St. Dominic's Priory

Significance of Individual Property

Architecturally, an outstanding, complete and early example of the English domestic or Queen Anne revival style which was soon to become one of Camberwell's most popular Edwardian styles: of State importance.

Historically, important resident, John Michael Higgins, significant figure in war-time administration and in a range of applied scientific work in the public sphere. The house also expresses the previous subdivision by its design, siting and scale and connections with the dominican Order are also distinctive. Most Catholic parishes were not staffed by religious orders and hence a priory such as this is unusual in suburban Melbourne: of State importance.

The Dominican church itself is a major landmark and departs to an extent from contemporary Catholic parish church design.

HO228 Holyrood Estate and Environs, Camberwell

The Holyrood Estate and Environs, Camberwell, is named after the Riversdale Road 'Holyrood' mansion (by Reed, Smart and Tappin, 1890, now St Dominic's Priory) from which the land was taken to create the Estate. The estate is an area of heritage significance for the following reasons:

-The place features a highly intact collection of 1920s-30s housing.

- The place strongly reflects the Camberwell municipal by-laws of the time which sought to raise and maintain the level of amenity and consistency within the Camberwell area through controlling the size of houses, front and side setbacks and materials.

- The place contains the notable St Dominic's Church, which was constructed at the time the Estate was developed.

-The place comprises a generally intact interwar landscape with concrete roads and related mature street trees.

Group

Religion

Category

Church