Long before Potts Point became one of the most densely populated areas in the country, it was known for its grand mansions on large estates.
In 1828, Governor Ralph Darling subdivided “Woolloomooloo Hill” into “town allotments”, granting these landholdings to members of Sydney’s growing professional elite.
Darling’s aim was to create an exclusive new neighbourhood for Sydney’s emerging upper middle class: one that centred on large homes with extensive gardens overlooking the city and the harbour. This 1906 map shows us “the original crown grants and colonial mansions”.
Many of our area’s streets were created from subdivisions carved out of these great estates in the 1800s or 1900s. We take a look at four of these missing mansions that live on through local street names.
Brougham Lodge
“Brougham Lodge” was built by James Dowling, the second Chief Justice of the New South Wales Supreme Court.
In 1830, Justice Dowling was granted eight acres on “Woolloomooloo Hill”. The mansion he built stood close to where William Street is today, not far from the busy junction of Darlinghurst Road and Victoria Street.
Justice Darling’s villa was completed by architect John Verge and was named Brougham Lodge after Darling’s patron (or financial backer) Lord Henry Brougham. Lord Brougham was another barrister and prominent abolitionist who rose to become Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain.
Dowling owned Brougham Lodge until he passed away in 1844.
In 1845, some of the estate’s land was given over to the construction of New South Head Road. In 1846, more of the estate was subdivided, but eight acres remained with the original house on Victoria Street. Brougham Lodge was then rented for a time, before being used as a boys’ school run by Mr Horniman.
An 1882 subdivision of the remaining estate offered “22 splendid building sites”. Brougham Lodge was demolished and replaced with Brougham Terrace. It was eventually sub-divided and sold to build the Holiday Inn, at 203 Victoria Street.
You can read more in our article about Brougham Street.
Springfield House
Moving down Darlinghurst Road, the next mansion was “Springfield”, one of Potts Point’s grandest houses.
Springfield was built in 1830 on land granted to Alexander Baxter and was a feature of the area until being demolished in the late 1930s. This photo from 1937 shows the house with palm trees, vintage cars, and newly built flats around it.
The land was sub-divided, making way for the Springfield Avenue we see today – and some of the country’s first ever blocks of flats.
You can read more in our article about Springfield Avenue.
Orwell House
The next mansion was Orwell House, built around 1829 on an 11-acre land grant given to Justice John Stephen, NSW’s first Solicitor-General (he later became a Supreme Court Judge). Justice Stephen was originally from Aberdeen in Scotland, which may explain the name “Orwell” for his house, as it is a parish in Scotland.
Orwell House was a large two-storey stone residence, surrounded by a fence. You can see two fantastic sketches of the property by Samuel Taylor Gill in the State Library of NSW.
This 1921 subdivision plan of the “Orwell House Estate” shows the house (which stands on a significant parcel of land) being auctioned off, as well as 10 other lots along Orwell and Hughes Streets.
In 1937, the house was demolished to make way for the Metro-Minerva Theatre.
You can read more in our article on nearby Orwell Street.
Kellett House
Among the mansions on the other side of Darlinghurst Road was Kellett House, also built in the 1830s for Deputy Surveyor-General, Samuel Augustus Perry. This hand coloured photograph from 1876 reveals it was a two-storey stone building with a wraparound verandah, set in ample gardens.
Kellett House is visible on a 1864 subdivision map of the Kellett Estate. By then, it had already changed hands a few times and that same year it became the city residence of pastoralist William Frederick Buchanan.
Buchanan had the house demolished in 1885, before building the Hotel Mansions.
Read more in our article about the Hotel Mansions here.
Want more?
There are other lost mansions that gave us local street names, including Roslyn Hall and Barncleuth. You can read more about some of Potts Point’s lost mansions like Grantham House, Maramanah, Cairo and Goderich Lodge in our previous article.
And, if you fancy a step back in time, you can still see three original colonial mansions (all designed by John Verge): Tusculum, Rockwall and Elizabeth Bay House (open to visitors as part of Sydney Living Museums).
Want more?
If you’re looking to buy or sell in Potts Point contact my team today.
Photo credit: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales
