|
Item 8.12 - Attachment 2 |
Consultant Historical Research Report |
An Assessment of Historical Data
Regarding Six Heritage Properties in the City of
For City of
Dr Terry Kass, B A (Hons), M A (Hons), PhD
Historian & Heritage Consultant
Lidcombe
NSW 2141
(02) 9749 4128
In association with Dr Carol Liston
September 2011
Table of Contents
Executive Summary.......................................................................................................... 4
213 Victoria Road,
Rydalmere......................................................................................... 7
2 Union Street, Eastwood................................................................................................ 9
Roads and
structures, Moxham Park and John Curtin Reserve, Winston Hills.................. 12
Steps off Oakes
Road, Toongabbie Creek..................................................................... 25
Dellwood Shopping
Centre, Dellwood Street, Granville.................................................. 27
Montgomery Avenue, South Granville............................................................................ 31
Abbreviations
C T Certificate of Title
DP Deposited Plan
GPO1 Government Printer Photo Collection
LPI Land and Property Information
ML Mitchell Library
NSWGG
RPA Real Property Application
SMH Sydney Morning Herald
SRNSW State
Records of
SIX Spatial Information Exchange website, LPI
ZSP Subdivision Plan [Mitchell Library]
Executive Summary
|
Item |
Issue to be investigated |
Conclusion |
|
|
If this cottage was built by the private railway company for the stationmaster and its degree of significance |
There is no
firm evidence this building was extant before 1900 when the government bought
the private railway line, though the configuration of the land purchased by
the government suggests there was a building there before that time. The
building appears to have been used as a gatehouse for the gates on It is an item of local significance. |
|
|
If this house has historical significance |
This cottage was erected on a large parcel of land that passed down through the Spurway family, who were noted orchardists in the Eastwood area. Members of the Spurway family were noted local citizens in nineteenth century Dundas/Eastwood. The house appears to have been erected shortly before the land was subdivided and remained in the hands of the family for some years. The cottage has a strong association with the Spurway family and its descendants. It is an item of local significance. |
|
Roadway and
structures, |
Whether structures are convict built and if they are historically significant |
There is no evidence that the tracks and bridge were built by convicts. There is no evidence for their existence before the survey of the land on either side of the creek for sale by the Crown in 1861 and 1864. The track and bridge from the quarry behind the Northmead Bowling Club appear to be part of a network of tracks that served the quarries of the area as well as local orchardists. They are a important aspect of the history of this locality and possesses local significance. It is recommended that a comprehensive on-ground survey be undertaken by personnel with heritage qualifications and experience to record the full extent of these remnants. They must be carefully recorded using GPS technology to record precise locations for each element of the network of tracks and the bridge remnants. |
|
Steps, Toongabbie Creek |
Whether the steps are convict built and if they are historically significant |
There is no definite evidence when these steps were cut, possibly as access to water. They may date from any time in the nineteenth century. They are likely to be an item of local significance. |
|
Dellwood
Shopping Centre, |
Whether this was the first planned shopping centre built by the NSW Housing Commission |
The Dellwood Shopping Centre was the first planned shopping centre erected by the NSW Housing Commission. It is an item of state significance. |
|
7-29, |
A. Whether these were the first group development built by the NSW Housing Commission B. Whether the
Housing Commission cottages at |
A. The
Montgomery Avenue/Blaxcell Street/ B. The houses
at The group
including 7-29, |
213 Victoria Road
Outline of Historical Data
January 1895
Platform built
at Carlingford with weatherboard buildings. No mention of stationmaster’s
cottage or gatehouse on
14 August 1900
Deed of conveyance
by Bank of New Zealand, as mortgagee to Her Majesty Queen Victoria and
Government of NSW, of the Rosehill to Carlingford railway, also contained
sketch maps showing this small parcel of land next to
Though there is
no specific mention of this cottage nor does it appear on any earlier plans,
the configuration of the land with this small odd parcel on
Undated railway
alignment plan shows small piece of land with building on it in this position.
(
Plan for RPA 24096 of 1926 has same area shown
1 October 1923
Valuation of Ermington and Rydalmere by Valuer-General listed a cottage of 5 rooms and outbuildings with an iron roof owned by the Railway Commissioners as ‘Gatehouse at Rydalmere Station’. The unimproved capital value was £30 and the improved capital value was £300. The occupier was ‘Mrs Green’. (Valuer-General, Valuation Cards, Ermington & Rydalmere, SRNSW 13/7588, ‘Railway lands’, No 1739)
IMAGE BELOW
July 1929
Building as currently in situ shown on this site in photo of level crossing (GPO1 14616)
1943
Aerial photo shows this cottage in this
position. Site of current
Construction of
the bridge taking
Conclusion
If the cottage
was erected for the private railway company, it is not a standard NSW railways
design. There is no firm evidence this building was in position before 1900
when the government bought the private railway line, though the configuration
of the land suggests there was a building there before that time. If the
building was built and used as a gatehouse for the gates on
2 Union Street
Outline of Historical Data
17 June 1861
Large parcel of land conveyed by Rebecca Gladden who had been devised the land by her father William Mobbs to George Spurway.
George Spurway
served on the first
11 November 1878
Area of 14 acres 31 perches conveyed to Eliza Hughes by her father George Spurway.
This was the site of Hughes’ orchard.
1899
Death of Eliza Hughes.
The land was the occupied by her widower Thomas Hassell Hughes until his death in July 1908. His children George Henry Hughes and Eliza Hughes then occupied the property. (RPA 15786)
Thomas Hughes of
1 March 1913
IMAGE BELOW
Lots 53 and 47
were transferred to Thomas Hughes, Ryde, orchardist after the auction sale. (CT
2361 f 200-2; C T 2405 f 206)
Conclusion
This cottage was erected on a large parcel of land that had been passed down through the Spurway family. The Spurways were noted orchardists in the Eastwood area and the land has a long association with that family. Members of the Spurway family were noted local citizens in nineteenth century Dundas/Eastwood. The house appears to have been erected shortly before subdivision and remained in the hands of the family for some years. The cottage has a strong association with the Spurway family and its descendants.
Roads and structures, Moxham Park
and John Curtin Reserve, Winston
Hills
Location of Extant Physical Evidence
The former
quarry, extant road surface and the bridge abutments on both side of Quarry
Creek were visited by Dr Terry Kass and Dr Carol Liston on 14 September 2011 in
conjunction with Judy Dunn who knew the location of this evidence. The road is
difficult to discern in many places but there is sufficient man-made road
edging to confirm that a made road once existed in this area leading from the
north-west corner of the former quarry behind the Northmead Bowling Club to the
bridge remnants across Quarry Creek. The bridge abutments and some timbers
survive demonstrating that the bridge was a major work capable of withstanding
heavy loads.
Figure
1 Road edging.
Figure
2 Retaining wall along Quarry Creek.
Figure 3 Extant bridge timbers.
Figure 4 Bridge abutment on west side of Quarry Creek.
Outline of Historical Data
Portions between Windsor Road & Quarry Creek
25 November 1863
Daniel Kennedy
of
c. 1864
Crown plan for these lots – copy from LPI is almost illegible in this part of the plan. However, a notation can be discerned across Portion 37, which was a Reserve that reads ‘Corporation quarry’. (C.842.690)
27 June 1864
Surveyor John Armstrong sent in his plan noting that the land was ‘much crowded with scrub and undergrowth’. He made no mention of quarries on the land. (At SG 64/7152, Surveyor-General, Correspondence, SRNSW 5/5677)
His plan was lithographed for the sale but no copy has been located.
23 December 1864
The sale notice for these lots does not list any improvements such as quarries on the land. (NSWGG, 23 Dec 1864, pp 2957-8)
27 January 1865
Auction of Crown
lots at
Por 32 to George Oakes for £30/10/0; Por 35 to George and Frederick Oakes for £75/2/4; Por 36 to George and Frederick Oakes for £85/10/3; Por 38 to James Willis for £124/14/0; Por 39 to George Neil for £83/6/9.
1 February 1865
Report that
parts of Parramatta Domain near the
IMAGE BELOW
Note that no mention was made of quarries in this report either
Portion 37
c. 1864
Crown plan for these lots – copy from LPI is almost illegible in this part of the plan. However, a notation can be discerned across Portion 37, which was a Reserve that reads ‘Corporation quarry’. (C.842.690)
There is no notification of the establishment of this Reserve in NSWGG from June 1864 to December 1865.
27 June 1864
Surveyor John Armstrong sent in his plan noting that the land was ‘much crowded with scrub and undergrowth’. He made no mention of quarries on the land. (At SG 64/7152, Surveyor-General, Correspondence, SRNSW 5/5677)
11 November 1865
Parramatta Municipal Council received a tender from James M Mahon [McMahon] applying to lease ‘the municipal quarry situate in the Domain’. (Empire, 14 Nov 1865, p 3)
16 June 1866
Letter received by Parramatta Council from ‘James McMahon, quarryman, applying for permission to work the Corporation quarry in the Domain, under certain conditions.’ Referred to Improvement Committee. (Empire, 19 June 1866, p 5)
4 July 1866
Parramatta Council resolved to let the Corporation quarry by tender. (SMH, 7 July 1866, p 8)
18 December 1866
James McMahon’s tender to supply ‘Building stone for Parramatta Gaol’ was accepted by the colonial government. (SMH, 19 Dec 1866, p 7)
20 October 1868
Parramatta Council meeting reported receipt of a letter from the ‘Acting Town Surveyor, informing the Council that he had visited the Corporation quarry in the Domain, and found that a large quantity of stone had been quarried and removed therefrom: five men were at work when he was there, and from them he learned that they were employed by Mr James McMahon. He afterwards saw Mr McMahon, who informed him that he had authority from the Minister for Lands to work the quarry, that it was let to him, and he was paying rent for it. From what the Acting Town Surveyor could ascertain, there never were so many as twenty men at work in the quarry.’ (SMH, 26 Oct 1868, p 2)
At that time,
the Lands Department had a section or branch that dealt with leases but none of
the correspondence, registers or files from that branch has survived. Most
appear to have been destroyed in the
29 July 1875
James McMahon,
aged 39, died at
1 January 1879
Special Lease to
Margaret McMahon of 2 roods in ‘Parramatta Reserve’ used as quarry. (NSWGG, 29 Nov 1878, p 4769)
6-9 August 1884
Survey by Edward
Ebsworth of 2 roods on Portion 37 worked as quarry by Margaret McMahon. Survey
shows larger area than the quarry including quarry on
IMAGE BELOW
7 October 1885
Margaret
McMahon’s Special Lease was cancelled for non-payment of rent on Quarry
Reserve Parramatta. (NSWGG, 7 October
1885 p 6573; 27 October 1885 p 6969)
23 February 1888
Margaret
McMahon, aged 43, widow of James McMahon, died at
13 June 1892
A ‘quarry’ was shown on the government reserve on what was Portion 37 on an auction sale plan. (Oakes Estate auction litho ML, ZSP:T6/25)
IMAGE BELOW
15 July 1894
New survey of the quarry in portion 37 for Special Lease 93/9. (Crown Plan Ms.958.3000) Notations show a lease was not granted until 1904.
IMAGE BELOW
Portions 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 159 and 160
20 November 1873
George Oakes
leased Portion 34 to Squire William Pye, contractor of
1 January 1887
Arthur William Oakes and Walter Lawry Oakes leased Portions 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 159 and 160 to Thomas and William Moxham for five years from 1 January 1888 for £70 pa. The lease was extended for another three years. (C T 1058 f 5)
This was the site of the Moxham quarry.
13 June 1892
Quarry shown on lot 47 with house (originally part of Portion 34) on subdivision plan of 13 June 1892. (Oakes Estate auction litho ML, ZSP:T6/25)
21 December 1899
Moxhams bought the land they had earlier leased. (C T 1058 f 5)
Portion 38
27 January 1865
Auction of Crown
lots at
Portion 38 sold to James Willis for £124/14/0. (C T 27 f 212)
James Willis was
a contractor undertaking repairs to the
James Willis was
later an undertaker in
8 October 1884
Transfer to
Thomas James Willis,
1 June 1912
Transfer to Frank Willis, Baulkham Hills, orchardist. (C T 27 f 212)
March 1930
Track across
this land to the bridge between Portions 39 and 161 is faintly visible on
aerial photo but there is little sign of an orchard near
13 May 1930
Transfer of part to Frank Barnett Willis. (C T 27 f 212)
Residue to C T 4408 f 227
Frank Willis retained this land till his death on 30 October 1944. There were no details in his Deceased Estate File about the road, embankment or bridge. (Stamp Duties Office, Deceased Estate File, A74689, SRNSW 20/3442)
1943
Aerial photo shows track across this land leading from quarry on Portion 37 plus an extensive orchard on Portion 38. (SIX, LPI)
Portion 39
27 January 1865
Auction of Crown
lots at
Portion 39 sold to George Neil for £83/6/9. (C T 22 f 241)
George Neil was
a contractor undertaking work to the courthouse, barracks,
27 November 1866
Transfer to
James Pye,
20 March 1880
Transfer to Elizabeth Smith, Burwood, widow. (C T 36 f 134)
28 March 1882
Transfer to John
Yelverton Mills, esquire and Ebenezer Bowden, solicitor, both
1 December 1888
Transfer to Thomas Robert Moxham and William Dick Moxham. (C T 36 f 134)
8 January 1889
Tenancy in
common, to Thomas Robert Moxham and William Dick Moxham, quarry masters,
11 January 1916
Thomas Robert Moxham died.
22 June 1926
Transfer of Portion 39 to James Eagar. (C T 908 f 61-2)
1943
Aerial photo shows track across this land leading from quarry on Por 37 leading to bridge site. There is also another quarry on this land.
Portion 161
1861
Crown Survey showed no quarry or other workings on Portions 160 and 161, now part of Curtin Reserve west of creek.
NB At the northern extremity of Portion 161 where the road/track on the Curtin Reserve is reported to come out there is a Crown Reserve labelled ‘waterhole’. (SR Map 53; C.764.690)
IMAGE BELOW
7 December 1861
Grant to James Willis of Portion 161. (RPA 43085)
6 October 1884
Conveyed to Thomas James Willis. (RPA 43085)
13 June 1892
‘Willis’ orchard’ was shown on Portion 161 on an auction sale plan. (Oakes Estate auction litho ML, ZSP:T6/25)
1 June 1912
Conveyed to Frank Willis. (RPA 43085)
March 1930
Orchard still extant. (SR Map 32241)
18 March 1938
Conveyed to Edgar Norman Swane. (RPA 43085)
Conclusion
There is no evidence for the tracks and bridge
before the time when the land on either side of the creek was surveyed for sale
by the Crown in 1861 and 1864. (C.764.690 & C.842.690) Both plans show
various tracks and crossing points in other places but none were shown in this
area. A track leading from Windsor Road north of the eastern arm of Quarry
Creek was shown on the 1861 plan (roughly the line of Model Farms Road)
provided access into the area known as the Model Farm.
The quarry which survives as a water filled wetland behind the Northmead Bowling Club was the Parramatta Council Quarry in the 1860s, though it was usually leased to private individuals who used it to draw stone for work in Parramatta. A separate quarry at the front of the portion under what is now the Northmead Bowling Club provided shale for repairing Windsor Road. The extant sandstone quarry is a significant site that previously supplied stone for building work in Parramatta.
The track that is extant on the ground can be seen
in the 1943 aerial photo as leading from the quarry on Portion 37 across
Portion 38 and 39 where a bridge had been constructed across Quarry Creek
connecting Portion 39 with Portion 161. At that time, (and previously), there
was no direct access between Portions 38 and 161 which were in the same
ownership and used as orchards. The track shown on the 1861 crown auction
survey north of the eastern arm of Quarry Creek was further north. The track
across Portions 38 and 39 that is the subject of this assessment connected two
parcels of land in the same ownership used as orchards from the 1880s at least.
The track was built across Portion 39, which was in the ownership of the Moxham
family for many years. There may have been an unrecorded agreement permitting
the Willis family to use this track. The quarry on Portion 39 in 1943 seems to
be too small to warrant such a track.
However, a wider series of tracks also lead north into Portion 37 from the Whitehaven quarry, which was conducted by the Moxham family. Some of them connect with the track from the quarry in Portion 37 that leads to the bridge across the creek.
The tracks and bridge appear to relate to the quarrying activity in this area. They provided easier access across the creek without the difficulty of going north to the existing road or south to other crossing points. Most pertinently, the track and bridge provided direct access between two parcels of land in the same ownership (Portions 38 and 161) on either side of the creek. However, the track also crosses Portions 37 and 39 that were in different ownership to Portions 38 and 161.
The track to the bridge appears to be part of a network of tracks that served the quarries of the area as well as other landowners. Whilst there is no evidence this track, the bridge and the sandstone retaining wall along Quarry Creek are convict built, they are a significant aspect of the history of this locality.
It is
recommended that a comprehensive on-ground survey be undertaken by personnel
with heritage qualifications and experience to record the full extent of these
remnants. They must be carefully recorded using GPS technology to record
precise locations for each element of the network of tracks and the bridge
remnants.
Steps off Oakes Road, Toongabbie Creek
Location of item
Sandstone steps
are cut into the bedrock on the eastern side of the creek in the reserve.
(Public Reserve in DP 230547, approximately in line with lots 15 and 14)
Outline of Historical Data
No evidence of steps in this position on original plan of Toongabbie. (‘The Plan of Toongabby’, 1792, ML, PRO, CO 700, 5)
July 1860
Crown survey by E J Knapp shows reserve at bridge on south side of creek. A marked line is shown along the river. No steps are shown on the opposite side of the creek. (C.750.690)
The litho sale plan shows the same detail. (NSW – Lands, Plan of Portions Near Parramatta in the Parish of St John, County of Cumberland being part of the Old Domain, 1860, ML Map M2 811.1324/1860/1)
IMAGE BELOW
12 November 1861
No dam or steps shown in this position on 1861 Crown survey plan. (SR Map 53; C.764.690)
IMAGE BELOW
Conclusion
There is no definite evidence to when these steps were cut. They do not appear to relate to any of the likely workplaces of the convicts at Toongabbie. They may date from any date in the nineteenth century, possibly as access to water. They are likely to be items of local significance.
Dellwood Shopping Centre, Dellwood Street, Granville
Outline of Historical Data
1946
Housing Commission Annual Report stated that ‘The Commission has planned modern shopping centres which will provide for day-to-day needs and will be of a very high standard of construction … It was decided that the first projects of this nature should be located at Granville and Westmead.’ (Housing Commission of New South Wales, Annual Report, 1946, p 18)
1946
Perspective view of the Dellwood shopping centre included. Housing Commission of New South Wales, Annual Report, 1946, p 19)
IMAGE BELOW
8 November 1947
Minister for Housing, Clive Evatt, laid the foundation stone ‘of the first block of permanent shops built by the Housing Commission. The new block, to be known as the Dellwood Shopping Centre, is at the corner of Blaxcell and Delwood [sic] Streets.’ (SMH, 10 Nov 1947, p 5)
IMAGE BELOW
1947
Annual Report of the Housing Commission published photos of the first shopping centre at South Granville i.e. Dellwood shopping centre. (Housing Commission of New South Wales, Annual Report, 1947, p 14-15)
IMAGES BELOW
1948
Annual Report of the Housing Commission stated that, ‘Already a most attractive block of 10 shops and 12 flats overhead has been completed at South Granville. Good progress has also been made upon a centrally located Shopping Centre at Westmead, which will contain 12 shops with 18 individual flats above. (Housing Commission of New South Wales, Annual Report, 1948, p 26)
Conclusion
The Dellwood Shopping Centre was the first planned shopping centre erected by the NSW Housing Commission. It is an item of State Significance.
Montgomery Avenue, South Granville
Outline of Historical Data
During the Second World War, the NSW Housing Commission built emergency housing for war workers, mainly in country centres but was unable to initiate its public housing programme.
April 1944
Housing Commission arranged to build forty to fifty fibro cement homes in South Granville on the ‘Oakleigh Estate, near Blaxcell Street’. (SMH, 15 April 1944, p 1)
IMAGE BELOW
The Oakleigh Estate was surveyed in November 1923 and then subdivided about April 1924. Montgomery Ave was not one of the roads laid out on that plan. (DP 12757)
30 June 1944
Housing Commission Annual Report stated that, ‘At the close of the year [i.e. 30 June 1944], commencement had been made on the housing project situated at Blaxcell-street, Granville, and construction had been commenced on 20 of the dwellings allocated to this site.’ At Westmead, only preliminary work had commenced on the site at Austral Avenue. (Housing Commission of New South Wales, Annual Report, 1944, p 2)
7 December 1944
Ballots were to be held for ‘the first 76 houses built under the State Government’s Housing Scheme at Granville’. The article went on to note that ‘At South Granville the State Housing Commission is erecting 42 fibro houses, 33 of brick and one of steel. At Westmead, 74 brick houses have been started…’ (SMH, 6 Dec 1944, p 2)
IMAGE BELOW
December 1944
Water Board Survey plan shows the brick buildings along Montgomery Ave, plus others in fibro on Clyde St, Blaxcell St, Chiswick Road, Oakleigh Ave, Pegler St and Gordon Ave. (Detail Sheet DTS 2222, Sydney Water)
IMAGE SUPPLIED SEPARATELY
The Fieldbook of surveyor H E Lanyon who completed the survey is dated 29 December 1944 showed the cottages as in the final plan. (FB 3975, Sydney Water)
IMAGE SUPPLIED SEPARATELY
It is notable that there appear to be about 30 fibro houses on the Oakleigh Estate on the Housing Commission land and about 20 brick houses mainly along Montgomery Avenue, suggesting that a decision was made by the Commission to build some in brick. Five weatherboard cottages that appear on the 1943 aerial photo facing Oakleigh Street and Clyde Street pre-date the Housing Commission development and can be excluded in these calculations.
Housing Commission Plan Card shows ‘Montgomery Ave, Clyde St, Blaxcell St, Chiswick Road, Oakleigh Ave, Pegler St and Gordon Ave’ as Jobs 1, 17, 18, 19.
IMAGE BELOW
The Housing Commission Annual Report of 1945 showed that Job 1 at Granville was for 42 timber-framed houses, which were complete by June 1945. Job 17 at Granville was for 11 brick houses, which had been completed and Job 18 was for 22 brick houses also complete. Job 19 was for one timber framed house also utilising steel at Granville then also complete. (Housing Commission of New South Wales, Annual Report, 1945, p 4) NB The single partially steel house appears to be in Oakleigh Street, on lot 5 DP 35007. This seems to be No 9 Oakleigh Avenue, which has been considerably altered.
August 1946
Photos taken of Oatley [sic i.e. Oakleigh] Street show the fibro cottages along the street. (SLNSW, GPO1, Nos 38183, 38184)
Montgomery Avenue South Granville Housing
Commission Group
Identification of Houses in the 1944 Development
|
Current Street Address |
Cadastral Identifier |
Extant in 1943 Aerial Photo? |
Extant in December 1944 Water Board Detail Survey |
Assessment if Property was Part of 1944 Housing
Commission scheme |
|
BLAXCELL STREET |
|
|
|
|
|
347 |
13/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
349 |
14/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
351 |
15/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
353 |
16/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
355 |
35/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
357 |
36/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
359 |
37/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
361 |
38/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
CHISWICK ROAD |
|
|
|
|
|
27 |
49/35007 50/35007 |
NO |
NO |
NO |
|
29 |
48/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
33 |
46/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
35 |
45/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
37 |
44/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
39 |
43/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
41 |
42/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
43 |
41/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
45 |
40/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
47 |
39/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
OAKLEIGH AVENUE |
|
|
|
|
|
6 |
28/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
8 |
29/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
10 |
30/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
12 |
31/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
14 |
32/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
16 |
33/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
|
26 |
12/35007 |
NO |
YES |
YES |
Conclusion
The Montgomery Avenue/Blaxcell Street/ Chiswick Road/Oakleigh Avenue group was the first Housing Commission group development in NSW that commenced its public housing programme for NSW.
Apart from the brick cottages in Montgomery Avenue, the houses at 347 to 361 Blaxcell Street, 29, 33 to 47 Chiswick Road and 6 to 16 and 26 Oakleigh Avenue were part of the same scheme clad in fibro cement. The house at 27 Chiswick Road was not part of the 1944 scheme.
The brick houses in Montgomery Avenue, plus the identified fibro cottages at 347 to 361 Blaxcell Street, 29, 33 to 47 Chiswick Road and 6 to 16 and 26 Oakleigh Avenue were all part of the first Housing Commission group scheme in NSW. They possess State Significance.