Article: Heritage listed theatre in Guildford, Western Australia
Guildford gnangarra 040415-101.jpg
13 May 1932 (original intended use dates to 1853)
Former Commissariat Store & Quarters; Infant Health Centre
State Register of Heritage Places
The Garrick Theatre is the longest continually running amateur theatre group in metropolitan Western Australia, located at 16 Meadow Street in Guildford, Western Australia. The original structure was built in 1853 and is considered to be one of the few intact parts of a convict depot demonstrating the way of life in the Convict era of Western Australiacurrent use as a theatre was preceded by use as Commissariat Store and Quarters and later as an Infant Health Centre.
Historical use
The former Commissariat Store and Quarters was among those buildings designed and constructed as part of the Guildford Convict Depot by Lieutenant Edmund Frederick Du Cane.
Lieutenant Du Cane designed and supervised the construction of most of the buildings associated with the convict depot in Guildford, as well as building the first bridge over the Swan River at Guildford, at the site of the public wharf in Meadow Street. Of these works, only the Commissariat building, the Pensioner's Cottage, West Guildford, and his own house, immediately to the south of the Commissariat Store, remain.
The Commissariat Quarters were intended as a dwelling for the officers in charge of the Commissariat Store. According to Lieutenant Du Cane's reports, the Commissariat Quarters were completed at the end of 1853, and the Commissariat Store was completed in 1854. Du Cane describes both
buildings in one of his reports:
A Commissariat Store has been erected 55' x 25', to it are attached a quarter consisting of two rooms and a kitchen and an office. This building is of brick with wooden floors; the quarter and office only are ceiled. It is surrounded by a fence enclosing a yard about 130' x 145' in which also has been erected a wooden stable; this has been built with one side open as being best suited to the climate, and the work required of the horses; there is accommodation for 7 horses, a loose box for a sick horse, a harness room, a room for the groom, and a shed capable of containing 4 carts and 30 tons of hay.
When Lieutenant Du Cane was transferred to Fremantle in 1855, his former house was handed over to the Director of the Commissariat Store in Guildford, Deputy Assistant Commissary-General Travers. The Commissariat Store was later used as a Drill Hall by Enrolled Pensioner Guards. When the convict depot in Guildford was closed in 1878, the buildings were handed over to the municipality of Guildford, which sold Du Cane's house, and the section of Allotment 45 on which it stands, to a private buyer.
The Commissariat Quarters were renovated in 1951 for use as an Infant Health Centre.
Modern-day use
The Garrick Theatre Club has operated out of the premises since 1932 and in 2007 celebrated 75 years as a theatre club. The Garrick Theatre Club is the oldest and continual running community theatre group in metropolitan Western Australia. The Garrick was named after David Garrick, considered the most influential Shakespearean actor.
General references
Battye Library, Accession No. 353A.
The Heritage Council of WA Registrar of Places
References Attribution External links
Independent Theatre Association of Western Australia
Garrick Theatre Club |
Source: Register of Heritage Places - Assessment Doc'n Garrick Theatre107/10/1997REGISTER OF HERITAGE PLACES -ASSESSMENT DOCUMENTATIONHERITAGECOUNCILOF WESTERN AUSTRALIA11.ASSESSMENT OF CULTURAL HERITAGE SIGNIFICANCEThe criteria adopted by the Heritage Council in November 1996 have beenused to determine the cultural heritage significance of the place.11. 1AESTHETIC VALUEThe place is important for its aesthetic characteristics imparted by thesimplicity of the Colonial Georgian architecture and the pleasant texture andwarmth of colouring of the mellow brickwork. (Criterion 1.1)The place is important for its contribution to the scale and quality of thestreetscape, combining with the other historic buildings of the Meadow Streetprecinct. (Criterion 1.4)11. 2.HISTORIC VALUEThe place is significant for its association with the establishment of the convictdepot in Guildford which, with the rest of the convict establishment,introduced a major change in the way the affairs of the colony wereconducted. (Criteria 2.1 & 2.2)The place is important in demonstrating the transition from an impoverishedcolony suffering severe labour shortage to the more affluent period where thearrival of the convicts provided an influx of capital and cheap labour.(Criterion 2.2)11. 3.SCIENTIFIC VALUE------------11. 4.SOCIAL VALUEThe place is highly valued by the local community for its role in the historic,social and cultural activities of Guildford. (Criterion 4.1)
Register of Heritage Places - Assessment Doc'n Garrick Theatre207/10/199712.DEGREE OF SIGNIFICANCE12. 1.RARITYThe place is rare as one of the few intact parts of a convict depotdemonstrating the way of life in the convict era. (Criterion 5.2)12. 2REPRESENTATIVENESSThe place is representative of the characteristics of Commissariat stores of theconvict establishment in Western Australia, such as the larger example in CliffStreet, Fremantle. (Criterion 6.2)12. 3CONDITIONThe condition of the place is generally sound; however, there are areas ofseverely fretting brickwork.12. 4INTEGRITYThe place has a moderate degree of integrity in that the present use as atheatre has brought about the addition of a wing at the east end of the storewhich has had some, but not major, impact on the significant values of thebuilding, while leaving the original fabric generally undisturbed.12. 5AUTHENTICITYThe place has a high degree of authenticity in that the original building fabricis largely intact.
Register of Heritage Places - Assessment Doc'n Garrick Theatre307/10/199713.SUPPORTING EVIDENCEThe supporting evidence was compiled by John Pidgeon, Architect.13. 1DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCEThe former Commissariat Store and Quarters, was among those buildingsdesigned and constructed as part of the Guildford Convict Depot byLieutenant Du Cane.2nd Lieutenant Edmund F. Du Cane, of the Royal Engineers, arrived inWestern Australia in December 1851 aboard the Anna Robertson withLieutenant Wray and a party of 65 Sappers and Miners, their wives andchildren.1 Lieutenant Du Cane was at that time 21 years of age. He wasplaced in charge of convict works in the Guildford, Toodyay and Yorkdistrict, with his base at Guildford.Lieutenant Du Cane designed and supervised the construction of most of thebuildings associated with the convict depot in Guildford, as well as buildingthe first bridge over the Swan River at Guildford, at the site of the publicwharf in Meadow Street. Of these works only the Commissariat building, thePensioner's Cottage, West Guildford, and his own house, immediately to thesouth of the Commissariat Store, remain.On a trip to Busselton in 1855, Du Cane met Mary Molloy, daughter ofCaptain John Molloy, an old colonist. The two were engaged a few weekslater and were married in the old church of St John, Fremantle. MaryMolloy's sister, Mrs E. R. Brockman, later wrote:We stayed with the dear bride and bridegroom a fortnight. he was like a brother tome, as well as Amelia; we used to go for walks and one day had a boat and rowed onthe river. We took the oars and Mr Du Cane sat in the stern and sang 'Ben Baxter wasa Boatman'. He brought me one day Macaulay's 'Lays of Ancient Home'; it was myfirst introduction to those inspiring poems, and I have loved them ever since.2Du Cane emerges as a person of considerable intelligence and charm, and thisis reflected in the design of his house and other buildings at Guildford. Hewas promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant in February 1854 and made aJustice of the Peace. In March 1856 he and his wife left for England in theEsmerelda, never to return to Western Australia. With the benefit of hindsight, Du Cane's unprecedented sway over prisonadministration in the last third of the 19th century in Great Britain was neitherenlightened nor reformist. As the Government's chief adviser on prisons, headvocated and was largely responsible for the nationalisation of local prisonson the basis of flawed and misleading calculations of the financial benefits ofthe change. He was also instrumental in increasing the severity ofpunishment given to prisoners by subjecting them uniformly to long hours ofmeaningless labour, a near-starvation diet and rigorous living conditions. 3These practices were later discredited as inhumane and ineffective. 1Perth Gazette, 26 December 1851.2Battye Library, Accession No. 353A.3McConville, S. 'The Victorian Prison' in Morris, N. and Rothman, D.J. (eds.) The Oxford History of the Prison : the practice of punishment in western society New York, Oxford University Press, 1995,pp. 141-154.
Register of Heritage Places - Assessment Doc'n Garrick Theatre407/10/1997The Commissariat Quarters were intended as a dwelling for the officers incharge of the Commissariat Store. According to Lieutenant Du Cane's reportsthe Commissariat Quarters were completed at the end of 1853, and theCommissariat Store was completed in 1854.4 Du Cane describes bothbuildings in one of his reports:A Commissariat Store has been erected 55' x 25', to it are attached a quarter consistingof two rooms and a kitchen and an office. This building is of brick with woodenfloors; the quarter and office only are ceiled. It is surrounded by a fence enclosing ayard about 130' x 145' in which also has been erected a wooden stable; this has beenbuilt with one side open as being best suited to the climate, and the work required ofthe horses; there is accommodation for 7 horses, a loose box for a sick horse, a harnessroom, a room for the groom, and a shed capable of containing 4 carts and 30 tons ofhay. 5When Lieutenant Du Cane was transferred to Fremantle in 1855, his formerhouse was handed over to the Director of the Commissariat Store inGuildford, Deputy Assistant Commissary-General Travers.6The Commissariat Store was later used as a Drill Hall by Enrolled PensionerGuards . When the convict depot in Guildford was closed in 1878, thebuildings were handed over to the municipality of Guildford7, which sold DuCane's house, and the section of Allotment 45 on which it stands, to a privatebuyer.The Commissariat Quarters were renovated in 1951 for use as an InfantHealth Centre. The whole building is now leased from the Shire Council bythe Garrick Club.13. 2PHYSICAL EVIDENCEThe Commissariat Store, now Garrick Theatre, still conforms fairly closely tothe description by Lieutenant Du Cane given above. It stands between theold Town Hall, dating from the 1930s, to the north and Lieutenant Du Cane'shouse of the same period as the Commissariat Store but much altered.Between the old Town Hall and the Commissariat Store is a courtyard pavedwith cement blocks laid in circular patterns. To the south, between thebuilding and the fence of the Du Cane house, is a grassed area shaded withtrees.The original quarters section of the building is on a north south axis facingMeadow Street and built close to an open timber paling fence on the streetalignment. The hipped and steeply pitched roof is clad with corrugated ironpainted Indian red. The street elevation is protected by verandah with a lean-to roof with half hips at each end and supported on timber columns. Theverandah roof is pitched separately from the main roof. The walls of thestore are Flemish bond brickwork.From the south end of the quarters, the long narrow form of the CommissariatStore projects eastward. The roof of the Store is similar to that of the quartersand the walls are of English bonded brickwork. The roof of the store is 4Battye Library, The Convict System Vol. VII, 1855, p.145.5ibid.6ibid, p.111.7W. A. Almanac 1879 (Inquirer edition), List of Events.
Register of Heritage Places - Assessment Doc'n Garrick Theatre507/10/1997supported by wooden rafters joined by collar ties. Above the rafters the roofis close boarded. There is no glazing in the windows of the store, but they arefitted with bars and wooden shutters.A new brick building has been built across the east end of the formerCommissariat Store to provide more accommodation for the theatre. Thisbuilding has been designed in similar mode to the store and quarters.13. 3 REFERENCESBattye Library, The Convict System Vol.VII.Bourke M. On the Swan Nedlands, UWA Press, 1987.The National Trust of Australia (WA) files.13. 4FURTHER RESEARCH------------ |