Victoria Street Heritage Precinct

Victoria Street WILLIAMSTOWN, Hobsons Bay City

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Hobsons Bay City

Victoria Street Heritage Precinct WILLIAMSTOWN, Hobsons Bay Heritage Study 2006

Statement of Significance

• Additional Place Information

  • Physical Description 1

    Victoria Street Heritage Precinct - Physical Description 1

    Victoria Street is a well-established residential precinct that is distinguished by the high proportion of Federation and Interwar era picturesque villas and bungalows, which are complemented by Victorian-era villas that are related in terms of their siting, scale and materials. Key characteristics of the street include:

    - Detached siting with relatively consistent generous front and side setbacks that have allowed the establishment of mature gardens with canopy trees.

    - Predominant single storey scale, although there are a small number of notable two storey houses such as the Queen Anne influenced villas at 51 and 80, and the Interwar houses at 72 ('Pevensey'), 115 and 119.

    - Complex hip and gable roof forms, in terracotta tile, slate or iron.

    - Mostly double and triple fronted and often asymmetrical forms.

    - A higher proportion of brick houses than in other parts of Williamstown, which includes a rare example of an asymmetrical rendered brick Victorian Italianate villa at No.37 with detailing not found elsewhere in Williamstown.

    The setting of the houses is enhanced by the mature street planting of ash trees in the nature strip, however, the trees are not related to the development period of the street and have replaced the once notable WW1 memorial palm avenue. Few front fences are original, but most are low and many are in a related reproduction period style such as timber pickets. Original or early front fences remain at properties including No. 78 (Interwar) and 63 (Victorian).

    The northern entry to the street from Kororoit Creek Road is marked by the landmark Rifle Club Hotel, a two storey brick and stucco hotel that demonstrates influences of the Californian Bungalow style employed in some of the houses further down the street. At the corner of Railway Crescent is the Williamstown Croquet Club Pavilion, which is an elegant building in the Interwar 'Mediterranean' style.

    The main streets within the Hannan's Farm and Folkestone Estates, which include Hannan Street are set apart from the adjoining 1880s subdivisions to the east (which followed the general pattern established by the Government Survey) by their north-south orientation. This creates views of the sea at the southern end of the precinct while to the north in Victoria Street, the Williamstown North Railway Station is a distant focal point. Victoria Street, because of its width and its visual link to the sea, has a sense of openness that is not evident in other more closely, subdivided areas of Williamstown.

    Bluestone kerbing and guttering extends the length of Victoria Street and the roadway has been sealed to the guttering although it is apparent that gravel verges existed on both sides of the sealed roadway. Victorian styled seats are placed at intervals in the grassed nature strip.

    Integrity

    Victoria Street Heritage Precinct - Integrity

    Integrity

    High.

    Physical Description 2

    Victoria Street Heritage Precinct - Physical Description 2

    Context

    Victoria Street is one of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century precincts to the west of the Botanic Gardens that also includes the Hannan's Farm and Williamstown Beach Precincts, which share similar historic and aesthetic characteristics.

    Historical Australian Themes

    Victoria Street Heritage Precinct - Historical Australian Themes

    Principal Australian Historical Theme(s)

    Making Suburbs.

    Physical Description 3

    Victoria Street Heritage Precinct - Physical Description 3

    Associations

    AT Clark, Michael Hannan.

    Heritage Study and Grading

    Heritage Study and Grading

    Hobsons Bay - Hobsons Bay Heritage Study

    Author: Hobsons Bay City Council
    Year: 2006
    Grading: Local

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