By Cathy Jones (2023)
‘Greta’ 36 Water Street Belfield, a single storey freestanding weatherboard cottage, is located on part of the original 1810 John Alford land grant. Part of the land came into the possession of the Matthew Elliott, engineer and his sister, Margaret Elliott. In 1903 the Elliott’s subdivided the land and sold off lots from 1905 to 1909 as the ‘Clareville Estate’.
This house was built on Lot 4 of the ‘Clareville Estate’. This lot was purchased by Mrs Melville Ellen Walters, wife of Phillip Walters of Enfield in December 1909[1]. The land measured about 1 acre. Melville and Phillip Walters were the parents of Henry Harrison Walters and title was transferred in January 1911 to Elsie Annie Walters, wife of Henry Walters, a carter[2]. A mortgage was taken out in July 1911 and it is assumed that the house was built around this time.
The house ‘Greta’ appears for the first time in the Sands Directory for Enfield in 1914 for Henry Walters, a milk carter[3].
Both Henry (1881-1954) and Elsie Walters (1882-1931) are recorded as residents of this house for most of their period of ownership, except from about 1925-1928, when the house was leased according to Sands Directory and Electoral Roll information[4]. Elsie Walters died in 1931 and Henry Walters became the sole owner[5].
The house was sold in August 1939 by Walters to Ida Thompson, wife of William Thompson of Enfield, builder and Frank Richard Page of Regent’s Park, railway employee, as joint tenants[6].
In December 1946, part of the land was sold while ownership of the house was retained by Ida Thompson and Frank Page[7]. In 1954, the house and land came under the ownership of Ida Thompson and Frederick Derrett as joint tenants[8].
In 1966, the house was renumbered 36 Water Street.
Following Ida Thompson’s death in 1987, the house was sold.
References
NSW Land Register, Certificates of Title
Enfield Council, List of Ratepayers and Electors in West Ward, 1914, 1917-19, 1920, 1922, 1925
Electoral roll 1930. Electorate of Reid, sub-division of Bankstown North
Sands Sydney Directory
Footnotes
[1] NSW Land Register, Certificate of Title v.1551 f.97
[2] NSW Land Register, Certificate of Title v.2021 f.94
[3] Sands Directory
[4] Sands Directory, Electoral Rolls for Munipality of Enfield West Ward
[5] NSW Land Register, Certificate of Title v.2021 f.94
[6] NSW Land Register, Certificate of Title v.2021 f.94
[7] NSW Land Register, Certificate of Title v.2021 f.94
[8] NSW Land Register, Certificate of Title v.5725 f.97
