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Mosman, the Federation Suburb

Mosman became known as the Federation suburb, because its first major population explosion and building boom was around 1901, at the time of Australia’s Federation.

Mosman Federation Precincts

Mosman is primarily a residential suburb, on the lower North Shore, to the East of North Sydney and surrounded by Sydney Harbour.

Until the harbour bridge was opened in 1932, Mosman was only accessible by ferry across the Harbour, or via road and rail over the Parramatta river at Granville, far to the west. 

At the turn of the twentieth century, rows of shops and of many Federation architecture homes were built as the increasing population were attracted away from the more crowded southern suburbs to the natural charm and vistas of Mosman's unique bushland, boating, and water surrounds. 

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Early Mosman Mansions

  1. The Nest, Mosman's first large home—'The Nest'—was built in 1833, bought by Richard Harnett Sr in 1859 and demolished in the 1920s.

  2. The Rangers. Oswald Bloxsome built The Rangers in 1844, a mansion on 40 acres overlooking Mosman Bay. 
    The house, located near Spofforth Street between Rangers Avenue and Brierly Street survived until 1914.

  3. Ellamatta, 3 Ellamatta Avenue, a three storey stone mansion built in 1870. Now a hospital.

  4. Kirk Oswald 2 Kirkoswald Avenue, built 1873 on what is now Kirkoswald Avenue.

  5. Buena Vista, built by Richard James Harnett Sr, with sixteen rooms, in 1876, at a cost of £5000, a two-storeyed, two-winged residence of sixteen rooms on one of the Silex estate's five-acre allotments, at the junction of Middle Head Road and Bradley's Head Road. This was replaced in 1900 by the Buena Vista Hotel.

  6. Duncraggan, built on Curraghbeena Point in 1877 by W.E. Wilson.

  7. Glanmire, later known as Merriwa 17 Stanley Avenue Mosman, built in 1880 above Balmoral by Edward Stanley.

  8. Boronia House, built in 1885 has had a variety of uses including as the former municipal library. It is listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register.

  9. Killarney House, Dalton St, Mosman: a large two-storeyed Federation Filigree residence with tower, built on ten acres of land in 1895 by Gerald Dalton - now a Uniting Church retirement home.
     - Source: Mosman, a History by Gavin Souter, chapter 6.

Early Mosman Mansions
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Above: Boronia House, Mosman  built in 1885

Mosman became a municipality in 1893 with 1,600 residents, breaking away from the North Sydney municipality.

At the turn of the century, Mosman prospered as rows of shops and magnificent federation style homes were built by the increasing population. 

Above: 46 Parriwi Road, Mosman

Below: Buena Vista, Mosman built 1876 by Harnett Sr.

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Below: The Manor, viewed from Iluka Road

Mosman's Federation Heritage, Sydney NSW

 

Mosman's Federation Heritage
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Above: Monterey Apartments, 1 Avenue Rd Mosman

Below: Alma House, 114 Belmont Rd Mosman

Federation Era Heritage ​Mansions of Mosman
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Clifton Manor, 42 Kardinia Road Cnr of B

Federation Era Heritage
Mansions of Mosman

  1. The Manor, 2-10 Illuka Road, Mosman, was built circa 1911, in a loose Federation Queen Anne/Arts-&-Crafts style. This is a large and imposing dark-brick residence, located on a broad site addressing Iluka Road at the bottom of the slope of Morella Road. 
    Built circa 1911 by a Mr Bakewell as an eight-room cottage, it grew to over thirty rooms, most of which were lined with beaten copper. It was known locally as Bakewell’s Folly. Manor Heritage Register Listing.

  2. Monterey, 1 Avenue Road Mosman, is a large Federation Filigree style house built above Mosman Bay.  In the 1980s it was divided into a number of upmarket units. Monterey Heritage Register Listing

  3. Alma House, 114 Belmont Road Mosman, a magnificent “state of the art” Federation mansion set in beautiful grounds with a sweeping driveway, was constructed for Frederick Smith, a wealthy resident in the mid 1890s. In later years Miss Hutchinson established a nursing school in the building. Now a corporate headquarters. Alma Heritage Register Listing 

  4. Clifton Manor, 42 Kardinia Road, Mosman now three apartments. A large Federation Queen Anne residence which contributes significantly to the area through its corner location, complex roofscape and prominent, unusual chimneys. Clifton Manor Heritage Listing.

Above: Clifton Manor, 42 Kardinia Road, Mosman

Mosman's Built Heritage
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Federation Styles found in Mosman

Mosman council has commissioned a comprehensive heritage guide "Mosman's Architectural Heritage" by Robert Staas which you can download and read. Below are extracts from this guide for Federation Queen Anne and Arts and Crafts styles:

Federation Queen Anne in Mosman

Federation Styles in Mosman
Federation Queen Anne in Mosman
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Queen Anne style characteristics italic.
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Ardagh, 19 Prince Albert Street Mosman

One of Mosman’s Finest Federation Homes

A very fine example of a large Federation Queen Anne residence which is finely detailed and crafted and commands a visually prominent position in the streetscape. Demonstrates the development of larger-scale residences on the high side of streets in desirable areas.

"Ardagh is a grand Federation home unequalled in elegance, grace, quality or proportion."​

Built in c1905 and retaining the opulent character for which the period is renowned, this exquisite residence is a unique offering to be passed down the generations.

Ardagh has had only five owners in a rich 110 year history, “truly one of the North Shore’s finest family estates.” (Built 1905)

  • In 1913 William Toohey and his son, Francis opened a real estate agency at 124 Avenue Road, Mosman.

  • Established at a time that Mosman was experiencing an increase in new residential developments this enterprise was such a success that in 1915 a branch office was opened at Mosman Bay close to Mosman Wharf.

  • The family lived at ‘Ardagh’, 19 Prince Albert Street, Mosman.

  • Local Heritage Listing

 

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Ardagh, 19 Prince Albert Street Mosman

  • Set on 2700 square metres, the seven-bedroom Federation mansion with pool and tennis court was built in 1905 and in 1922 was bought by former British trade commissioner John Adams and his wife Gwynneth, until they sold it in 1964 to pianist and former ABC radio personality John Champ.

  • Pharmacists Gary and Mary Smoker (Smoker, a former alderman), bought the Prince Albert Street property in 1993 for $1.7 million.

  • DEC 17, 2020 - Mosman’s historic trophy home Ardagh has sold for more than $17 million, setting a record among the local merchant mansions.

  • It is the first time the historic 1905-built residence has traded on the open market since 1964 when it was sold for £23,000 to the Champ family.

 

A large two storey Federation Queen Anne residence located in a prominent garden setting above the street that includes mature trees, shrubs and a front fence.

The house has a coursed sandstone ground floor with face brick upper level with hip, half bays and gable terracotta tile roofs and a two storey verandah.

The large verandah features a part sandstone base, paired columns, and timber balustrade and frieze on the upper level. A steep concave shingled hood separates the ground and first floor levels of the verandah.

Federation Queen Anne

Curraweena, 6 Buena Vista Avenue (Clifton Gardens) Mosman NSW 2088

“A brick residence, a storey and a half high and symmetrically designed. It is basically rectangular in plan shape and set well back from the street, with a tennis court in front.

Its design consists of a prominent medium-pitched gable with the ridge parallel to the street, and a central gabled bay projecting forwards and having a semicircular and Tuscan-columned verandah at ground floor level with an open balcony above.

There are flanking windows with bracketed hoods. The roof is fairly steeply pitched and covered in terracotta tiles.”

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Curraweena, 6 Buena Vista Avenue
Federation Queen Anne

This amazing family home offers everything you could desire.

“An Estate of this calibre only comes up once in a generation. Fusing early 20th century grandeur with 21st century ease and informality this magnificent Smith and Cabban mansion C1906 is a true Mosman thoroughbred.

“A prized Clifton Gardens estate of around 2250sqm that stretches from street to street with two 26m frontages, tennis court, swimming pool, sandstone entertaining terraces, level manicured lawns and beautiful landscaped gardens The impressive totally renovated two storey home with separate studio offers space and elegance on a grand scale plus iconic views of Sydney Harbour from both levels".

Federation Arts and Crafts in Mosman

Federation Arts and Crafts in Mosman

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Aneesha, 7 Kardinia Road Mosman
Aneesha, 7 Kardinia Road Mosman

Aneesha, 7 Kardinia Road Mosman

A good, intact example of a Federation Arts & Crafts residence in a pleasant setting of well maintained grounds behind an attractive stone and wrought iron fence.

Aneesha, 7 Kardinia Road Mosman
Aneesha
Federation Arts & Crafts
Tregoyd 161 Raglan Street Mosman
Federation Arts & Crafts
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Sir Tristan Venus Antico, AC (25 March 1923 – 26 December 2004), was a prominent Australian industrialist, horse breeder, and patron of the arts.

He was knighted in 1973[1] "in recognition of service to industry", and was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia in 1983[2] "In recognition of service to industry and the community".

He is best known as founder of Pioneer Concrete and as the one time owner of Baramul Stud.

Tristano Venus Antico, who died aged 81, arrived at Sydney's overseas shipping terminal in 1930 with just three words of English - "yes", "no", "toilet".

From such unpromising beginnings, he would become a Companion of the Order of Australia, thrice a knight and one of postwar Australia's most dynamic entrepreneurs.

Born in Poivene, a village just north of Venice and not far from Verona, Antico was the only son and second child of Ermina and Terribile Antico, his father a lover of opera with a particular fascination for Wagner's Tristan and Isolde, the tragic hero whose passion for Isolde led to his demise.

It may seem odd that a German composer was preferred over the Italian masters but Wagner had been a frequent visitor to Venice and had died there exactly 40 years earlier.

Tregoyd or Dr Cullen's House
161 Raglan Street Mosman

“A fine example of the many architect-designed houses in Mosman. Evidence of the popularity of Mosman with notable people, and the growing interest in Australian plants in the early Twentieth Century."

Federation Arts-&-Crafts.

A large two-storey face brick Federation Queen Anne bungalow residence in extensive grounds.

The roof form includes an octagonal pyramid-topped tower and a steeply pitched terra cotta gable entry roof which incorporates the second floor within the roof space.

A gable entrance wing includes covered porch and bay with leadlight windows. There is a separate two storey garage, large grounds with mature tree species and a stone boundary wall.

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Designed by E Jeaffreson Jackson for William Portus Cullen, then Chief Justice of NSW.

Cullen used the large garden to propogate Australian plants.

Considered by the National Trust as the first Queen Anne bungalow designed by Jackson.

Freeland claims that its “bold gable roof, natural colouring and brooding verandah” are features that point towards Jackson having brought the bungalow to Australia.

Tregoyd Ownership - from PropertyObserver.com.au

The Tregioyd residence was part of the 1.1-hectare estate sold for $11 million in 1996 by Pioneer Concrete founder Sir Tristan Antico, who was quite the gentleman when he showed Title Tattle through the house before its sale.

It was where Sir Tristan and Lady Antico raised their seven children.

Antico, who died at 81 in 2005, arrived at Sydney's overseas terminal in 1930, aged seven, with just three words of English – "yes, no and toilet". He swam, well into his 70s, each morning at Balmoral Beach, just below Tregoyd.

It was his love of horses – through Bernborough Breeding and Racing Ltd – that bought him fiscal problems when in the early 1990s horse prices dropped by 50% or more. His personal losses were considerable so in 1991 he sold almost all of his Pioneer shares but remained in the honorary capacity of president until the Pioneer he had built in 1950 with a few wheelbarrows and shovels and an Oldsmobile was consumed by Lord Hanson's group in 2000 for around $4 billion.

  1. The National Trust-listed mansion Tregoyd was built for Sir William Cullen, the Chief Justice of NSW.
    Author Ethel Turner, of Seven Little Australians fame, spent much of her time at Tregoyd visiting Lady Cullen and finding inspiration in the gardens and views overlooking Balmoral Beach.

  2. Tregoyd's second owner was Mosman Daily newspaper founder Arthur Walker, who bought the Raglan Street property in 1917.

  3. Walker sold to Sir Tristan and Lady Antico for £11,000 in 1953. 
    Despite hard-fought opposition from locals, the estate was carved into a luxury residential compound with 11 pavillion-style houses designed by Allen Jack & Cottier architect Keith Cottier. 
    The 120-year-old residence sits on a 2,800-square-metre curtilage. 
    The townhouse project was undertaken by the Malaysian-backed Dealruby group, known for its $180 million high-rise apartment towers at Moore Park Gardens in South Dowling Street, Redfern. ​
    Sir Tristan, founder of Pioneer Concrete, died in 2004, and his widow Lady Dorothy in 2014. 

  4. Tregoyd last sold to the Paris-based O’Brien family for $3.25 million in 1999 when they became its fourth owner.

Federation Bungalows in Mosman
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Above: Federation Bungalow at 51 Holt Avenue Mosman

Below: Federation Bungalow at 77 Raglan Street Mosman

77 Raglan St Mosman

Federation Bungalows in Mosman

 

"The developer Richard Stanton first introduced the American style bungalow to Sydney in 1906 and by 1912 this new type of compact servantless house was being erected across Sydney by speculative builders."

Federation Bungalow houses have many of these features:

  • Single Storey, Ground Hugging,

  • Commodious verandahs

  • Use of ‘natural’ materials

  • Simple massing of forms

  • Traditional brick or stud-framed baring wall

  • Timber roof construction and detailing

  • Detailed high quality finishes within front rooms

  • Ceiling mouldings, Moulded architraves

  • Stucco detailing

  • Multi-paned and coloured casement or sliding sash windows

  • Gable ends ornamented with roughcast and battens painted in dark colours

  • Roofs covered with terracotta tiles

  • Turned timber or cast iron columns and balustrades

  • Roughcast walling

  • Masonary verandah piers, sandstone in the Sydney area, with turned timber verandah posts

Heritage Federation Bungalow examples in Mosman:​

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Rothesay, 7 Thompson Street Mosman
Federation Bungalows

Rothesay, 7 Thompson Street Mosman 

A distinctive and very intact Federation Queen Anne house which responds to its corner location.

Single-storey face brick Federation Bungalow.

Pyramidal slate roof has gables facing each of the streets and a gabled verandah pavilion obliquely addressing the corner.

The house is very intact with roughcast decoration, leadlight windows, circular window and curved garden path with bull-nosed brick edging.

It is on a corner location with a low brick fence, within which is a small well-tended garden.

Image001 2 Glencarron Avenue, Mosman, NS

Iorana, 13 Upper Spit Road Mosman, NSW

An elevated single storey Federation bungalow with extensive Art Nouveau detailing and finishes. The house is set above The Grove on a series of impressive sandstone retaining walls and has an extensive garden setting to the street. 

Iorana´ is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own a grand Federation estate on the Balmoral Slopes.

Connoisseurs of the period will be delighted by this stately home which offers 1912 Federation architecture, 30 metre frontage, and gorgeous symmetry over three levels of multigenerational living, with never to be built out views and stunning heritage features,

An example of the typical Balmoral slopes development by affluent Sydney merchants in the Edwardian Era. The house contains good examples of Art Nouveau detailing of the era.

Iorana, 13 Upper Spit Road Mosman, NSW
Federation Bungalow
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Built for Edward Hepden Brodripp, Auctioneer, in about 1913.

Edward Brodribb was an auctioneer and owner of a furniture warehouse at 772 George Street, Sydney. He was an early member of the Balmoral Beach Club and his wife was a founding member of the Mosman Croquett Club.

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Sessiagh, 13 Upper Spit Road Mosman

 

Sessiagh, 13 Upper Spit Road Mosman
Federation Bungalow
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A remarkable estate defined by its peaceful and private setting, grand and unique home and outstanding 1096sqm of level grounds, this exceptional offering captures arguably some of Mosman's finest vistas.

A substantial residence offering versatile spaces ideal for the family at all stages of life. From its secluded setting it's an easy stroll to MHYC, bayside parks, bus and eateries.

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From the creeper clad gated entry, this property promises something special. Sweeping expanses of level grass and peaceful alfresco areas frame the unique architecture of the home.

Inside flexible and spacious rooms delight including the glass wrapped sunroom, grand dining with sitting, living area, casual dining and lounge with magnificent sandstone encased fireplace. 

'Sessiagh' is built of clinker brick on a sandstone base, and is partly single-storeyed and partly double-storeyed, with a timber shingle roof having exposed square-cut rafter-feet and purlin ends. Some of the walling is also shingled. Its chimneys are tapered and flat-topped and the exterior joinery is robust, in the California Bungalow manner, but much of the detailing displays Arts-and-Crafts characteristics. The handsome west garden includes mature trees. 

Mosman's Heritage Conservation Areas

Maps of the Heritage Conservation Areas within Mosman, updated in 2018,  illustrate the current rankings in these four (mostly) Federation precincts of eleven Conservation Areas:

  1. Bradleys Head Rd Ranking Map (C01 464kB)
    Bradleys Head Road (illustrated at left) is aesthetically and historically one of the most dramatic and pleasing Federation residential areas of Sydney. 
    Bradleys Head itself is also one of Sydney Harbour's most prominent natural features. mainly covered with large trees and thick bush.
     

  2. The Crescent Ranking Map (C02 105kB)
    It is historically associated with an important developer of the Federation period.
    Its architectural value lies in its harmonious small scale, the predominance of Federation and Inter-War period buildings and the way the few structures of later periods generally complement this character. 
     

  3. Orlando Ave Ranking Map (C08  110kB)
    The Orlando Avenue area is a conservation area of residential character containing mostly modest buildings in a wide range of architectural styles and several different types, generally blending well together, though Federation and Inter-War period styles are in the majority. The area demonstrates the pattern of building in Mosman in these periods.
     

  4. Lower Boyle St Ranking Map (C13  111kB) 
    The precinct is of significance as an excellent and largely intact grouping of Federation period residential buildings on a common sub-division oriented to the water and set above a densely vegetated natural reserve. In combination with the waterfront structures noted as heritage items the precinct provides a rare glimpse of the pattern of development that predominated around 1900 and which has remained until the present day

Mosman's Heritage Conservation Areas
Mosman's Federation Areas
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Mosman's Federation Areas

Mosman has a number of traditional localities with Heritage Federation housing:

  • Avenue Road (4 of 31)

    • Monterey, residential apartments 1 Avenue Road Mosman​

    • Group of 3 houses, 13, 15 and 17 Avenue Road Mosman

  • Bradleys Head Road (12 of 41) - see below

  • Middle Head Road (15)

  • Musgrave Street (4 of 16)

    • Group of 2 houses (3 dwellings): 9A, 9B and 11 Musgrave Street Mosman​

    • 39 Musgrave Street    Mosman   

    • 24 Musgrave Street    Mosman

  • Prince Albert Street (12 of 15)

    • Araluen Heights, 24 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • Ardagh, 19 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • Candida, 13 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • 27 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • 37 Prince Albert StreetMosman

    • 3 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • 74 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • 98 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • Pair of houses, 5 and 7 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • Pair of houses, 21 and 23 Prince Albert Street Mosman

    • Ravenstan, 45 Prince Albert Street Mosman

  • Raglan Street (33)

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Subdivision plan of Clifton Gardens Mosm
The Silex Estate
The Silex Estate 

in 1839 James King purchased 150 acres which he named Silex Estate. 200 acre grant of Joseph Newton subdivided as Park Gate Estate in 19 marine plots. And in 1853 Archibald Mosman sold his property to John Stirling.

The Silex Estate was subdivided into 25 allotments of from four to seven acres. Initially 18 lots were sold and sites were set aside for a school, church, school of arts and a library.

Later further subdivisions eventuated in the plots being the size of the present day

1885 Silex Estate overlooking The Harbor Mossmans Bay

Millner St, King St, Elfrida St, Water St, Gordon St, Prince Albert St (Sat. 10th Oct. 1885)

1898 Silex Estate Mosman Heights (2nd) Subdivision 

bounded by Bradleys Rd, Thompson St, Silex Rd, Cross St, Private Rd (Sat. 6th Aug 1898)

1900 Silex Estate Mosman Heights 3rd Subdivision

King now Queen St, Elfrida St, Prince Albert St, Queen St East, Union St, Bradley's Head Rd (Sat. 3rd Feb. 1900)

1901 Bradley's Head Road Estate Mosman;

Military Rd, Prince Albert St, Queen St East, King Max St, Bradley's Head Rd (Sat. 12th Oct. 1901)

1902 Bradley's Head Road Estate Mosman

Clifford St, Moruben Rd, Mandolong Rd, Military Rd, Melaleuca St (Sat. 23rd Aug. 1902)

1903 Bradley's Head Estate adjoining the Government Reserves & Public Park -

Mosman; Queen St East, Prince Albert St, Whiting Beach Rd, Bradley's Head Rd, Thompson St, Silex Rd, Wharf St (Sat. 28th Nov. 1903)

Source: State Library of New South Wales - Mosman subdivision plans

Smith and Cabban, builders

Smith & Cabban were late 19th & early 20th century speculative builders. Mr S H Cabban built and lived at No. 1 Buena Vista Avenue, Mosman, with a water view.

 

Mayor W H Smith, was an English-born builder and developer who, with his partner S H Cabban, had obtained the contract to build Mosman’s public school.

  • In the late 1890s they erected a number of shops, including The Strand, and the public school. 

  • Smith went on to build several cottages in Muston Street, to develop the Frascati Estate in Middle Head Road and 50 acres of the Silex Estate, which he subdivided as the Bradleys Head Estate.

  • Smith was a developer cast in the Harnett (ex-Mayor, Mosman developer) mould. He served continuously on Mosman Council for a quarter of a century, from 1901 to 1925, and was Mayor for five annual terms.[3]

  • The success of these ventures was encouraging and they continued to develop purchasing a large portion of the Silex Estate and building around 170 houses in Bradley’s Head Road and Prince Albert Street, Mosman.[4]

 

Heritage Smith & Cabban Constructions:

1 Buena Vista Avenue Mosman (home of Mr Cabban)

Urunga, 2 Buena Vista Avenue Mosman

4 Buena Vista Avenue Mosman

5 Milton Ave Mosman

Curraweena, 6 Buena Vista Avenue Mosman

Group - 5, 7, 9 and 11 Milton Avenue Mosman

16 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman

Pair of houses, 12 and 16 Bradleys Head Road Mosman

Group of 4 houses: 43, 45, 47 and 49 Middle Head Road Mosman

Westmeath, 56 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman

 

Non Heritage Smith & Cabban Constructions

(Probable) 30-32 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman, NSW

Wilga, 34 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW

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Smith and Cabban, builders
Heritage Smith & Cabban Constructions
Non-Heritage Smith & Cabban Constructions

Mosman's Bradley's Head Road, Federation Heritage 

Mosman's Bradley's Head Road
Federation Queen Anne

House names in bold are illustrated below. Other links are to the Heritage listing.

  1. Pair of houses, 12 and 16 Bradleys Head Road Mosman

  2. Rana, 15 Bradleys Head Road Mosman

  3. Rona, 17 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW 2088

  4. Leesthorpe, 20 Bradleys Head Road Mosman

  5. Lochwinnock, 23 Bradleys Head Road Mosman

  6. House, 30 Bradleys Head Road Mosman 

  7. House, 40 Bradleys Head Road Mosman

  8. Ardblair, 44 Bradleys Head Road, MOSMAN NSW 2088

  9. Strathairlie, 50 Bradleys Head Road Mosman

  10. Gooyang, 53 Bradleys Head Road Mosman 

  11. Trelawney 63 Bradleys Head Road Mosman NSW 2088

  12. Westmeath 56 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW 2088

16 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW

16 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW

 
One of the Finest Estates that Mosman Can Offer

Last sold for $8,300,000 on 22/05/2014

A magnificent Smith & Cabban "Merchant's Mansion" in a commanding, private & tranquil, dress circle position with expansive views to the Sydney Harbour Bridge and North Sydney.

A vast and welcoming home on a prized holding of around 1500 sqm with north-south tennis court and pool 

Rona, 17 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman

Sold on 06 Mar 2014 for $8,750,000

Rona 17 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW
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A Federation Arts & Crafts residence with an unusual design incorporating a small splayed verandah between two projecting bays, one of which is a diagonal.

There are shingled aprons over the windows and on the verandah with a combination of hips and gables on the slate shingled roof. 

​The interiors open to reveal a traditional grandeur that embraces the airy spacious thats so typical of these Mosman thoroughbreds. Polished floors, high ornate ceilings, banks of bay windows and fireplaces, as originally designed, have been skillfully matched to merge with the open-plan living, dining and kitchen that spill through French doors to the decks that overlook the pool and court. 

Federation Queen Anne
Federation Queen Anne
17 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW
17 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW
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Heritage listed 'Rona' is one of Mosman's grand "merchant mansion" homes, impeccably restored and modernised under the guidance of acclaimed architect Michael Suttor.

 

Architecturally restored grand estate

Proudly resting on 1,445 sqm of private, level land, boasting upper level harbour views, it enjoys easy access to the ferry, Mosman village and a choice of beaches and is a stroll to the bus and zoo. 
 

Accommodation - Stately with immediate street presence, the stacked stone wall, iron gates and crushed gravel driveway set the tone.

Elegant rooms welcome including the large study with external entry, gracious reception room and stunning formal lounge and dining.

Offering another dimension to family living is the sprawling living, dining and kitchen, media room, wide rear verandahs and alfresco terrace.

Dual stairways lead to the six bedrooms, three which adjoin the rear verandah, a master with ensuite and 2nd bedroom with ensuite and sitting ideal for the au pair. 
 

Features - 12ft high ornate ceilings, polished floors, banks of bay windows and numerous marble wrapped fireplaces have been skilfully matched to merge with the open plan living, dining and kitchen areas.

Front and back verandahs provide the perfect vantage points to enjoy the leafy street setting, private rear lawns or the harbour views.

Aspected towards the N/E corner of the block all rooms are filled with light further enhanced by their generous proportions.

Additional features include a powder room, separate preparation area in the granite kitchen, marble bathrooms, double lock up garage and storeroom. There is ample additional off street parking.
 

30-32 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW

30-32 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman, NSW

A fine example of a Federation Queen Anne house with many unusual details.

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A likely $16 million private treaty trophy home sale in Mosman was the redundant Federation Queen Anne style home of the London-based infrastructure investment adviser, Peter Hofbauer.

The six-bedroom 1910 Bradleys Head Road trophy home (above) on 2244 sqm was listed only late last month.

Offers were not due for another 20 days when it was snapped up Friday night.

It came with an asking price of between $15.5 million and $16.5 million through McGrath agents Michael Rava and Michael Coombs. 

It set a non-waterfront record for the suburb when it last sold at $7.15 million in 2001

Federation Queen Anne
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Above: Heritage Registered - 40 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman

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Occupying an incredible 2,244sqm double parcel, this Federation Queen Anne Style c1910 family estate is positioned within a walk of Clifton Gardens.

This is a arge 2-storey face brick Federation Queen Anne residence set behind a high sandstone wall and thick vegetation. 

The house features a corner tower with a flared pyramidal copper roof.

Gabled projections on the side of the house have chamfered copper-roofed bay windows.

The complex roof is of terracotta tiles with ornamental terracotta cresting tiles.

The chimneys have moulded tops.

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Ardblair, 44 Bradleys Head Road, MOSMAN

Built by Smith & Cabban, this 1903 grand two-storey sandstone and brick “Merchants Mansion” home, has been tightly held by the same family for 48 years.

Occupying approx.1500m2 of level land, “Ardblair” displays classic Queen Anne Federation features on an impressive scale. Comprising 7 bedrooms (including a 3bedroom self-contained apartment), 8 bathrooms, formal lounge and dining room, sunroom, family room, informal dining, observatory tower, massive billiard room, swimming pool, sauna, 4 car garaging plus off-street parking for plenty more cars- the offering is of huge proportions.

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This is one of the original 'Merchant mansions’ homes in Mosman. Tightly held, these properties rarely come to market and the potential to further enhance this lovely grand old home is enticing.

Built and owned by the first Mayor of Mosman and later sold to the publisher of The Bulletin, one can only imagine the stories that these walls could tell you.

 

Walking through the front entrance with its original tessellated tile verandah and beautiful stained glass door with side panels, and entering the foyer with its chandeliers, huge decorative ceilings and stunning Australian Cedar staircase, it is easy to be impressed by the stature of the home.
The entry level of the home features the formal living areas as well as the informal kitchen/ family rooms which lead out to the lawn, the massive billiard room and swimming pool and sauna. The stately separate formal rooms feature exquisite soaring ceilings, window arches, fireplaces and stained glass windows and are huge in size.

At the rear of the home is The Billiard Room which was built in 1911 to accommodate a daughters’21st birthday party. With its timber panelling, high patterned coffered ceilings, magnificent leadlight windows and stunning brick open fireplace it truly is a treasure to behold. Complete with full sized billiard table, kitchenette and bathroom, it makes for an excellent rumpus room or yet another informal entertaining space adjacent to the 12metre pool, sauna, lawn and gardens. A perfect spot for a BBQ and an ideal playground for the kids.

Federation Queen Anne
Trelawney 63 Bradleys Head Road Mosman
Federation Queen Anne

Trelawney 63 Bradleys Head Road Mosman

A very fine and typically agglomerative composition which very successfully addresses the two streets of its corner location. It displays an interesting ensemble of timber architectural detailing in the Queen Anne manner, a style important in Mosman's history and development.

This is a most interesting Federation Queen Anne/Arts-&-Crafts agglomeration.

To a basic hip-roofed form are added a complex composition of gables, one of which is angled and has a broad facetted window bay;

another, facing Effingham Street, is a two-storeyed wing with a shingle-aproned balcony above a wider verandah later glazed in authentic style.

The verandah facing Bradley's Head Road is a single-storeyed, with sandstone piers supporting paired timber posts and decorative friezes.

The house has dark red brick walls on a sandstone base, a roof of red-orange unglazed terra cotta tiles with crenellated ridges, and tall brick-and-stucco chimneys. 

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Trelawney House 63 Bradleys Head Road, c
Westmeath 56 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman NSW
Federation Queen Anne

Westmeath 

56 Bradleys Head Road, Mosman

An unusual example of the Federation Queen Anne style this large residence is a prominent feature on the Bradley's Head Road streetscape.

It is associated with an important public figure in Mosman's history (see below). 

A two-storey face brick residence with an eclectic mix of building elements.

The complex slate roof is basically hipped with a broken-back form over the verandahs.

The verandah roof becomes a window hood as it wraps around the octagonal corner turret which dominates the house with its large turret roof.

A street facing gable is partly screened by the verandah roof.

The walls are equally interesting with roughcast string courses and cement rendered, cuvilinear window sills on the turret.

The upper end of the verandah is enclosed above the shingled apron with sashes having top and bottom rows of coloured glass panes. 

Westmeath House, 56 Bradleys Head Road M

Built in 1915 by W H Smith, a Mayor of Mosman and partner of S.H. Cabban.

The residence was later divided internally for flats and remained that way until recently, when the present owner returned it to a single family residence. 

Additional notes provided by owners (January 1998):-

House built in 1907, as indicated by date written on chimney. Prior to current owners, the house was owned by the Lowe family.

Mr Norman Lowe was the Aide de Corp to the then King of Siam.

The Royal Family of Siam stayed in this house during the 1920s - 1930s when they visited Sydney, and the current second bedroom was the King's bedroom when in residence.

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