Although this property is currently being used for residential purposes, it has had an interesting life as an original mansion and later, a high school.
| Other Names | Dulquhurn; Ardoch Education Centre |
| Date Built | The original mansion, Dulquhurn, was built in 1864. |
| Architect | Unknown |
| Builder | Unknown |
| Owners | William Wilkinson Wardell; Edward Keep; William Wilson; George Buchannan; Alexander Mackie Younger |
| Description | This building was the earliest example of a garden of a nineteenth century mansion being developed into apartments. The Dulquhurn mansion contained 13 rooms and was built in the Italianate style. The third owner, William Wilson, added on another three rooms in 1873. By 1897, the landscape of Dulquhurn included a front turning circle flower bed, conservatory, tennis court, ballroom and stables. Once developed into Ardoch, it had an English Arts and Crafts and Bungalow design. It had six self-contained flats with their own entries. |
| History |
Architect William Wardell was the first owner of Dulquhurn. He sold it in 1869 to Edward Keep. The next owner, William Wilson, added on another three rooms, and during this same time period, another mansion was built next door, Cliefden, with its own paddock. Dulquhurn was sold to George Buchannan in 1907, and then sold again in 1920 to Alexander Mackie Younger, who would convert Dulquhurn into flats under the name of Ardoch by 1923. The name most likely comes from the small Scottish village of the same name. During the 1920s, Younger also converted other mansions in Melbourne into flats and guesthouses. The street, Ardoch Avenue was built in 1922, and more blocks were added to the property over the next 16 years or so. In 1949, the Colonial Mutual Life Assurance Society Limited bought Ardoch, along with three separately owned bungalows in Pilley Street. The property was renamed as Ardoch Village, and its condition deteriorated during this time. Then in June of 1977, the property was bought by the Victorian Education Department and used as a secondary school for disadvantaged children. By this time, it had 53 flats amongst 2.8 hectares. Temporary classrooms replaced stables and bungalows, although one block remained as residential flats. Ardoch Education Centre was closed in 1992 under the Kennett government, and students were relocated to Windsor Secondary College Campus. The property was added to the Victorian Heritage Register in 1993, and it has since changed back to privately owned apartments. |
| Occupants | William Wardell; Dr Herbert Vere Evatt (High Court judge) and Mary Alice (“Mas”) Evatt (artist). |
| MMDB Entry |
6557 |
| Obituaries Australia Entry |
William Wilson http://oa.anu.edu.au/obituary/wilson-william-1053
|
Reference/s:
Image and content: Richard Peterson, A Place of Sensuous Resort: Buildings of St Kilda and their People, Chapter 31
Compiled by: Sally Moore
Last updated: 23 November 2020
Windsor,Victoria
Australia 3181