The Windsor Hotel is a heritage-listed building in

South Perth, Western Australia South Perth is a residential suburb of Perth, Western Australia that adjoins the southern shore of Perth Water on the Swan River; it is south of the central business district. The suburb adjoins two major arterial roads—Canning Highway and ...

. Designed by J. J.

Talbot Hobbs Lieutenant General Sir Joseph John Talbot Hobbs, (24 August 1864 – 21 April 1938) was an Australian architect and First World War general. Early life Hobbs was born in London, the son of Joseph and his wife Frances Ann Hobbs (née Wilson). E ...

, the building is of

Federation Filigree Federation architecture is the architectural style in Australia that was prevalent from around 1890 to 1915. The name refers to the Federation of Australia on 1 January 1901, when the Australian colonies collectively became the Commonwealth of ...

style. Built in 1898, it is one of the earliest surviving hotels in Perth's southern suburbs. The Windsor is sited to take advantage of patrons visiting

Perth Zoo Perth Zoo is a zoological park in South Perth, Western Australia. The zoo first opened in 1898 and by 2011 housed 1258 animals of 164 species and an extensive botanical collection. It is a full institutional member of the Zoo and Aquarium Ass ...

, coming via ferry along the Swan River. Since its construction, the hotel has had several major renovations.

History

The Windsor Hotel was designed by prominent architect J. J. Talbot Hobbs, and built for George Strickland in 1898 at a cost of £4,050. The hotel opened on the corner of Mends Street and Mill Point Road at a time when the popularity of South Perth was increasing; by the mid-1890s the suburb was well established. In 1898, the Perth Zoo opened, along with a post office, which operated out of the hotel for a period of time. Part way through

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the Strickland family sold the hotel to Mary Thomas (later

Mary Raine Mary Bertha Raine ( Carter, also known as Mary Thomas during her first marriage, 17 February 1877 – 3 February 1960) was an Australian businesswoman and philanthropist. Her bequests to the University of Western Australia created and funded th ...

), who willed it to the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...

. Major works have taken place since the Windsor was constructed in 1898, with renovations carried out in 1962, 1965, 1970, the 1980s and 1991.

Style

The building was designed in

style. The building is constructed with tuck-pointed brickwork in

Flemish bond Brickwork is masonry produced by a bricklayer, using bricks and Mortar (masonry), mortar. Typically, rows of bricks called ''Course (architecture), courses'' are laid on top of one another to build up a structure such as a brick wall. Bricks ...

and its corrugated iron roof is concealed behind a parapet. The veranda and balcony extend along both street facades and are covered with a lean-to roof. The veranda roof is broken by gables, which highlight the main entrance to each street facade and the truncated corner. The veranda roof is supported on fine, ornamental cast-iron posts with capitals and cast-iron balustrading. Its intact street veranda and roof details are now very scarce and so have rarity value. The Windsor Hotel is representative of the

Australian pub An Australian pub or hotel is a public house or pub for short, in Australia, and is an establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. They may also provide other services, such as entertainment, meals and ...

tradition: a two-storey hotel with verandas, usually located on a prominent street corner in a suburb or country town. It was listed with the

Heritage Council of Western Australia The Heritage Council of Western Australia is the Government of Western Australia agency created to identify, conserve and promote places of cultural heritage significance in the state. Prior to its creation, considerable variance in policy and ...

in 1995.

References

External links

* {{official website, https://www.windsorhotelsouthperth.com/ South Perth, Western Australia Historic hotels in Perth, Western Australia State Register of Heritage Places in the City of South Perth