FORMER RESIDENCES, 73-87 CHESTNUT STREET, CREMORNE

The Former Residences, 73-87 Chestnut Street, Cremorne site is a former residential street that was established in the late 19th century in Cremorne.

The Former Residences, 73-87 Chestnut Street is of historical and scientific (archaeological) significance.

The site is of historical significance for its association with the residential occupation of workers and possibly their families in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Cremorne. The site has historical significance associated with the late 19th century boom in residential occupation of Cremorne and the development of the suburb as an industrial area. Archaeological deposits, where present, are likely to be representative of the working-class occupants of the suburb and may express the lifestyle changes they experienced during the boom and bust periods in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The working class was often excluded from the dominate narrative; therefore, insights gained into the lives of the working class in this area has potential to broaden our understanding of working class socioeconomic cultures within the archaeological discipline. 

To date there has been a very limited number of archaeological investigations conducted within the locality of Cremorne (B. Bugh, Archaeologist, Heritage Victoria, personal communication, September 26, 2024). As such this site is of importance to the course, or pattern, of Victoria’s cultural history (HERCON Criterion A) as it has the potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of Victoria’s cultural history (HERCON Criterion C).