Shops

History:

Alphington village was created from Charles William Roemer's original Crown Portion 120. James Manning purchased the lot from the Sydney-based Roemer in 1841, completing the transaction in 1852.

Two years later, James' brother William Montague Manning, who was Solicitor General of New South Wales, began selling village allotments along Heidelberg Road and large pastoral lots near the Yarra and the Darebin Creek. Two blocks were sold to John Mason, in 1855, for ₤135, and sometime in the later 1850s or early 1860s, 756-758 Heidelberg Road was constructed.

In 1863, Thomas King(s) owned it as a butcher's shop and dwelling, with a slaughter house and yards to the east. Richard King owned the baker's shop to the west (still there?) which was leased to Guest and Ball, among others. John Sharp Adams owned a store further to the east, and Thomas H Bear leased a wine shop.

The building appears to have undergone improvements in 1865 and in 1868. King owned and occupied it until its purchase by John Woolcock in c.1879. King still operated the slaughter yard next door. Sam Whittaker owned it in the 1880s, returning it to Woolcock, or his executors, who leased it to butchers such as John Cougle, F R Vizard and Arthur E Wortley. William Eldridge tenanted the building in 1935. The building's parapet still bears a faint butcher's sign.

The building is now occupied by a Chinese restaurant.

Description:

The retail building at 756-758 Heidelberg Road, Alphington, is a two-storey coursed bluestone shop with residence above. The first floor facade is symmetrical, and has three semi-circular arched windows with brick dressings and keystones. There is a prominent rendered parapet and cornice. The building is one room deep, with a single-storey lean-to at the immediate rear.

A cantilevered awning and signs have been added and the shop-front has been altered substantially. The green glazed tiles appear to date from the Edwardian period.

Significance:

The pair of shops at 756-758 Heidelberg Road, Alphington, is of local historical significance. It is one of the oldest surviving commercial buildings of the Alphington village, established in the 1850 and '60s, Architecturally, the building's significance has been reduced by substantial alterations to the shopfronts. Apart from the painting of the face bluestone walls, however, the form of the first floor remains relatively intact.

Group

Retail and Wholesale

Category

Shop