Carisbrook is a

heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and man-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In many ...

former private residence and now house and local history museum at 334 Burns Bay Road,

Lane Cove Lane Cove is a suburb on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Lane Cove is nine kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local governmen ...

in the

Lane Cove Council The Lane Cove Council is a Local government in Australia, local government area located on the North Shore (Sydney), Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The administrative seat of Lane Cove, New South Wales, Lane Cove is loc ...

local government area of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia. It was built during 1884. The property is owned by the Lane Cove Council. It was added to the

New South Wales State Heritage Register The New South Wales State Heritage Register, also known as NSW State Heritage Register, is a heritage list of places in the state of New South Wales, Australia, that are protected by New South Wales legislation, generally covered by the Heritag ...

on 2 April 1999.

History

*1835A land grant by purchase of to John Clarke, including present Carisbrook site. *1836Purchased by Richard Linley who installed a rope-making plant. *1860Several owners until Rachel Martha and Thomas Brooks moved into a weatherboard cottage on the site after their marriage in 1860 *1884After the death of Thomas and Rachel in 1883, the son of the former Charles Phillips Brooks, built the stone residence called Carisbrook. Retaining a curtilage of land around the house and stretching down to Burns Bay, he subdivided the remainder of the land in 1885 as the Carisbrook Estate. After residing in it for only a year, the house was let to a number of tenants by Brooks, and by its successor owner, W. Bradley.LCMC Rate Books *1920When acquired by Estate Agent, James Warr, in 1920, the land around the house was divided into six blocks. The house was let throughout Warr's ownership and until sold to Harry Thorne, a law clerk, and his wife Lucie, in 1940. It became their family residence for seventeen years. (Elliott) *1957It was sold to a milliner, James Kitchener McDougall, who lived in it with his companion. Appreciating its heritage potential, he upgraded and gentrified the house, and particularly the gardens. *1966Prior to its purchase by Lane Cove Council in 1969 it was owned by the neighbouring manufacturing firm, Tuta Products, and served as its office and staff residence. *1969Carisbrook was purchased and restored by Lane Cove Council in 1969 to mark its 75th Anniversary. Furnished by Lave Cove Historical Society, it has operated as a house and local history museum until the present. In 1980 Lane Cove Council sought a Permanent Conservation Order for Carisbrook. In view of its heritage significance a Permanent Conservation Order was gazetted over Carisbrook on 26 June 1981.

Description

A single-storey,

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

house, built in 1884. Set in fine gardens with landscaped terraces down to the River. Has

bay window A bay window is a window space projecting outward from the main walls of a building and forming a bay in a room. Types Bay window is a generic term for all protruding window constructions, regardless of whether they are curved or angular, or r ...

and corner

veranda A veranda or verandah is a roofed, open-air gallery or porch, attached to the outside of a building. A veranda is often partly enclosed by a railing and frequently extends across the front and sides of the structure. Although the form ''veran ...

h, bearing bellcast iron roof, supported on cast iron

columns A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...

with lace

brackets A bracket is either of two tall fore- or back-facing punctuation marks commonly used to isolate a segment of text or data from its surroundings. Typically deployed in symmetric pairs, an individual bracket may be identified as a 'left' or 'r ...

. Main

hipped roof A hip roof, hip-roof or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downwards to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope (although a tented roof by definition is a hipped roof with steeply pitched slopes rising to a peak). Thus, ...

is of slate. Windows and

French doors A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide security by ...

have shutters which are not original. There is an attractive rear

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary ...

, walled with sandstone in the 1960s, and with its original well. The verandahs feature tessellated tiles - probably Minton pattern (bought from the Sydney Arcade which was being demolished in the 1960s).

Condition

As at 13 April 2000, the condition of the property was good. Its physical fabric is intact and largely original. Planned authentic restoration of its interior finishes and furnishings, based on a study, will enhance its integrity.

Modifications and dates

*1940sDoor cut between present kitchen and museum room (then breakfast room). *1960sGarage, laundry and courtyard wall built from sandstone transferred from the demolition of Amalfi, a Longueville mansion. Amalfi's fine picket iron fence and stone gate posts added. Verandahs tiled. Shutters added. Considerable landscaping. *1969-70Further restoration and sympathetic renovation of the interior.

Heritage listing

112 - Carisbrook - PCO Plan Number 112 (5045385p1)

As at 3 July 2012, Carisbrook, constructed in 1884 was a visually attractive and intact example of Victorian architecture, preserving many original features and furnished for public visitation as a period house museum. It is set in beautiful landscaped gardens stretching down to Burns Bay. (Heritage Branch files) Carisbrook was listed on the

on 2 April 1999 having satisfied the following criteria. The place is important in demonstrating the course, or pattern, of cultural or natural history in New South Wales. It is the earliest remaining house in the Linley Point area, being built in 1884. It is representative of the impact of transport on subdivision and development, being built, and the land south of it being subdivided, just as the

Fig Tree Bridge The Fig Tree Bridge is a road bridge that carries Burns Bay Road across the Lane Cove River, and connects the suburbs of Hunters Hill, New South Wales, Hunters Hill in the south and Linley Point, New South Wales, Linley Point in the north, locate ...

is being constructed nearby. The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales. It is set in a beautifully landscaped garden stretching down to Burns Bay. Constructed of sandstone, it is visually and architecturally very worthwhile, and preserves the majority of its original features. The place has a strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group in New South Wales for social, cultural or spiritual reasons. As a house museum it reflects changes in social life and household technology since 1884. Hosting many community functions, and visits from individuals and groups of all ages, and serving as Lane Cove's only historical museum, open regularly to the public, it is an important focus of community life. The place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. Because it is a fine example of Victorian architecture (the only Victorian house museum open to the public in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

), preserving many of its original features, it holds a unique position as a case study for visits by researchers and students of Victorian architecture and interiors. It is an ideal setting for on-site courses. The place possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. It is the oldest surviving home on Linley Point, and we have been informed is the only Victorian house museum in Sydney, open to the public. The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of cultural or natural places/environments in New South Wales. It is representative of a middle-class Victorian family home, and through its period interpretation, depicts aspects of Victorian family life.

References

Bibliography

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Attribution

{{NSW-SHR-CC, name=Carisbrook, dno=5045385, id=00112, year=2018, accessdate=1 June 2018 New South Wales State Heritage Register Lane Cove, New South Wales Houses in Sydney Historic house museums in New South Wales Articles incorporating text from the New South Wales State Heritage Register 1884 establishments in Australia Houses completed in 1884