East Melbourne, Hotham Street 166, Hotham Place

This house sits behind the houses at 158-164 Hotham Street, known as Cyprus Terrace.  It is entered from Hotham Street via Hotham Place and has been given the address 166 Hotham Street.  Originally the entry was from Powlett Street via Magnolia Place and was known 38a Powlett Street and then, after 1890, 91a Powlett Street.

Finding the date the house was built was initially a muddied path.  It was built by Thomas William Stewart for himself, but he lodged a number of notices of his intention to build various houses and there is more than one that could feasibly apply to this house. The details have been taken from Burchett’s card index [link below].

On 20 June 1853 he intends to build a house for self in the lane off Fitzroy Street (now Hotham Street).
On 8 February 1861 he intends to build a 2-storey house 33x17 near the bishop’s palace.
On 4 January 1867 he intends to build three six-roomed houses in Hotham Street, also a four roomed house in connection with stabling.

On first glance the 1853 house would appear to be the most likely, but Stewart did not move into it. We know from the births of his children that he continued to live in Gertrude Street, Fitzroy until at least 1859. Nor did the house appear in the Rate Books.  Yet the following advertisement from 1856 sounds very much like this house, 'WANTED Female General Servant. Apply Napier Cottage, FitzRoy-street, near Bishop's Palace' [28 April 1856, p.1]. Later advertisements give the cottage’s address as Hotham Street.

This 1853 notice of intention to build is now known to have been a red herring. First, the land on which the houses are built was not put up for public auction until 1858.  Second, Stewart owned land fronting Gertrude and Alma Streets in Fitzroy.  Fitzroy Street links these two streets.  And third, Fitzroy was part of the Melbourne City Council area until 1858.  It is apparent that there has been a mix-up between the two Fitzroy Streets. 

The 1861 house is described as 2-storeys on land 33x17.  It sounds suitably small.  It appears in the rate books of 1862 with Stewart listed as owner and occupier.  In 1866 the land is given as 33x165.  Possibly Burchett mis-copied the information which should have read 33x170.  This is, in fact, the first of the Cyprus Terrace houses, now numbered 164.

This leaves the third 1867 option with the three remaining Cyprus Terrace houses to be built. The cottage in connection with stabling has to be the house running behind Cyprus Terrace. Although there is no record of any stabling being on the site.  It first appears in the rate books in 1869 with an address off Powlett Street. Land measurement is given as 33x66.  Two years later this has shrunk to 33x50.  Stewart is the owner and occupier. 

In 1874 Stewart’s daughter died at the house and in the death notice Stewart gives his address as Cyprus House, off Powlett Street. Stewart lived at Cyprus House until 1886 when he moved back to 164 Hotham Street, or 7 Hotham Street, as it was then.  He died there in 1887.  Cyprus House was sold the following year along with Stewart’s other land holdings.  It was advertised as:

Lot 2. A FIVE-ROOMED BRICK COTTAGE, At the rear of lot 1 having a frontage to a road leading from Powlett-street of about 30ft, and another frontage of about 50ft.This cottage is in excellent order, having just been papered, painted, &c, and is let at 15s per week.

The next owner was Robert Smythe whose tenant was Mrs Grace Wood who lived there until 1902 when Timothy Ryan moved in. Jean Baptiste Borelli was the next owner and Ryan remained as tenant. Around 1924 Ernest Gerald Thompson bought the house and lived there with his mother, Enid Hannah Barrett.  She died in 1936 but Thompsons remained there until his own death in 1958.  From 1924 the electoral rolls listed Thompson’s address as 166 Hotham Street, although the rate books continued to list it under Powlett Street.  After Thompson’s death Roy Edward Morgan became the next owner and occupier.