Higham's Buildings is a heritage listed building located at 101

High Street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

, on the corner of Market Street in the

Fremantle West End Heritage area Fremantle West End Heritage area is a designated heritage precinct in Fremantle, Western Australia. The City of Fremantle nominated the area in 2014 for inclusion in the State Register of Heritage Places to the Heritage Council of Western Austr ...

. It is one of many commercial buildings constructed in Fremantle during the gold boom period in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The two storey building was constructed in 1890 in the Federation Free Classical style. The rendered building co-joins retail shops that return along Market Street with a minimal setback from the pavement. A highly decorative stucco pediment in the parapet that faces High Street features the name of the building. The facade has ashlar effect pilasters dividing the building into bays. In the 1850s and 1860s there was a store and residence in the site owned by

Mary Higham Mary Higham (1819–1883) was a merchant in Fremantle, Western Australia, and a founding member of the Fremantle Chamber of Commerce. She founded ''M. Higham and Sons'', a clothing and furniture emporium. Life Higham had lived in Northamptonshir ...

. These buildings were replaced in the 1890s by the "new" Higham buildings and added to in the 1900s. The building remained in the Higham family until 1974. The building was originally constructed for

Edward Higham Edward Henry Higham (26 July 1846 – 20 April 1885) was a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council from 1880 to 1884. Life The son of a baker, Edward Higham was born in Brackley, Northamptonshire, England (one source says Oxfordshi ...

who was a founding member of the

Fremantle Chamber of Commerce The Fremantle Chamber of Commerce is a business and commerce advocacy association in Fremantle, Western Australia. History In 1853 the Western Australian Chamber of Commerce was founded. In 1873 the Chamber of Commerce requested and was grant ...

and later a member of the

Western Australian Legislative Council The Western Australian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Western Australia, a state of Australia. It is regarded as a house of review for legislation passed by the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, Legislative A ...

for the Fremantle district. A fire broke out in the building in 1902; it was quickly extinguished. Tearooms were established in the building in 1904. A

pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medication, medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it ...

opened in the building in 1912. The Palladium Theatre used to be in the eastern end of the building complex. The building was classified by the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

in 1974 and placed permanently on the

Register of the National Estate The Register of the National Estate was a heritage register that listed natural and cultural heritage places in Australia that was closed in 2007. Phasing out began in 2003, when the Australian National Heritage List and the Commonwealth Heri ...

in 1978.

References

{{coord, 32, 03, 16.7, S, 115, 44, 47, E, region:AU-WA_type:landmark, display=title High Street, Fremantle Heritage places in Fremantle 1890 establishments in Australia Market Street, Fremantle State Register of Heritage Places in the City of Fremantle

See also

References