiful views in Sydney. The white stone house had curved and pillared verandahs and two great stone dogs on which I loved to ride, stood either side of the porch. The unkempt lawn ran down steeply to a small private beach and the garden melted into paddocks and natural bush. Wentworth House and Vaucluse House were about the only private homes beyond it before reaching the military settlement at South Head. We loved to drive out to Carrara to play and bathe with our cousins. Primrose and Marian were a little older than Joyce and Dundas was the same age as Denis.
A School at Strickland House
Between 1899 and 1902, the house was rented to Wilfred Alexander Inman. He used it as a school for boys. This school later became Tudor House School in Moss Vale.
Wilfred Alexander Inman (1862-1950) was born in England. He moved to Australia when he was 19. In 1897, he married Mary Martin. Her father was Sir James Martin, the Chief Justice of NSW.
Inman wrote about his time at Strickland House:
In the choice of a foundation of a school it must always be realised that if there is to be fruition, the public's reaction is of first importance. Thus Carrara (Strickland House) in its beautiful setting was of paramount importance to the moulding of character with the love of the beautiful. The house was ideally suited in every way, with lofty rooms and glorious views of Rose Bay... The grounds, now much curtailed, were then rich with beautiful trees and shrubs, with grass in front sloping down to a white sandy beach where there were dressing sheds and an enclosure for bathing. There we erected a shed for a boat kindly given to us by one of the parents.
The Allen family sold Strickland House to the government in 1915.
From Home to Hospital
The beautiful location and design of Strickland House show what wealthy people wanted in the mid-1800s. The gardens, especially, were designed to be very scenic.
In 1914, the NSW government bought the property. They used money from the Foreshores Resumption Scheme. This scheme helped buy land along Sydney Harbour for public use. The government wanted Strickland House to be a "public recreation ground."
However, it was soon turned into a public health facility. In 1915, it opened as the Strickland House Convalescent Hospital for Women. It was named after the then NSW Governor, Sir Gerald Strickland. Later, in 1933, more buildings were added. These included two large dormitories for men and women. This showed how important the hospital was to the community.
The hospital operated for 75 years, from 1915 to 1989. It provided care for people recovering from illness and, after 1960, for aged patients. The hospital closed in December 1989.
What Happened Next?
Since the hospital closed in 1989, there has been a lot of discussion about what to do with the property. Many people, like Peter and June Poland, worked hard to keep Strickland House and its grounds open to the public. They believed it was one of Sydney's best public parks by the harbour. It offers amazing views of Sydney Harbour.
In 1994, then Premier John Fahey declared the grounds an Urban Park. This meant the public could access the grounds. A fence that had been put up in the 1980s was removed.
Over the years, different governments had ideas for the site. Some wanted to lease parts of it for private use, like a hotel. But strong community protests stopped these plans. People wanted the land to remain public.
In 1999, Strickland House was officially listed on the NSW State Heritage Register. This helped protect its history and beauty. Conservation work has been done on the house and other buildings.
Today, the grounds are open to the public every day during daylight hours. The house itself is used for films and advertising. It is also open to the public one day a year during the National Trust's Heritage Festival.
Exploring Strickland House: Description
Estate and Grounds
The Strickland House property is about 4.8 hectares (12 acres) of land by the harbour. It is located near Nielsen Park in Vaucluse. The land size is very similar to the original grant made to William Wentworth in the 1830s. It includes buildings, gardens, and other structures that tell the story of the site. This story goes from its Aboriginal past to its time as a grand home and later as a hospital.
The grounds have many features. These include a looped driveway, pathways, stone-edged garden beds, and lawns. There is also a croquet court, a landscaped creek, a pond, and a sandstone quarry. Many mature trees and plants grow here. Some are from the time it was a private home, and others from when it was a hospital.
The property has many walking paths. Some follow gentle slopes, while others have steps for steeper parts. The main driveway is paved but still has its original winding shape. This design was meant to give visitors different views as they approached the mansion.
Gardens
The gardens are filled with mature trees and shrubs. They create beautiful boundaries, terraces, and borders along the curving driveway. These plantings frame lovely views of the harbour.
Some of these trees are very old and special. They show the types of plants that were popular in the mid-to-late 1800s. Examples include:
- Himalayan chir pine (Pinus roxburghii)
- Stone pines from the Mediterranean (Pinus pinea)
- Hoop pines (Araucaria cunninghamii)
- A giant bamboo (Bambusa balcooa)
- Chinese hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)
- Camphor laurel (Cinnamommum camphora)
- Port Jackson or rusty fig (Ficus rubiginosa)
- African olives (Olea europaea subsp. cuspidata)
- A large evergreen magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora)
- A tuckeroo (Cupaniopsis anacardioides), which is a native coastal tree
- Canary Island date palm (Phoenix canariensis)
- Camellia japonica
- Indian hawthorn (Raphiolepis sp.)
There is also a rare tipu tree from Bolivia (Tipuana tipu) and a small native tree called Monotoca elliptica.
The Mansion
Strickland House is a Victorian Italianate mansion. It is made of sandstone and has three stories. It features verandahs with Doric columns. The house is very close to the harbour, offering wide views across the water.
The original mansion, Carrara, is still mostly the same as when it was built. It was designed to capture 180-degree views of the harbour. The two-story house has painted sandstone walls. It also has an attic made of timber. The verandahs on the west and south sides have columns.
Inside, the main rooms downstairs are around a central hallway. The formal reception rooms on the west side have cedar-framed french doors. These doors allow amazing views of the harbour. All these rooms still have their original cedar and plaster details. There is a large cellar under the dining room. The first floor used to have bedrooms and bathrooms. These were later changed into hospital wards and offices.
Other Buildings
- Service Area: This area is on the east side of the house. It used to have servants' quarters, a kitchen, and a laundry. These rooms are arranged around a courtyard.
- Coach House: To the east of the main house is a stables and coach house. It was built at the same time as the mansion. This L-shaped building is made of sandstone with gabled roofs. It still has its original layout and sandstone floors inside.
- Dormitory Buildings: To the north-west of the main house is a large hospital dormitory building. It was built in the 1930s. Another similar dormitory is to the south. A third building, the nurses' home, is on higher land to the north-east. It was also built in the 1930s.
Why Strickland House is Important
Strickland House is very important for its history and beauty. It is a rare example of an 1850s villa that is still largely intact. The property shows how early settlers used land in the area. It was part of a large land grant that was never divided up.
The original building, Carrara, is a great example of an early Victorian Italianate mansion. It was designed to be in a beautiful, scenic setting. The house and its strong connection to the water are rare in Sydney today.
The design of Strickland House shows the ideas of wealthy people in the mid-1800s. The house still looks like a landmark, just as it did back then. Its layout also shows the different social classes of the time.
The house is also important for its beautiful design and original features. Many details from the 1850s are still there. This includes marble fireplaces imported from Italy and high-quality cedar woodwork.
The Stables building is also special. It shows the extra facilities needed for a large family home in the mid-1800s. Its unique details make it a rare example of its kind.
Strickland House is connected to many important historical figures. These include William Charles Wentworth, the original landowner. Also, John Hosking, who built the house, and later residents like Henry Moore and the Allen family. These people were important political figures in the 1800s. This made Carrara well-known in Sydney's social circles.
The NSW government's purchase of the site in 1914 helped save it. Its later use as a public health care facility was also a big step. It showed how government attitudes towards health care were changing. The hospital operated for 75 years, which is longer than it was a private home.
The gardens and grounds are also very important. They were designed according to "picturesque" ideas, which means they were made to look like a beautiful painting. Even though it was later used as a hospital, the original beauty of the landscape can still be seen.
Today, the grounds of Strickland House are one of Sydney's best public parks by the harbour. They offer amazing views. The site is valued by the community for its beauty and for recreation.
The intact nature of the site makes it valuable for research. Studying the remains here can help us understand the lives of the people who lived there. It can also teach us about garden design in the mid-1800s.
Strickland House is a rare and special place in New South Wales. It is one of the few surviving properties from its time that still has its large grounds and its connection to the water. It is an excellent example of architect John F. Hilly's work.
Images for kids
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Strickland House, pictured in July 2012.
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John Hosking in 1860
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Elizabeth and Henry Moore, around 1880.
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Arthur and Boyce Allen, 1900.
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Afternoon tea at Strickland House, 1898.
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Wilfred and Mary Inman with student at Strickland House, 1899.
