Residence

The house at 69 Little Ryrie Street, Geelong, has significance as a reasonably intact example of a rudimentary Victorian style, and as the only surviving semi-detached timber house in this part of the street. Built in c.1854, this house formed part of a pair of semi-detached houses owned by Thomas Towle who had previously built three other rows of semi-detached houses in the area.

The house at 69 Little Ryrie Street is architecturally significant at a LOCAL level. It demonstrates original design qualities of a rudimentary Victorian style. These qualities include the unusual gabled and hipped roof form, together with the form and location of the verandah that projects towards the street frontage. Other intact or appropriate qualities include the grooved-edged horizontal weatherboard wall cladding, galvanised corrugated steel roof cladding, brick chimney, narrow eaves, central front timber doorway with four panelled timber door and transom above, and the flanking front timber framed, 12 paned double hung windows, brick gable infill on the east elevation with the rendered brick wall below, and the other timber framed window construction.

The house at 69 Little Ryrie Street is historically significant at a LOCAL level. It is associated with the construction of a pair of semi-detached houses in c.1854 for Thomas Towle. Importantly, this building is the only surviving house that formed part of four rows of semidetached houses built by Towle in the 1850s.

Overall, the house at 69 Little Ryrie Street is of LOCAL significance.

References

Drainage Plans and Reports, Barwon Water profis system, 1920, 1923, 1944, 1946, 1979, 1983, 1984, 1995.

Sands & McDougall Geelong Directory 1972, Geelong Historical records Centre.

Sands & McDougall "Invicta" Geelong Directory 1968, Geelong Historical records Centre.

Geelong City Council Rate Books Barwon Ward 18541960, Geelong Historical Records Centre.

Geelong Town Plan 1858, Geelong Historical Records Centre.

Map of Geelong 1855, Geelong Historical Records Centre.

Land Conveyance Memorials 251/525, 122/165, 300/784. 368/431, 494/986, 503/237, 531/379, 561/977, 675/892, Land Titles Office, Marland House, Melbourne.

Group

Residential buildings (private)

Category

Residence