The Burns Philp Building is a heritage-listed commercial building located at 5–11 Bridge Street in the

Sydney central business district The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main Central business district, commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or ...

, in the

City of Sydney The City of Sydney is the Local government in Australia, local government area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the Greater Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established by Act of Parliament ...

local government area of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, Australia. It was designed by A. L. and G. McCredie and built from 1899 to 1900 by Mitchell and King. 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

The Burns Philp Building was built and established in 1899 for the

Burns Philp Burns Philp (properly Burns, Philp & Co, Limited) was a major Australian shipping line and merchant that operated in the South Pacific. In later years the company was a major player in the food manufacturing business. Since its Delisting (stoc ...

company. Before the building the land was occupied by early settlers and eventually utilised by a lumberyard and a series of five buildings occupied by a number of small businesses including a watchmaker, loan office, tea-rooms, a bedding manufacturer and a warehouse. James Burns was born in 1846, originally from

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

. Burns and his older brother sailed and landed in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

in 1862. By 1872 they had become partners in a grocery business in

Townsville The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...

, before expanding into shipping. Over time Burns became a shrewd businessman, his business prospered "due to his wonderful business acumen, probity, magnetic personality and untiring efforts".Conybeare Morrison & Partners, 2000.

Robert Philp Sir Robert Philp, (28 December 1851 – 17 June 1922) was a Queensland businessman and politician who was Premier of Queensland from December 1899 to September 1903 and again from November 1907 to February 1908. Early life Philp was born in G ...

was also born in Glasgow in 1852. Philp immigrated with his family in 1862. In 1874 Burns offered Philp a job with a view of partnership. In April 1883 the company was incorporated under NSW law with Philp based in Townsville and Burns in Sydney. Philp resigned in 1893 after financial difficulties, but went on to become the

Premier of Queensland The premier of Queensland is the head of government in the Australian state of Queensland. By convention the premier is the leader of the party with a parliamentary majority in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The premier is appointed ...

1899-1903. At this time Burns Philp occupied a building, No 10 located directly opposite the site on Bridge Street, but by 1898 this building was heavily pressed with increasing demands on the company and on the building. By 1899 it was obvious that the building had to be expanded. In April 1898 Burns made an offer for the 109 feet frontage to Bridge Street opposite the existing building. This offer was declined, a second was made and in May 1899 the land had been purchased. By October 1899 twenty-eight tenders had been received for the new building. The successful tender came from Mitchell and King at 23,875 pounds. By the end of 1900 leases had been signed to Weber Lohmann and Co., the Bellambi Coal Co., J. R. Bexter Bruce, Captain R. M Phillips, William Honston, H. W. Peabody and Co. and the North Queensland Insurance Co. All these companies had a considerable voice in the finishing work, adding their own requests for fittings. In 1908 structural alterations, decorating and furnishing was carried out. During the 1950s, 1960s, later 1970s and 1980s significant changes were made to the original building to expand for new accommodation for new tenants, its capabilities and its presentation to suit the changing image of the company. In January 1996, the rear of the building suffered damage from a fire in the adjacent George Patterson House, which partially collapsed onto the Burns Philp Building. The building was sold for $15 million in October 1997 due to the financial collapse of Burns Philp. The contents of the building were auctioned by Lawsons on Wednesday 25 March 1998, which included photographs, paintings, maps, shipping memorabilia and furniture. It was converted to

strata title Strata title is a form of ownership and housing tenure devised for multi-level apartment blocks and horizontal subdivisions with shared areas. The word "strata" refers to apartments on different levels. Strata title was first introduced in 19 ...

and sold as separate commercial offices in 1998. The basement has often been leased as a restaurant since Burns Philp's departure; initially becoming the Stock Exchange Hotel, in 2018, it is occupied by the Bridge Street outlet of the Fratelli Fresh restaurant chain.

Description

The Burns Philp Building is located at the south-western end of Bridge Street, Sydney. It comprises a basement, ground level,

mezzanine A mezzanine (; or in Italian, a ''mezzanino'') is an intermediate floor in a building which is partly open to the double-height ceilinged floor below, or which does not extend over the whole floorspace of the building, a loft with non-sloped ...

level and three upper levels. The Burns Philp Building is a finely designed and ornamented Federation city office building, with a sandstone exterior on a rusticated plinth, arched openings and vaulted entry vestibules. The facade is symmetrical apart from a small car opening to one side giving access to a laneway. The interiors are largely intact with very fine decorative painted metal ceilings, high-quality timber partitioning, elaborate cast-iron columns, cedar joinery and polished stone finishes to the foyer. The building used an innovative construction system combining load bearing walls, brick cruciform columns, central stair shaft, cast iron columns, wrought iron beams, timber joists and Oregon flooring. This effectively separated the facade from the main structure of the building (even though the front wall is loadbearing). The building is in excellent condition and is almost intact apart from several recent alterations to openings on the main facade.

Heritage listing

The Burns Philp Building has state historical significance for its relationship, and continuous association from 1901–1997, with the Burns Philp Company, a major Australian maritime company who traded with the Pacific Islands. The building is one of the few identified extant works of the firm A. L. & G. McCredie, a major Australian architectural practice of the later nineteenth century. The building has state aesthetic significance for its rare architectural quality, which includes the richly carved and modelled facade in the Romanesque style made popular by American architect Henry Hobson Richardson and the finely executed sandstone carving and interior finishes. The building makes a major contribution to and is a key element in the Macquarie Place / Bridge Street Conservation area. The building is of state technical significance as one of the first uses of composite construction and is a landmark building for the combination of new structural techniques and a fine facade treatment. Burns Philp maritime history contributes to our understanding of Australia's early trade and economy. It is socially significant, as it is well known for its association with the Burns Philp Company, who successfully traded for more than a century along the east coast of Australia and the Pacific Islands and repatriated the

Kanakas Kanakas were workers (a mix of voluntary and Blackbirding, involuntary) from various Pacific Islands employed in British Empire, British colonies, such as British Columbia (Canada), Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, and Queen ...

to the Pacific Islands. The Burns Philp Building exhibits the Scottish roots of the company by use of motifs such as the Scottish thistle. Burns Philp became associated with the development of Townsville. Burns Philp Building 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. The Burns Philp Building is of State significance as building designed for a long established maritime company who continuously occupied and retained ownership of the building from 1901–1997. The place has a strong or special association with a person, or group of persons, of importance of cultural or natural history of New South Wales's history. The building is of State significance for its associations with the company of Burns Philps, a large shipping company that, in its day, made a large economic contribution to the State. The building is of State significance for its associations with the architectural firm A. L. & G. McCredie. The building is one of the few identified extant works of this major Australian architectural practice of the late nineteenth century. The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales. The Burns Philp Building is of State significance for its facade and interiors, which display a high architectural and aesthetic quality and demonstrate the skills of local craftsmen and the capability of sandstone for architectural ornamentation and structure. The incorporation of a lane entrance is an unusual and distinctive feature of the Bridge Street elevation. The Burns Philp Building, with its richly carved and modelled facade, makes a major contribution and is a key element in the Macquarie Place / Bridge Street Conservation area, one of the most important historic townscape precincts in the

. The Burns Philp Building is a rare example of the Federation Romanesque style made popular by American architect Henry Hobson Richardson. The building is an unusual and rare example in the city of building over a public laneway. 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. The building is well known for its association with the Burns Philp Company, a major Australian maritime commercial entity, who successfully traded for more than a century along the south east coast of Australia and the Pacific Islands. The Burns Philp Building exhibits references to the Scottish roots of the company, by use of motifs such as the Scottish thistle, in the strong corporate image they desired to be known and recognised by. The building indicates the Burns Philp Company's confidence in the future (possibly related to Federation), by the use of materials and finishes normally seen on banks and government buildings. The building is socially significant due to its association with both Burns and Philp. Philp played a major role in the development of Townsville. The place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. The Burns Philp Building is of State significance as one of the first uses of composite construction of steel, timber masonry and cast iron. It is a landmark building for the combination of new structural techniques and fine facade treatment. It was one of the first uses of cast and wrought iron structure after its early manufacture. The Burns Philp (South Sea) Company Limited operated in the Pacific Islands and contributes to an understanding of Australia's early trade and economy. In 1960, Burns Philp won the tender to supervise the repatriation of the Kanakas (labourers brought from Pacific Islands, usually to work in the sugar fields or in other large scale agricultural industries) to the Pacific Islands.

References

Bibliography

Attribution

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External links

{{Sydney central business district historical attractions, state=collapsed New South Wales State Heritage Register sites located in the Sydney central business district Commercial buildings in New South Wales Office buildings in New South Wales Articles incorporating text from the New South Wales State Heritage Register 1900 establishments in Australia Office buildings completed in 1900 Romanesque Revival architecture in Australia