William Mann Thompson

Silverwells

150 years of timeless harmony and elegance.

The Silverwells is possibly the oldest residential building remaining at Kangaroo Point, circa 1860. The residence contributes aesthetically to the highly intact, stylish and cohesive facade of the Kangaroo Point townscape.

Joseph Thompson (Sydney merchant) acquired the land on which these semi-detached houses stand in 1861. It is believed he purchased a number of Kangaroo Point properties on which he erected various dwellings in the 1860s, and that the semi-detached houses were amongst these rental investments. No precise date of construction has been identified, but the houses are prominent in a photograph of Kangaroo Point taken between 1867 and the mid 1870s. As Edward Lamb, an occupant in the 1870s, was resident in Main Street in 1867-8, it is possible that the pair was constructed by then.

Thompson retained the property until his death in 1902, when it passed to William Mann Thompson, who subsequently subdivided the land. Since 1924 the houses have been held under separate title, with the northern house generally owner-occupied, but the southern one being a rental property from the 1930s to the 1950s. For 150 years the houses have maintained their status as genteel accommodation, whose tenants have numbered amongst Brisbane's more successful business, legal and political figures.

This pair of two-level semi-detached brick homes stands in a garden setting between the Story Bridge and the Town Reach of the Brisbane River, with city views from the rear of the property. They rest on a foundation of Brisbane tuff and share a common hipped roof and a central double chimney that rises above the party wall. The roof is clad with corrugated galvanised iron, but is likely to have been shingled or slated originally. Console brackets beneath narrow eaves define the lower roofline.

The Georgian-styled rendered exterior is scored to resemble ashlar stone masonry, and presents a symmetrical front facade to Main Street. Entrances are set back at either end under small pediment porticos, and the upper storey of each house features narrow, round-headed windows either side of large French doors. These open onto a small balcony above a projecting ground floor bay. Curved drip moulds and full-length shutters protect all the second level windows and doors.

Detailing in the original structure was unusual in the use of round or diamond-shaped holes 'punched' through the pediments, window heads and balconies. Masonry wall and feature discrete concave, corrugated iron awnings supported by broad timber posts separate front verandas at ground floor level. A set of French doors opens onto each veranda from the drawing rooms. Internally each house is a mirror image of the other, with ground floor hall, drawing room and dining room, a bathroom at the first landing, and bedrooms on the top floor. Ceilings at the lower level are 13'6" (4m) high and an archway with folding cedar doors separates the drawing and dining rooms.

Cellars lie beneath the ground floors. 1970s renovation of the northern house also resulted in the installation of an attic bedroom with a small balcony at the rear, enclosure and extension of the back veranda to create a living space, and the addition of a terrace and pool to the back yard.

Despite the alterations, the pair presents a highly intact and cohesive exterior, with the semi-detached relationship not immediately apparent.

*Courtesy Queensland State Library - Silverwells

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University of Sydney

According to the University of Sydney Archives for 1887, William Mann Thompson, M.A., was awarded the degree of Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.), Honours Class 1, with Gold Medal.

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Nurrewin

Nurrewin Homestead is a Historic Homestead located on approximately 2.5 hectares of cleared land within Macquarie Pass National Park in NSW.

The word Nurrewin comes from a local Aboriginal Dialect and means “Lyrebird” or “Place of Lyrebirds”

The homestead was built in 1904 by William Mann Thompson a prominent Sydney Engineer, initially as a summer residence.

The Thompson family took up permanent residence at the site sometime before World War 1. They were quite a wealthy family, but they engaged in a number of agricultural pursuits to support their subsistence lifestyle.

The major heritage significance of the homestead is that it was constructed out of stone quarried from the property itself. The property has seen many changes in ownership and even more in residents over the years.

The Nurrewin Homestead was sold to the State Government during the time of Gazettal of the reserve in 1969.

The site is managed by the Highlands Area of the NPWS through a Conservation Plan and is primarily used as a residence to ensure it remains protected.

Open days are scheduled throughout the year and are managed through various historical societies or the NPWS Discovery Ranger program.

Nurrewin has a warm and congenial atmosphere and was the perfect setting, despite a cold snap, for the March, 2008 PAWA general meeting.

Chris Keyzer - Ranger