1st Deepdene Scout Hall
32 Whitehorse Road DEEPDENE, BOROONDARA CITY
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Statement of Significance
What is Significant?
The 1st Deepdene Scout Hall, at 32 Whitehorse Road, Deepdene, built in 1932 to designs by architect Harry A. Norris, is significant.
The later extensions, built in 1952 to designs by architect Best Overend, are of contributory significance, demonstrating the continuing use of the hall and growing popularity of scouting. The generous front setback, originally intended as a parade ground, is also contributory.
The front fence is not significant.
How is it significant?
The 1st Deepdene Scout Hall is of local historical, architectural (representative) and social significance to the City of Boroondara.
Why is it significant?
The 1st Deepdene Scout Hall is of historical significance for its demonstration of the early popularity of the scouting movement in Boroondara, the suburbs of which were amongst the first in Melbourne to embrace the movement in the early twentieth century. It provides tangible evidence of the formative period after World War I when scouting had become established and scout troops began to construct permanent and purpose-built places to meet. As one of four pre-World War II scout halls to survive in the City of Boroondara, and the only scout hall of brick construction, the 1st Deepdene Scout Hall is a strong example of the growing popularity of scouting in the interwar period, which meant that some troops had the financial means to construct more elaborate buildings, sometimes to the design of an architect. Furthermore, its construction in the interwar period and enlargement in the early post-war period demonstrate the major periods of suburban growth in Deepdene and Balwyn, with the resultant population rise. (Criterion A)
The 1st Deepdene Scout Hall represents the modest sort of halls in brick construction built for Scouts during the interwar period. While a simple gable-fronted hall, interest was created by the use of multiple brick colours and the use of round arched openings and a corbel-table to the gable, suggesting a Romanesque Revival influence. (Criterion D)
The 1st Deepdene Scout Hall is of social significance for its long and continuing association with the Deepdene-area Scouts who have met on this site for over 85 years. (Criterion G)
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1st Deepdene Scout Hall - Physical Description 1
Description and Integrity
'1st Deepdene Scout Hall', 32 Whitehorse Road, Deepdene, is a modest brick hall constructed in the interwar period, in a restrained Romanesque Revival style. Located on the south side of Whitehorse Road, it is situated just to the east of the Outer Circle Trail, along the former Outer Circle railway line that once serviced much of the modern City of Boroondara. The Scout Hall is sited on a large parcel sloping gently to the east, with a generous setback comprising almost two-thirds the depth of the entire allotment. A low cyclone fence, erected in the post-war period, delineates the property's front (northern) boundary.
L-shaped in plan, the main roof form of the scout hall comprises two gables covering the main body of the building, and a skillion roof that shelters an extended wing to the rear, housing the kitchen, scout master's office, storeroom and toilet facilities. The gabled roof to the western part of the building houses the original single-storey scout hall structure, constructed in 1932, while the transverse gabled roof to the east, hidden behind a straight parapet, covers the two-storeyed extension erected in 1952. An original tall, utilitarian red brick chimney rises from the westernmost eave.
The arrangement of the principal facade has been rendered asymmetrical by the 1952 extension, consisting of a single-storey gabled bay to the west and a rectangular bay to the east. The gable end is supported on a corbelled eave at the west end of this elevation, and the irregular stretcher bond evidences where the brickwork has been infilled by the later extension on the east side. Subtle visual interest is provided to this facade with the use of red-blue brick panelling, brick header detailing to the arched window and door openings, and ornamental dentil course brickwork to the eaves suggesting a Romanesque corbel table; these details were also carried to the 1952 extension. Five terracotta vents are arranged in a cross-shaped configuration near the apex of the gable end. Beneath this sits a painted cement-rendered panel with the words 'First Deepdene' inscribed, and a plaque with the fleur-de-lis motif, the symbol of Scouting.
Fenestration is intact and consists of paned steel-framed windows. Entry to the Scout Hall is provided through a pair of central, utilitarian timber doors with a nine-paned, semi-circular arched fanlight at the gabled bay, serviced by four clinker brick steps flanked with brick planter boxes. A twelve-paned, semi-circular arched window with brick sill sits either side of the doors.
The rectangular bay to the east constructed in 1952 provides vehicular access to the building through a later roller garage door. Above, at the first floor, is a pair of nine-paned, rectangular windows with brick sills.
The visible side (west) elevation is of red-blue clinker brick. Fenestration is intact and arranged irregularly, with cement rendered lintels unifying the penetrations. There is a pair of square, steel-framed windows with nine panes at the north, and a smaller rectangular window with four panes further south, possibly installed during the 1952 alterations. The rear (south) elevation is of red-blue clinker brick and comprises the rear toilet wings and a porch that has been infilled, presumably since the 1952 extension.
Fencing to the property boundaries differ in style and materials, and includes a low cyclone fence erected in the post-war era to the front property edge, timber fencing at the sides a high, later cyclone fence topped with barbed wire to the rear.
Shallow setbacks exist to the rear and side (west) of the scout hall, allowing for simple grassed spaces with wooden planter boxes and several plane trees. There is a substantial setback to the front (north) of the property, with a long concrete path extending from the footpath to the front steps of the scout hall. To the east of the path is a sizeable gravelled area intended as a parade ground, and the space to the west is grassed with several timber planter boxes. Several eucalypts and low-profile plantings are located immediately behind the front fence.
The Scout Hall is of high integrity with few changes visible to early or original elements of the place. The 1932 building retains its original building and roof form, brick chimney, unpainted brickwork and patterns of fenestration. The 1952 extension has been designed sympathetically, and constructed in response to the growing demands of the local group, therefore contributing to the significance of the place. The integrity of the place is greatly enhanced by the retention of the generous front setback, originally intended as a parade ground.
Heritage Study and Grading
Balwyn Heritage Study Peer Review Stage 2
Author: Context
Year: 2020
Grading: Local
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