HOUSE (ENFIELD)

History:

Enfield was built in 1901 by David Mitchell, prolific Melbourne builder who was also responsible for the construction of the Royal Exhibition Building. It is claimed that Dame Nellie Melba, Mitchell's daughter, lived in the house for a period before it was sold to Mitchell's accountant. In 1920 the house passed to David Fitton who remained there until 1962.

Description:

Enfield is a two-storey single-fronted freestanding Italianate style brick house, with a projecting rear wing to the north. The front verandah and balcony have cast iron lacework friezes, and the balcony has lacework balustrading with a fern motif. The verandah and balcony are flanked by projecting brick walls with blind arches. The ground floor facade has tripartite timber-framed double-hung sash windows, whilst the first floor has two double-hung sash windows and a pair of leadlight French doors. The front door has unusual arched glazed panels, and glazed side- and highlights. The hipped roof is concealed behind a rendered parapet, which has a central triangular pediment flanked by curved, vermiculated panels. There is a single rendered brick chimney with a moulded capital and terracotta chimney pots.

The external walls of the house have been painted white; the ground floor facade appears to have been rendered.

The house retains an original iron picket front fence.

Significance:

Enfield, at 144 Burnley Street, Richmond, is of local historical and architectural significance. It was built by David Mitchell and was purportedly for a time the home of his daughter, Dame Nellie Melba, who was born in Burnley Street and whose family has many associations with the northeast of Richmond. Architecturally, the house is a typical example of a large, Italianate house with a terrace form, located on a prominent site in an area which was mainly developed with smaller cottages and terraces.

Group

Residential buildings (private)

Category

House