Essex Street, 20, Fremantle WA 6160
DESCRIPTION
Heritage TitleP24653 – TERRACE, 20 ESSEX STREETAddressEssex Street, 20, Fremantle WA 6160Geo tag[1] Heritage Place No24653Location DescriptionNW Cnr of Essex LaneStreet Number20Construction Commenced1890Construction MaterialRoof – METAL: Corrugated IronWall – BRICK: Common BrickWall – STONE: LimestoneStatement Of SignificanceTerrace, 20, 22 & 24 Essex Street is a limestone, brick and corrugated iron hipped and gabled roof single storey residence as a late Victorian Georgian style of architecture and is of heritage significance. The place has aesthetic and historic significance as a rare example of residential development in the Old Port City of the West End Conservation Area of Fremantle dating from the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The place is representative of a terrace which is part of a group of remnant residential buildings in Collie, Nairn and Essex Streets. The place is of social significance as evidenced by its classification by the National Trust.ConditionCondition assessed as good (assessed from streetscape survey only).HistoryEssex Street was included in the 1832 town plan. It is named after the English county, as per Norfolk and Suffolk Streets. Lots 170-182 were soon taken up (Nos. 5-21). The buildings in Essex Street, unlike those in High Street, were not replaced in the 1890s boom, and those that remain extant date from the convict era of development. Originally (1880s) houses owned by Frank Bateman, Master Mariner, and one by Frederick Jones, ship builder. (Frederick Jones served on Fremantle Council 1888-96, 1898-1908, 1910-1914.) A vacant lot was adjacent for a shipbuilding yard. Terrace, 20, 22 & 24 Essex Street had been built by 1891 as it can be seen in an aerial photograph from this date taken from the tower of the Fremantle Town Hall. No. 20 was converted to the Essex Restaurant in c1985 (currently 2013), and the others have various commercial uses. A Heritage Assessment was prepared in Dec 2009 by the City of Fremantle for a DA submission to Council for proposal to re clad the existing roof cladding with corrugated iron sheeting to match existing. In 2019 the construction date of the building was revised to c. 1891 following further research into early aerial photographs of Fremantle.Physical DescriptionTerrace, 20, 22 & 24 Essex Street is a single storey rendered terrace building with two, corrugated iron hipped roofs and six corbelled chimneys; two on number 20 and four on number 22-24. The corrugated iron veranda roof is supported by columns onto masonry pillars and low wall balustrades to 22-24; 20 has timber posts and no balustrade. The timber windows are double sash; 20, 22 are multi paned. Verandah supports not original. A Heritage Assessment was prepared in Dec 2009 by the City of Fremantle for a DA submission to Council for proposal to re clad the existing roof cladding with corrugated iron sheeting to match existing.Place UseOriginal Use – RESIDENTIAL: Terrace housingPresent Use – COMMERCIAL: RestaurantIntegrity/AuthenticityMedium degree of integrity (original intent partially clear, current use compatible, high long term sustainability). High degree of authenticity with much original fabric remaining. (These statements based on street survey only).Place TypeIndividual Building or GroupHistoric ThemeDEMOGRAPHIC SETTLEMENT & MOBILITY - Land allocation & subdivision
Local Government Statutory Heritage Listings
Local Government Statutory Listing CustodianCity of FremantleLocal Government Statutory Listing TypeHeritage ListLocal Government Statutory Listing StatusYesLocal Government Statutory Listing Date8/03/2007
Non-Statutory Listings and Surveys
Non-statutory Listings CustodianCity of FremantleNon-statutory Listings TypeMunicipal InventoryNon-statutory Listings Grading18/09/2000Non-statutory Listings DateLevel 1B
RELATED
Essex Street, 20, Fremantle WA 6160. City of Fremantle Local History Centre, accessed 01/07/2026, https://history.fremantle.wa.gov.au/nodes/view/55731