Smalley & Harkness Boot Factory, Former

Location

16 Islington Street, COLLINGWOOD VIC 3066 - Property No 343410

Level

Incl in HO area indiv sig

Statement of Significance

The following wording is from the Allom and Lovell Building Citation, 1998 for the property. Please note that this is a "Building Citation", not a "Statement of Significance". For further information refer to the Building Citation held by the City of Yarra.

History:

William Smalley, boot manufacturer, commenced business as Smalley Pitman and Yates at 76 Wellington Street in 1878. By 1879 he was trading as Smalley & Yates in Smith Street, and from 1880 to 1882 as Smalley & Mair, Smith Street. By 1884 the long standing Smalley & Harkness partnership had been formed, trading at 7-9 Wellington Street. In 1898 they moved to new premises at 11 Hoddle Street.

The new brick premises faced Hoddle Street and extended partway to Islington Street. By 1903 this building had been extended to the Islington Street frontage. Since that time it has been enlarged along Islington Street and part demolished since the widening of Hoddle Street in the mid-1970s.

As early as 1891, the firm was ordering the first welt machines and outsole stitchers from the Goodyear Shoe Machinery Co. of Boston, enabling it to undertake in 90 seconds the same work which had previously taken two and half hours. By 1899, `The Australian Leather Journal' was claiming that 'no firm in Victoria is better known for the excellence of its work', and listed the innovative machinery in the machine, stuffing and finishing rooms.

In 1928, the firm's name changed to Harkness Shoes Pty Ltd, and it remained at 11-19 Hoddle Street until 1967. In 1969 the premises were taken over by York Press Ltd, printers.

Description:

The former Smalley & Harkness Boot Factory, 16 Islington Street, Collingwood, is a large, two storey brick factory building. Its walls are of face red brick with a bluestone plinth, punctuated by rows of rectangular windows with shallow segmental arched brick heads. Windows are timber framed double-hung sashes with bluestone sills. The west elevation, on Islington Street, comprises five gabled bays; a faded painted sign bearing the words SMALLEY & HARKNESS is visible on the upper wall of the northernmost bay. The corrugated iron roofs are penetrated by tall, red brick corbelled chimneys.

Significance:

The former Smalley & Harkness Boot Factory, 16 Islington Street, Collingwood is of local historical and architectural significance. The building formerly housed one of Collingwood's largest and most innovative boot manufacturing businesses, which was established in the suburb in 1878. Architecturally, the building is a substantially intact example of turn-of-the-century factory construction, and as such makes a positive contribution to the wholly industrial streetscape.

Group

Manufacturing and Processing

Category

Factory/ Plant