Westend/walk2.html

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Freotopia > West End > Walk from the Esplanade Hotel

This walk starts at the Esplanade Hotel and goes via Marine Terrace, Mouat and High Streets to the Round House, returning via Cliff, Phillimore and Henry Streets.

Highlights

[[img/roundhouse2015.jpg|]]The so-called Round House (it's twelve-sided), the 1831 prison, with the Whalers Tunnel (1837) beneath it, is at the end of High St.

[[Westend/arthurhead/img/map2c.jpg|]]The Round House stands on Arthur Head, where formerly the first and second courthouses, and the first and second lighthouses also stood.

[[Westend/authors/img/scottkim.jpg|]]The five 'totems' on the Writers Walk in High Street represent five novelists with a local connexion: Kim Scott (left), Xavier Herbert, John Boyle O'Reilly, Joan London, Tim Winton.

Marine Terrace

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The Esplanade Hotel occupies the block between Collie and Essex Streets.

The site was once the property of Captain Daniel Scott, and it was where convicts were housed in his warehouse in 1850 when they arrived without warning.

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From the western Esplanade Hotel across Collie Street is the Trades Hall building. The benches against the wall of the hotel were provided by Paddy Troy for the comfort of waterside workers as they waited for the daily allocation of work assignments.

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On the corner of Collie St is the former State Savings Bank building, now Kailis pearl sales.

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Between Collie and Henry Streets are modern buildings with small retailers on the street and residences behind and above.

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The Co-op Bookshop, 30 Marine Terrace, Notre Dame's bookshop in effect, is a small building built like a lean-to against the eastern wall of Port Lodge, and with the same building number, ND12. It's on the corner of Henry St. In a undated (early 1900s?) photo held by RWAHS (P222) both buildings have the same sign: British Sailors Society.

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Port Lodge, 28 Marine Terrace, is now a student residence. This was once Rosa Henriques Smith's Sailors' Rest. The building complex is much larger than this facade suggests.

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The original Masonic Hall was located at the corner of Mouat Street and Marine Terrace, and opened in 1877. This continued to be the lodge of the Fremantle Masons until 1958, when a new Masonic Hall was opened for Fremantle Lodge no.1033. ... The original Masonic Hall was purchased by the Navy Club at this time. Heritage Council. Now commercial premises.

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The third courthouse, 1884, still stands in Marine Terrace. It is now part of Notre Dame University and is used by the Law faculty for moots.

Mouat Street

Mouat Street was named after Lt J.A. Mouat, of HMS Challenger. Mouat, Henry and Pakenham Sts, in that order, are the 'lieutenant streets' (my coinage) being named respectively after the first, second, and third lieutenants on board Capt Fremantle's ship: J.A. Mouat, John Henry, and H. Pakenham. Mouat St used sometimes to be spelt with two TTs, as Mouatt-st. This street is now the heart of Notre Dame University Australia, with the CEO's office at 17-19.

[[img/30mouat.jpg|32 Mouat]]

Bateman's Hardware Store, at 32 Mouat St, is now NDU's Student Centre.

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A former army drill hall between Croke St and Marine Tce is now an NDU function centre.

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David Hutchison writes that 'No. 25 was the site of an old picture garden and a row of six cottages. The Batemans built a warehouse in the 1880s, which was demolished in 1937, and the cottages in 1942.' (116) From that, I assume the present building dates from the 1940s. Said building is Prindiville Hall, part of NDU.

[[img/17mouat.jpg|17 Mouat]]

What is now the headquarters of Notre Dame University was built in 1887 for hardware merchant William Sandover (c1856-c1921) at 17-19 Mouat St.

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Strelitz Buildings, 1897, 30 Mouat St. Built in 1897 for Richard Strelitz, consul for Denmark and acting-consul for Sweden, who was interned during the first World War. Herbert Hoover (later President of the USA) had an office here 1904-6.

[[img/28mouat.jpg|28mouat]]

Patrick Hagan, the licensee of the Victoria Hotel (see P&O) had a house here, at 28 Mouat St. The Strelitz brothers built the warehouse on the site in 1880. Silversmith Eric Carr converted it into his workshop and residence in 1976.

[[img/26mouat.jpg|26 Mouat]]

The Strelitz brothers built a warehouse at 26 Mouat St in 1700. It's now the NDU Student Recreation Hall.

High St

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The P&O Hotel, on the SE corner of Mouat and High, at 25 High St, was completed in 1896. The verandahs were restored in 2002, tho sadly it is still lacking its original turret.

Owston's Buildings, at 9-23, occupy almost all of the space on the southern side of High St from Mouat St to Cliff St. Owston was a shipowner. The Roma Restaurant is still here, having opened in about 1940. It was taken over by Nunzio Gumina when long-term owners the Abrugiata family sold out, and the name changed a little to Villa Roma. Nunzio now has a restaurant in his own name in Essex St, and the Roma has been renovated and opened again by Abrugiata family members. Unfortunately, the Laminex is gone.
The Waterside Workers Federation used to occupy the Mouat St corner of the building around 1970. It's now occupied by NDU.

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Bank of Australasia, 1901, 18 High St. The sign suggests it's the offices of winemaker Leeuwin Estate. The Commonwealth of Australia logo near the door indicates/d the tenancy of a Federal Dept.

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Between Cliff and Mouat, at 8, 10, and 12 High St are these buildings. Tannatt Chambers, 8, 1700, has 'Moorish' elements. The Cellars Building, 10, 1700, aka Craig's Chambers, once housed Paul Rigby's Roo on the Roof restaurant in its cellar. The building is said to be haunted by the ghost of a murdered sailor.

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The Bank of NSW building, at 7 High St, cnr Cliff St, was built for the Bank on land owned by Pearse and Owston in 1899. The building was fully leased to NDA when it was sold in 2014. See also: Wikipedia page

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Hotel Fremantle, 6 High St, lacking its corner turret and flagpole, like the P&O Hotel. This was built in 1899, and a renovated version was the Kiwi headquarters for the Americas Cup defence in 1987.

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On the NW corner of High St, 4 High St, is the former Union Bank building. The first building on the site, on town lot 5, was Captain Daniel Scott's residence. The monogram UB may be seen above the doorway. The Church of England bought the building in 1930 for the Flying Angel Mission to Seamen. It is now Notre Dame building 32: Arts & Sciences. NDU has preserved the name of a previous occupant on top of the door, and on the corner first-floor window: G. S. Murray, Customs Brokers.

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The Seamen's Chapel 1937, dominated by the Samson bond store on the left and the (former) Union Bank on the right. Both Chapel and Bank are now part of NDU.

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On the left may be seen the Tramways Building, number 1 High St. Next to it to the east is an NDU carpark, where mayor W.F. Samson's house stood for 100 years. Opposite to no. 1 is 2 High St, the other end of the Samson bond store, formerly Dalgety's building (1901), the other end of which may be seen as 1Phillimore St.

Cliff St

Atlas Chambers, 6-8 Cliff St, has had various owners, including the Helpman family 1855-81. On the right is the 1986 garden courtyard of the Fremantle Hotel, which is on the corner of Cliff and High Sts.

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Next to the Dalgety Building, at 11 Cliff St, is a new building designed by Murray Slavin for the Mediterranean Shipping Company, who ship containers. They are also in the Dalgety Building. The Slavin building is now the main entrance to the whole thing. I went on a tour.

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Dalgety/Elder/Wilhemsen/MSC Building, corner of Cliff and Phillimore Sts

Phillimore St

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From the corner of Cliff and Phillimore Streets may be seen the tall building of Fremantle Ports (formerly the FPA and before that the Harbour Trust).

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Former weighbridge in the middle of the road with the Google Street View car passing.

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The 'Old' Customs House, 1907/8, at 4-8 Phillimore St stands where the first Railway Station and, before that, The Green used to be, on land reclaimed from the river, at the entrance to Victoria Quay. Customs moved into the new Commonwealth offices at 41 Phillimore St before 1987, and the building has since been used by artists, and arts organisations like Deckchair Theatre and the WA Circus School.

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Phillimore Chambers, 1899, at 11 Phillimore St and 2-4 Cliff St. Tenants included shipping companies. Designed by Wilkinson, Smith and Wilson, architects, 1899. (Heritage Council)

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Dock Buildings, at 13-15 Phillimore St. Built for its architect, E.H. Deane Smith, in 1899. Frank Biddles owned it from 1903, then Sumpton and Sons 1934-50s. Brian Klopper designed two apartments in the upper floor.

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The P&O Building, 17-19 Phillimore St, dating from 1903, was built for the AUSNC (the Australian United Steamship Navigation Co), the initials of which can be seen in the pediment.

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The McIlwraith Building, 1919, at 10-12 Phillimore St, has also been known as Scottish House and Patrick's Building.

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Hudson House, 1922, 14 Phillimore St

[[img/16phillimore.jpg|16 Phillimore]]

The Chamber of Commerce, 16 Phillimore St, 1912, still in use as such.

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Back on the south side of the street, the horse trough on the corner of Phillimore and Mouat Sts was built in 1924. It was a garden bed for some decades but is now available again for horses - tho there is usually no water in it.

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The Frank Cadd Building at 33 Phillimore St, 1890, known later as Fares House, was built for an importer, J.M. Ferguson. The new part of the NDU School of Health Sciences building is adjoining, on the corner of Henry St. On the other, western side is His Majesty's Hotel, on the corner of Mouat Street.

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The Old Fire Station, 1908, was the Bengal Restaurant from 1977 until recently; it is now accommodation for backpackers. The current fire station is the next building to the east.

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The new building of NDU's School of Health Sciences (35?) Phillimore St on the corner with Henry St.

Henry St

Henry Street was named after Lt John Henry, of HMS Challenger. Mouat, Henry and Pakenham Sts, in that order, are the 'lieutenant streets' (my coinage) being named respectively after the first, second, and third lieutentants on board Capt Fremantle's ship: J.A. Mouat, John Henry, and H. Pakenham. Mt Henry is also named after John Henry. The street may possibly have been called 'Regent St' in the early days of the Colony:

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At the corner of Phillimore St, no. 2 Henry St still has the curved facade of the Falk Building tho the interior - and that of several other buildings on a large site bounded by Phillimore, Henry, and Pakenham Streets - was completely rebuilt for the occupation of various commonwealth government departments - which have since moved on. At least this part of the building (if not all of 'it') is apparently now called Customs House, as that's what the sign on the building says. The facade is apparently also known as that of the Seppelts and also of the ACTA Building. There is a proposal current for a new building inside the facade.

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The NDU carpark at 1 Henry St, where the magnificentLodge's Hotel once stood (probably the Castle Hotel before that) until the Fremantle Workers Club had it demolished in 1958 for a carpark for its members. The Club also proposed a new building on the site, but it did not eventuate, and the Club later sold the land to NDU.

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The buildings at 3-5 Henry St, collectively known as Quartermaine's Building, 1903 and 1936, are used as Power Labs office, and dwellings. The image shows the lane which is part of 5 Henry St but I'm guessing is shared by both buildings. The site extends at the rear behind part of the Workers Club building.

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The building at 5 Henry St is apparently a dwelling.

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The Lance Holt School building at 10 Henry St was built in 1892, and later was the Federal Coffee Palace (a hotel without a liquor license). The warehouse and offices were apparently built for Philip Webster, and were later occupied by various tenants until the City bought it in 1972. The School has occupied it since 1974 and owned it since 1985.

[[img/7henry.jpg|9 Henry]]

The Fremantle Workers Club was at 7-9 Henry St 1956-2015. The site is now occupied by a four-storey apartment building, keeping the facade, which is one brick thick.

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At let's say 18 Henry St is this empty warehouse in temporary use for parking. All of these buildings are due for redevelopment, and you can see the sign to that effect. This may be part of the development proposed for the Marich Building, qv.

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Note that the date is 2004. Parnell's phone number is so old it doesn't have the 9 at the front - and I believe that company has ceased trading. This is part of the development proposed for the Marich Building, qv.

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The proposed redevelopment applies to all of this and includes the building on the corner with High St, all of which is known as the Marich Building and has the address 36-44 High St. At the moment there's an Asian imports store on that corner, with Rialto Apartments next door. The imports store currently has a closing down sign, so maybe something's going to happen soon. One of those derelict shopfronts in this photo, at 20 and 22 Henry St, was Southside Tattoos—maybe both. After the laneway to the right of the photo, there are two more previous shopfronts, which would have been 24 and 26 Henry St.

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This building was at 24 Henry St in 1914. (See the photo above for the same part of the street 100 years later.) The photo is #5194 in the Fremantle History Collection. The accompanying text is as follows.

William Tucker and Samuel Thomson, tinsmiths, ironworkers and plumbers, had premises at Henry Street from at least 1895/96 to 1920. They were at 20 Henry Street in 1700 but at 24 in 1914.

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Marich Building, c1897, 36-44 High St, on the northeast corner of High and Henry St, has been proposed for redevelopment since before 2006, when an application to build a 5-storey hotel/apartment complex at the rear was refused. The Rialto Apartments door is at 44, and they presumably occupy all of the upper floor. The Royal Hotel was on this site in 1844. The original town lot numbers were 80/81.

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Orient Hotel, on the corner of Henry and High Streets. The earliest hotel on the site, from 1849, was the Commercial, later the Emerald Isle Hotel—where, in 1876, the Catalpa incident was planned: the escape of six Fenians, including John Boyle O'Reilly, from Fremantle Prison. That hotel was demolished in 1903, after which what is now the magnificent Orient Hotel was built. It was renovated in 1995, and was closed in 2014 for further renovations. In 2015 the owners were seeking a new lessee.

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The Orient Hotel looks down on these, the Adelec Buildings, 28-36 High St, originally known as Fothergill's Building.

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On the SE corner of Henry and High Sts is the Union Stores building, designed by architect Herbert Nathaniel Davis for J & W Bateman, and formerly the largest hardware store in Fremantle, Bateman's Hardware. The verandahs were restored in the Americas Cup defence renovation in 1986. It's owned by the City of Fremantle, and has just at the time of writing had more renovations completed. The tenant in the corner store is now the New Editions bookshop, which was previously on the other side of High St.

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At 32 Henry St, a modern apartment has been built above and behind a cottage and warehouse from the 1890s, at the rear of the Union Stores building.

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Plaque on the building above.

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NDU School of Medicine offices and St John of God Hall at 21 (21-27?) Henry St, next building to the south after the Orient Hotel. Unknown provenance atm.

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This is 25-29 Henry St, shown on the NDU map as part of the School of Medicine, which applies to the two downstairs sections, 25A and 25B. The apartment upstairs at 29 was for sale in 2015 for c. $2mill, and in March 2016 offered for rent @ $1200/week.

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This is NDU's main library, known as St Teresa's Library: a modern building, at 35 Henry St. Unknown atm what was there before.

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Part of the NDU School of Medicine is at 45 Henry St, over the road from Fowler's Warehouse which is now the major part of this School.

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Part of the complex of Bateman buildings, 47 Henry St is now part of the NDU School of Law.

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Sadlier's Warehouse/Customs Agency, 34 & 36 Henry St; built in 1883 and 1880; converted into residences in 1992 to a Brian Klopper design. In the 1840s a stone building and a pair of semis were on this site. Unit 1/36, including the rooms in the photo at the front of the building on the right, was sold for $1.1 on 1 April 2014.

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Fowler's Warehouse, aka the Fremantle Furniture Factory, 1700, 38 Henry St. Fowler established at the site in 1854, then purchased adjoining land (through to Pakenham St) and built the current building between 1899 and 1700. Wikipedia page

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Moore's Building, 42-46 Henry St, is now an art gallery and coffee shop (called Moore & Moore). The facade is from about 1900. The City of Fremantle owned and restored the building 1986-7. See: Robyn Taylor 1995, The Moores Project: Conservation of the The Moores Complex of Buildings, Architecture & Heritage Section, City of Fremantle.

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A modern building now stands at 48 Henry St.

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52 Henry St is said to have been the offices of Elias Solomon, and was an auction room in 1880, then Manning's warehouse. At one time it was Pietro Porcelli's workshop. Later it was Greg James's - coincidentally, as it was he who sculpted the bronze of Porcelli in King's Square. The Fremantle City Council owned it 1970-1993; it is now a private residence. (Davidson 2000: 216-7)

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At 54 Henry St, an old commercial facade has been retained in a modern dwelling complex. The next building to the south is in Marine Terrace, which takes one back to the Esplanade Hotel.

Freotopia

This page incorporates material from Garry Gillard's Freotopia website, that he started in 2014 and the contents of which he donated to Wikimedia Australia in 2024. The content was originally created on 22 October, 2017 and hosted at freotopia.org/westend/walk2.html (it was last updated on 3 May, 2024). The donated data is also preserved in the Internet Archive's collection.