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Wickham
37-39 King Road,HARKAWAY, Casey City

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Statement of Significance

The former Ratharnay, built in 1854 for Wilhelm 'Butter' Meyer, Swiss settler who ran a district butter-dealing business, has regional significance as one of the earliest homestead buildings surviving at Harkaway, one of Victoria's major German settlements. Despite alterations and extensive additions at the rear, Wickham has significance as a very early brick cottage. The original smokehouse remains detached and intact apart from roof replacement. Both buildings provide an excellent example of early construction techniques in handmade bricks produced from the site. It has significance for its associations with Jacob Hessell, German Lutheran school teacher, who was there in the 1870s, and with Sir John Medley, Vice-Chancellor of Melbourne University, its owner in the 1950s.
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    • Physical Description 1

      Wickham - Physical Description 1

      This cottage and its smokehouse are both built of handmade clay bricks, and known earlier as Ratharnay. Today the house, known as Wickham, is a gracious villa, symmetrical in form, with a central entry and verandah on two sides. The multiple additions are in keeping with the scale and character of the early building and cottage. The driveway with turning circle and the twin posted verandah facade dates from at least 1899. (1) The smokehouse is detached and retains exposed brick walls with a new Colorbond roof which is believed to replicate the original roof form. Hand made bricks produced on or near this property are also evident in the garden pathways. (2) The lawns and established cypress, pine and other plantings enhance the historic character of the site.

      Sources
      1. Information and photographs supplied by the current owner Mrs. M. Doherty.
      2. The Gazette, Wed., 1 April, 1992.

      Physical Conditions

      Wickham - Physical Conditions

      Good

      Heritage Study and Grading

      Heritage Study and Grading

      Casey - Casey Heritage Study

      Author: Context Pty Ltd
      Year: 2004
      Grading: Local

      Casey - Heritage of the City of Berwick

      Author: Context Pty Ltd
      Year: 1993
      Grading:

Public contributions

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