Shannon Avenue Heritage Precinct

The Shannon Avenue Heritage precinct is significant as a distinctive residential area defined by Edwardian, Federation and particularly interwar Bungalow dwellings fronting Shannon Avenue and the western end of Aphrasia Street. These dwellings are all single storey and detached, with simple or complex hipped and/gabled roof forms clad in corrugated sheet metal or terra cotta tiles. Constructed primarily of horizontal timber weatherboard wall cladding (with a smaller number built of face brick construction), the dwellings feature front or return verandahs, brick chimneys and architectural details reflective of the stylistic era in which they were built. Shannon Avenue, earlier known as the West Melbourne Road, developed as an important transport route in the mid 19th century. Land subdivisions ensued, including further subdivisions in the early 20th century. These subdivisions, together with the arrival of the tram line in 1912 that terminated at the intersection of Aphrasia Street and Shannon Avenue, appear to have been the impetus for residential growth in the area during the Federation and interwar eras.

The Shannon Avenue Heritage Area is architecturally significant at a LOCAL level (AHC criterion D.2). It demonstrates original and early design qualities associated with the residential development of the area from the early 20th century until c.1940. These qualities are expressed in the Edwardian/Federation and interwar Bungalow styled dwellings that are predominantly single storey in appearance and have predominantly detached compositions. The buildings include the following design characteristics: hipped and gabled roof forms (with simple or complex roof outlines having a pitch between 25 and 35 degrees), front or return verandahs, corrugated galvanised steel roof cladding and Marseilles terra cotta roof tiles, horizontal timber weatherboard wall construction, brick chimneys (detailed to reflect the design era), brick cladding and brick verandah supports, narrow or wide eaves, timber verandah posts, timber brackets and/or valances, timber framed doorways with sidelights and highlights and timber windows arranged singularly, in pairs or bays. Overall, these dwellings constitute 88% of the building stock in the area. The early engineering infrastructure of bluestone kerb and channel in Nicholas Street also contributes to the significance of the place.

The Shannon Avenue Heritage Area is historically significant at a LOCAL level (AHC criteria A.4, H.1). It is associated with important eras of residential development after the subdivision of the area in c.1850's but in particular from early 1900's until the late 1920's period. The subsequent subdivisions from the early 20th century and predominantly 1920's subdivision witnessed the development of the interwar era dwellings that survive today. The construction of the tram line appears to have been an impetus for residential growth in the western part of Newtown, with the properties on the western end of Aphrasia Street (near Shannon Avenue) constructed between 1908 and 1913. In Shannon Avenue the majority of properties were built from the mid 1920s.

Overall, the Shannon Avenue Heritage Area is of LOCAL significance.

Group

Residential buildings (private)

Category

Residential Precinct