By Cathy Jones (2024)
‘Brierbank’, 73 Albert Road Strathfield, is a Federation Queen Anne style house built in 1900 by John Lyon Gardiner, a prolific builder of high quality houses of the Federation period in Strathfield. It is part of a groups of three houses at 71-75 Albert Road built by Gardiner.
This property is situated on the original Thomas Rose grant of 1793. The land passed to Edward Powell and by the 1880’s the land was generally owned by William Russell. In October 1888, six acres in the northern part of Russell’s land was acquired by the President and Fellows of Camden Congregational College, with the intention of building a theological college in Strathfield. An additional five perches fronting Homebush Road was added from the Frederick Meredith 1793 grant, thereby the land fronted Albert Road, Homebush Road and Beresford Road.
The Congregational Church was well established in the Strathfield area in the late 19th century with many high profile members including merchant George Todman, architects Charles Slatyer and Harry Chambers Kent, and the extended members of the David Jones family (including members of the Jones, Thompson, Nott, Ross and Wilshire families). The Strathfield-Homebush Congregational Church (now Korean Uniting Church) was located opposite this land on the corner Homebush and Albert Road Strathfield. Likely in response to poor economic conditions in the 1890s, the plan to develop the land became unviable and the College Trustees opted to subdivide the land and offer it for residential sale in 1898. This subdivision includes land in Albert Rd (65-103 Albert Rd), Homebush Rd (25-39 Homebush Rd) and parts of Beresford Rd.
In September 1898, John Lyon Gardiner, a builder of Strathfield, acquired land from this estate with the intention of building a house to be on-sold after completion. Garden was a prolific builder in the Federation period in Strathfield and built many high quality houses in Redmyre Rd, Churchill Avenue and Vernon Street. It is likely that the house was constructed in 1900. An entry is recorded in Council valuation lists in 1900-1901 noting a house had been built and RH Meares was the occupant of a house. Meares is noted as the occupant in 1903-1904 in Sands Directory. It is assumed that this was Richard Meares, a prominent grazier, who later lived at ‘Brunyarra’ The Boulevarde Strathfield now Santa Maria Del Monte.
While owned by Gardiner, the house was named ‘Brierbank’. The house name is variously recorded as ‘Brierbank’ or on occasion, ‘Briarbank’, however ‘Brierbank’ is most commonly used. Gardiner registered a condition on the land Certificate of Title (v.1288 f.96) restricting development on the land lot to one dwelling house which “shall include all ordinary outhouses and stabling”.
The house was originally numbered 53 Albert Road, but was renumbered 73 Albert Road in 1947.
In May 1904, the property transferred to Linda Marriott Joplin (née Sherlock 1880-1957), wife of George Christopher Joplin (1875-1956), merchant, importer and manufacturer of boot polish. Mrs Joplin owned the property until August 1916 and the family occupied the house until c.1913. It was leased to Edward Millen (1862-1923) until c.1916. Millen was a journalist and Australian politician, who had served in the NSW Legislative Assembly and at the time of his occupancy of ‘Brierbank’, a Senator in the Federal Parliament and Minister for Defence (1913-1914). According to his parliamentary biography, he was Member of NSW Parliament – MLA for Bourke 1894-1898; MLC 1899-1901. Commonwealth Senator 1901-23; Vice-President Executive Council 1909-1910; Minister for Defence 1913-14, Minister for Repatriation 1917-23; Leader of the Opposition of the Senate 1907, 1910-13, 1914-16. Australian Delegate to the League of Nations. Millen was a member of Free Trade Party; Anti-Socialist from 1906; Liberal Party from 1913 and National from 1917.
In August 1916, ownership of the property transferred to James Bleakley Orr, a chemist of Strathfield. While owned by Orr, the property was rented to James McDonald (1918-1920) and in 1921 to Walter W L’Estrange, according to Sands Directory.
In December 1922, ownership transferred to Ada Charlotte Davis, widow and Blanche Davis as joint tenants. In October 1925, ownership transferred to Nellie Geddes, wife of William Geddes, a master butcher.
In March 1940, the mortgagees exercising right of sale transferred ownership to Fanny Parry of Strathfield, widow. An application for transmission was made by Perpetual Trustees Company (Ltd) in August 1941. In August 1947, the property transferred to Cecil Henry Scoble and his wife Edna, as joint tenants. Scoble was a real estate agent. The Scoble’s changed the house name to ‘Lirine’. In 1978, a notice of death was registered for Edna Scoble.
References
NSW Land Registry
NSW Parliamentary Archive at www.parliament.nsw.gov.au
NSW Parliamentary Library, Edward Davis Millen, https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/members/Pages/member-details.aspx?pk=1068
Strathfield Council Valuations Lists
Sands Sydney Directory 1881-1932
Wise’s Post Office Directory 1904, 1908, 1936
