Built in the 1880's. Located at 23 The Avenue, Mount Druitt. Also known
as the Methodist Manse.
The Manse was built in the 1880s by John Harris. At the
May 1881 auction of the Mount Druitt Estate the land where The Manse
was to be built (Section 2) was shown as vacant. It therefore
post-dates
the opening of Mount Druitt railway station, also in 1881, on the
western line which had opened from Parramatta to Penrith in Jan 1863.
John Harris, the builder, died in 1891. A construction date of 1885 has
been advanced by several historians although hard evidence is lacking.
The building's distinctly Georgian architecture no doubt invites
speculation of 1830s construction however there would have been no
point or purpose in building a 6 roomed house in that location in the
midst of - well - nothing! The rearward extension of the house,
providing a further 4 rooms, is responsible for the ungainly gable-end
visible above the centre of the original building's ridge capping. The
Federation styling of this extension is somewhat jarring, and a
construction date sometime between 1906 and 1922 is suggested for the
extension. Further minor additions and alterations occurred during the
20th century.
After Harris died in 1891 the house passed into the hands of the
Kennedy family. The Kennedy's were devout Presbyterian's and when a new
Presbyterian church was being built nearby and the minister lacked a
residence, the Kennedy's donated the house to the church in 1895 for
use as a parsonage - minister's residence. {One
source suggests they were Methodists however George Nicolaidis of the
Mt Druitt Hist. Society indicates they were Presbyterian}. After
a split in the church, Blacktown Council bought the property in 2001.
At that time it was rented out as a private residence. A number of the
original furnishings including the fireplace and organ vanished during
this time, no doubt stolen by the tenants. The house has suffered some
deterioration in this time and was restored 2007-2008. Future use of
the property is currently unknown.
A single storey brick house in rectangular plan with hipped roof and
separately roofed verandah on two sides. The centrally placed small
gable roof ventilator and replacement of the verandah floor are more
recent modifications.
