The Deanery, Perth - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Deanery is located on St Georges Terrace, at the intersection of St Georges Terrace and Pier Street, Perth

Perth, Western Australia

Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....

, Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

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It was built in the late 1850s as a residence and office for the first Dean of Perth, Reverend George Pownall

George Pownall

Sir George Pownall was an English politician in Lower Canada.Born in Lincolnshire, England, Pownall was appointed secretary and registrar of the province of Quebec in 1775...

. The Deanery is one of the few remaining houses of this period in Western Australia and is now used as offices for the Anglican Church.

History

In 1855 Pownall succeeded John Wittenoom as Colonial Chaplain and in 1857, following the Right Reverend Mathew Blagden Hale's consecration as the first Bishop of Perth became the first Dean of the new Saint George's Cathedral

St George's Cathedral, Perth

St George's Cathedral is the principal Anglican church in the city of Perth, Western Australia and the mother-church of the Anglican Diocese of Perth. It is located in St Georges Terrace in the centre of the city.- History:...

in Perth

Perth, Western Australia

. He initially lived in rented accommodation but Bishop Hale agreed to the urgent need to build Pownall's Parsonage.

The site for the Deanery was formerly the site of the old Perth Gaol but the land was exchanged with the Crown, in July 1858, so that The Deanery could be built close to the Cathedral

St George's Cathedral, Perth

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The old Perth Gaol had been used to house Aboriginal prisoners, and on 16 May 1833 Yagan

Yagan

Yagan was an Australian Aboriginal warrior from the Noongar tribe who played a key part in early indigenous Australian resistance to British settlement and rule in the area of Perth, Western Australia. After he led a series of burglaries and robberies across the countryside, in which white...

's father, respected aboriginal elder Midgegooroo

Midgegooroo

Midgegooroo was an Indigenous Australian of the Nyungar nation, who played a key role in Indigenous resistance to white settlement in the area of Perth, Western Australia...

, who was captured days earlier, was executed on site by a party of soldiers of the 63rd Regiment. It is also thought that the Town Stocks once stood in the grounds of the Deanery.

Pownall had a keen interest in architecture, and this interest was to substantially influence the design of The Deanery. He was a member of the Ecclesiological Society, and a former member of the Camden Society

Camden Society

The Camden Society, named after the English antiquary and historian William Camden, was founded in 1838 in London to publish early historical and literary materials, both unpublished manuscripts and new editions of rare printed books....

, which promoted the revival of Gothic architecture and an academic study of the style. The Deanery exhibits a number of the attributes of this style of architecture which have been attributed to Pownall's influence, although the architect responsible for construction was Richard Roach Jewell

Richard Roach Jewell

Richard Roach Jewell was an architect who designed many of the important public buildings in Perth during the latter half of the nineteenth century....

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In a letter to the Colonial Secretary, Pownall wrote: "The whole expense of carrying out the excellent plan prepared by Mr. Jewell would be about £900." The cost of the building was met by the Government paying £300, public subscriptions raising £300, and the Anglican Church contributing £300. The building was constructed by former convicts, who had been granted a ticket of leave, reflecting Pownall and Hale's views on convictism.

Pownall moved into the Deanery in November 1859 and the building was used continuously as a residence for over ninety years. In 1918, 1932 and 1936 the building was renovated and some minor alterations were made in keeping with changes in living standards in the community.

In 1953, the church trustees proposed that the building be demolished, and that the church build a ten storey office block on the site. Following a storm of protests from the public The Deanery was reprieved. An appeal was opened, and the new Dean said "He hoped that those who complained about the proposal to demolish the Deanery would now show him some financial backing for his plans to preserve the structure for years to come." The appeal was successful and The Deanery was modernised and then used as part office and part residence by the Dean's secretary and by the assistant priests and their families and verger-caretakers.

In 1979, The Deanery was again in need of restoration as its condition had deteriorated, and an appeal was opened with the aim of raising $90,000. $95,736 was raised, of which $69,488 came through the National Trust. An extensive programme of restoration and conservation, including an attempt to restore the garden. Following the restoration The Deanery was opened for the public on 8 May 1982. Since then The Deanery has been used as the Cathedral offices.

The Deanery was entered into the Register of the National Estate by the Australian Heritage Commission in March 1978 and classified by the National Trust of Australia (WA) in October 1980. On 1 December 1995 it was placed on the permanent state heritage register

Heritage Council of Western Australia

The Heritage Council of Western Australia is the Government of Western Australia agency created to identify, conserve and promote places of cultural heritage significance in the state.It was created under the Heritage of Western Australia Act...

History

Further reading