Swifts, Darling Point

Yarranabbe

Darling Point is located within the area of the Cadigal people, one of the Aboriginal clans of the Sydney region, and was known from at least 1795 as "Yarranabbe". The plan of land for sale at Darling Point in 1856 cites the Indigenous name for the point, and the name is listed in the Town and Country Journal's ‘Aboriginal names of places' of 1878.^[14]

Mrs Darling's Point

By the 1830s the vast majority of the harbour fronting land east of Darling Point was held by a small number of landholders, being principally the Cooper and Wentworth families, while at Double Bay, a government village had been reserved. At Darling Point, Governor Darling reserved the promontory for sale in 1831 at the suggestion of the Surveyor General, Thomas Mitchell.^[15] The area was subsequently surveyed into large villa allotments and referred to the promontory as ‘Mrs Darling's Point' in respect to Eliza Darling, the wife of the Governor.

Purchase by Thomas Barker of the Villa Grants on Mrs Darling's Point

The first auction on the northern part of the promontory came on 11 October 1833 under the direction of Governor Darling's successor, Governor Bourke. At the sale, nine allotments varying in area between 2.4 and 6.1 hectares (6 and 15 acres) were offered. The reserve price per acre was A£10 but the average price actually paid was much higher at £34. Swifts is located on allotment four which was originally three point nine five hectares (nine point seven five acres) in size when it was purchased by Thomas Barker in November 1833.^[16][17] Barker also purchased the adjoining allotment of three point one four hectares (seven point seven five acres) at the same time. The total purchase price for the 6.9 hectares (17 acres) was £573.^[18][15]

Subdivision of the villa grants

With no development evidently having occurred, Barker's Darling Point grant was soon sold in 1835 to Thomas Icely.^[19] Icely had also acquired the neighbouring allotment of Lindesay at the time. Icely had been settled in the colony since 1822 and after an early dalliance in trading, went into pastoralism. The Darling Point grant, arguably the most favourably sited and extensive on the promontory, remained vacant. In the same year the Kent Brewery was opened on Parramatta Road at Blackwattle Bay.^[20] It was founded by John Tooth and his brother-in-law, Charles Newnham.^[21][22]

Meanwhile, Barker's two grants, within which Swifts is sited, had been purchased in 1838 by Thomas Urmson Ryder, a partner in the mercantile company Aspinall, Brown & Co. Ryder had the land subdivided into 14 lots suitable for villas and put up for auction in April 1840 as the DeLamere Estate, which netted some £13,531.^[23] With the northern-most allotments comprising the site of the future Swifts, ownership changed hands successively during the 1840s and 1850s through conveyance, mortgage or trusteeship, but no development ensued. During this time John Tooth was declared bankrupt and the Kent Brewery was leased to his nephews, brothers Robert and Edwin Tooth.^[24][25] Subsequently, in 1844, Robert Lucas Tooth was born to Edwin Tooth.^[5] After Frederick, the youngest brother, joined the partnership in 1853, the company traded as R.E. & F. Tooth.^[26] In 1855, Edwin Tooth returned to England with his family and remained there until his death. Robert Tooth, Edwin's eldest son, returned to Sydney to join the family brewery in 1863, after having spent his formative years in England and completing his education at Eton.^[5] During that year Edmund Resch also migrated to Australia from Germany.^[27]

Development of Swifts by the Tooth Family: 1875–1900

Swifts front gate, c. 1890.

Sir Robert Lucas Lucas-Tooth, c. 1890.

In 1869 the Darling Point property was transferred by means of mortgage to Francis Mitchell. Mitchell's professional background was in shipping, being for many years in business with Alexander Berry and Edward Wollstonecraft, and he was the senior partner of Messrs Mitchell & Co., ship chandlers and ship owners. Mitchell's business dealings had brought him into contact with Robert Tooth in 1850, one of the partners in the Kent Brewery owned by the Tooth family. Shortly before his death, Mitchell sold the property in 1874 to Tooth's nephew, Robert Lucas Tooth.^[5] Tooth was subsequently created a baronet in 1906 and was given a Royal licence to assume the name and arms of Lucas-Tooth. From that time he became known as Sir Robert Lucas Lucas-Tooth.^[28]

Sir Robert Lucas-Tooth and family posing for a photograph at Swifts, c. 1890

Purchase of Swifts by the Resch family: 1900–64

Edmund Resch Sr: 1900–28

Edmund Resch Sr c. 1914

In 1900 Swifts was purchased by the German emigrant brewer, Edmund Resch, born in Bavaria in 1847 and who arrived in Australia in 1863 to seek his fortune on the goldfields of Victoria.^[27] During the 1870s, Edmund entered into partnership with his younger brother Richard in opening a cordial and aerated water factory. Edmund opened the Lion Brewery in Wilcannia in 1879. Over the next few decades, Edmund and his brothers, Emil and Richard, opened other branches of the Lion Brewery in the region. The partnership dissolved in 1885, with Edmund retaining the Wilcannia operation. Meanwhile, Emil went on to establish Carlton & United Breweries with others.

In 1900, Resch made a spectacular entry into the largest beer market in New South Wales and capped it off by acquiring Swifts. In June 1900, for reasons unknown, the property title was transferred from Edmund to his wife, Carolina, only to be transferred back to Edmund in October of that year. In Resch's ownership, the alterations were confined to some interior redecorating and a tennis court, suggesting Resch was quite content with what they had received courtesy of his business rival, Sir Robert Lucas-Tooth.

Aerial view of Swifts c. 1920.

During the First World War, when anti-German sentiment was rife throughout the country, Edmund contributed generously to the war effort and made up the difference in pay for about sixty employees who had enlisted. In 1909, Edmund and Carolina Resch left for Europe for five years, only to return in 1914. During this time Swifts remained unoccupied apart from the Resch's servants. In 1915, Sir Robert Lucas-Tooth died at his English estate Holme Lacy. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Sir Robert Lucas-Tooth's last words were: "I would like my work to go on."^[31]

Also during World War I, the internment of German nationals was common, but Edmund evaded such action until November 1917, when Resch was arrested for an 'indiscretion' and interned at Holsworthy Internment Camp for a period of four months until, due to ill health he was transferred back to Swifts where he remained under house arrest, with a guard to ensure he could not leave or receive visitors, until the end of the war.^[32] According to reports, the indiscretion involved the flying of a German flag atop Swifts.^[33][34] Edmund Resch died at Swifts on 22 May 1923. Probate of his estate was sworn at £316,828. By April 1924, property title was transferred to Edmund Resch Jr and Arnold Resch as joint tenants.

Bequest of Swifts to the Catholic Church: 1964–86

The next several decades of Swifts as a residence in the mid-twentieth century were associated with it being the home of the Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney.

In the early stages of the Church's residence the land was subdivided into one lot containing the gardener's house (originally known as ‘The Bungalow') and another lot comprising the main house, other outbuildings and grounds. The Bungalow was held in trust by The Perpetual Trustee Company Ltd with the title intended to revert to the Catholic Church on the death of the Resch's gardener. Some alterations were made to the house for the Catholic Church by architects S. G. Hirst & Kennedy. The former ballroom was converted for use as a chapel-of-ease (named St Edmunds in honour of Edmund Resch Jr) that seated 200 and had standing room for about 60 people. Alterations were made to improve services in 1965 and some redecoration but throughout this period the furniture appears to have changed little from what the Resch family had left. That same year, 1964, Cardinal Gilroy moved into Swifts as the official residence of the Archbishop of Sydney. During the first-ever Papal visit to Australia in 1970, Pope Paul VI was accommodated at Swifts as the guest of Cardinal Gilroy. Pope John Paul II also stayed at Swifts during his 1986 visit (hosted by Cardinal Clancy).

Resch's final testament effectively preserved Swifts and its grounds from demolition and subdivision at a time when most grand houses in Darling Point were being demolished for high-rise home unit developments. The conditional gift to the Church removed both the possibility of sale and demolition for 20 years after Edmund Resch Jr's death.

In 1967, Vera Le Cras, the daughter of Arnold and Tottie Resch, undertook a protracted legal battle in the Supreme Court of New South Wales, and later before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London, to (unsuccessfully) argue that Edmund Resch Jr's bequest of two-thirds of the residuary estate to the Sisters of Charity to build a private hospital (St Vincent's Private Hospital) was not a valid charitable gift, and the estate should therefore have passed to her as next of kin.^[53]

Upon his death in 1970, Cardinal Gilroy was succeeded by Cardinal James Darcy Freeman, who also used Swifts as the official residence of the Archbishop of Sydney. Cardinal Freeman was one of Cardinal Gilroy's protégés, having served many years as his private secretary, and continued his predecessor's residence in, and use of, Swifts. Cardinal Freeman's use of Swifts was the longest of the three cardinals. Freeman, on his death in 1983, in turn was succeeded by his protégé, Cardinal Edward Bede Clancy who also resided in Swifts.

Until 1983 the house and grounds had been essentially the private domain of the Tooth and Resch families and the Catholic Church hierarchy, with use of the chapel for masses and weddings. The future premier of New South Wales, The Hon. Bob Carr, was married to Helena John there in 1973. Some interest in the property was elicited by the press in the early 1960s as the details of Edmund Resch Jr's bequest to the Catholic Church became public. This intensified in the 1980s when the future was debated and discussed by government and the general public.

Swifts falls into disrepair: 1986–97

Aerial photograph of Swifts in a state of disrepair

In 1986 the property was transferred for a reputed $9 million from the Roman Catholic Church to Minjar Holdings Pty Ltd, the family company of horse trainer and investor Carl Spies. On the same day Minjar Holdings executed a mortgage for $5 million back to the Catholic Church. The sale price was the highest for a residence ever paid in Australia up to that time.^[55]

By the early 1990s, the boom of the 1980s had turned to bust, with many investors facing financial ruin. Spies was pursued through the Supreme Court of New South Wales for non-payment of mortgage repayments owed to a number of mortgagees, including the Catholic Church. In 1990 the Spies were evicted by order of the Supreme Court and 450 pieces of furniture were sold at auction in October 1992. Throughout this period Swifts fell into disrepair. Substantial parts of the exterior sandstone walls of the house and gardens, as well as the roofing, become seriously dilapidated. The leaking roof, including a fully collapsed part of it above the main staircase, caused significant damage to the already neglected interiors.

With Swifts facing serious and permanent destruction, the NSW Heritage Council, Woollahra Municipal Council and local residents became involved in opposing the redevelopment of the estate. Swifts was eventually placed on the market by St George Bank Ltd as the mortgagee-in-possession for sale by tender in late 1996, and again in mid-1997 for sale by public auction. No sale was recorded at the auction.^[56]

Purchase and restoration by the Moran Family: 1997–2012

Scaffolding erected around Swifts during the restoration

In April 1997, Swifts was purchased by the Moran family, operators of private health and aged care facilities, for a reputed $12 million. The Moran family engaged the experienced conservation and heritage architect Clive Lucas of Clive Lucas, Stapleton & Partners to take on the mammoth task of restoring the derelict house. This involved extensive stone and roofing reconstruction and the interior paintwork required restoration. Drawing on the expertise of builders and decorators skilled in traditional techniques, the restoration of Swifts, undertaken between 1997 and 2012, was probably the largest and most expensive of its type for private family use in Sydney. The restoration of Swifts in its historical veracity (inclusive of furniture and furnishing) and scale of restoration has precedents only in the projects by the National Trust of Australia and Historic Houses Trust undertaken at public expense for the benefit of the community of New South Wales.^{[8][9][10][11][12][13]}

The original Conservation Analysis and Conservation Guidelines report for Swifts noted the vast size, quality of craftsmanship and the intricacy of planning illustrating the complex arrangements required for masters and servants in the late nineteenth century. This has not been lost in the restoration, and the house retains its major reception rooms, entrance hall, drawing room, morning room, smoking room, dining room, and complement of service rooms, kitchen scullery, pantry, butlers' rooms, silver safe, store, wine cellar, housemaid's room, linen room, servants' bedrooms and common areas. Outside there are still the meat rooms, dairy and laundry, and the original stable, double carriage house and tack room.^[57]

A stonemason carefully repairs the Sydney sandstone tower of Swifts c1998

The restoration of Swifts, undertaken with NSW Heritage Council's approval, emphasised the original 1870s Tooth-period of ownership over the later Resch family era. This was due in part to the high rate of survival of evidence for the decorative paint finishes under the twentieth century accretions and the photographic record of the principal rooms made around 1900. The house has become a form of homage to both High Victorian good taste and Sir Robert Lucas-Tooth.^[57]

The restoration of Swifts provided valuable new evidence for the lifestyle of the master and servants in the late nineteenth century, in particular, the quality and range of decorative wall finishes of the principal rooms and fittings of the servants' service areas. There is insight in the preference for Oriental exoticism in the women's boudoir (or Moorish smoking room) and the preference for particular classical composers (in the ballroom).^[58]

Swifts is considered one of the most detailed Victorian interiors in Sydney and the Moorish smoking room is believed to be unique in Australia. Halfway through some of the interior restoration works in 1998, a tornado swept along the Darling Point ridge destroying much of the restored roofing and decorative painting, both of which had to be redone. Restoration of the grounds was also carried out with the assistance of Sydney-based architect and historian Dr James Broadbent.^[11][12][13]

Current owner: Shane Moran: 2013 to present

In 2013, Dr Shane Moran bought out the last remaining Moran family interests in the property and became the sole proprietor of Swifts. Dr Moran and his wife Penelope (née Dunbar) were married in 1998 at St Mark's Church, Darling Point, with their reception held in the then partly renovated Swifts' grounds and ballroom.^[8][9][10]

Dr Moran is a descendant of Thomas Barker who acquired the original land grant upon which Swifts was built in 1833.

Throughout his ownership, Dr Moran has continued to undertake extensive restoration works on Swifts. The works have included the addition of a new conservatory off the service wing and the construction of a swimming pool. Extensive works to the grounds and gardens were also undertaken. Sir Robert Lucas-Tooth's desire for his "work to go on" was not in vain.^[8][9][10] He has also been involved in the restoration of another important national and state heritage property, the 1840s Darling House, The Rocks.

Heritage significance

In December 2012, Swifts was awarded the Lachlan Macquarie Award for Heritage by the Australian Institute of Architects for the finest restoration project in Australia.^[1]

Swifts is significant as a unique Australian translation of a Gothic or Old English style upper-middle class country house of the late nineteenth century picturesquely perched at the tip of Darling Point on Sydney Harbour. The house is impressive for its scale and use of sandstone masonry in the Gothic or Old English style of architecture, planning and decorative embellishments and is one of the grandest castellated mansions in New South Wales. Moreover, Swifts is of both New South Wales State and Australian heritage significance, as apart from Government House, Sydney, it is the largest remaining Victorian Gothic Revival house in Australia. There is considerable diversity of the decorative styles used in the respective rooms, with the ballroom and its hallway being the work of Lyon, Cottier & Co., Sydney (the leading firm of art decorators in the last quarter of the nineteenth century). The Moorish smoking room (opium den), the upper hall and the vestibule walls and ceiling are also their work - and most likely some of the other rooms. It is also likely that John Clay Beeler, an American trained art decorator then working in Sydney, who went on to decorate the interior of Melbourne's International Exhibition building for the 1888 Centenary, undertook work in the interior decoration. The copy of Guido Reni's Aurora in the sopraporte is believed to be the work of the Italian decorator in Sydney Signor Lorenzini, who regarded Reni as a master Italian artist from the early seventeenth century.

Swifts remains on its original grounds and still consists of much of the 19th-century landscape, statuary, terrace wall, stairs and paths.^[2][3]

Swifts following the completion of restoration

Cultural significance

Swifts demonstrated a unique phase in Australia's colonial history with the rise of an upper-middle class, exemplified by Sir Robert Lucas-Tooth, whose wealth was generated through brewing as well as agriculture, commerce and industry. With its almost intact historic curtilage, Swifts and its garden setting are rare survivors, arguably owing to the long occupation by, and benevolence of, the Resch family. Its iconic status in Australia's cultural heritage has been supported through the extensive conservation program of Dr Shane Moran. Swifts' connection with the Roman Catholic Church is also of social significance as it was home to three cardinals: Gilroy, Freeman and Clancy.

The gardens at Swifts are significant as a distinctive cultural landscape associated with individuals and families important in the development of Sydney and of New South Wales. It is a particularly fine example of a landscaped garden developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century reflecting particular design trends and planting styles. The special relationship of the grounds to the house is a significant factor in determining the status of the grounds as an item of environmental heritage.

Fincham & Hobday Organ

Organ in situ at Gawler

In an article on "Society Doings in Sydney", dated 6 September 1902 from The Australasian Newspaper, there is a description of the home as follows: "Swifts is a handsome mansion with towers, situated at the end of Darling Point. One of its attractions is a ballroom, with a dado, on which are painted the portraits of eminent musicians. In a raised alcove there is an orchestral organ (the largest of its kind in Sydney), which plays like a musical box when wound up. The guests [of the reception held by Mr and Mrs Resch in honour of the Queen of Holland] were interested in inspecting the organ, and listening to operatic selections".^[59] It is believed that the original orchestral pipe organ was from the Welte Company of Freiburg in Germany.

On 1 December 2016, Dr. Shane Moran installed an historic Australian made Fincham & Hobday pipe organ into the organ chamber. The organ was built in 1885 by Fincham & Hobday, Adelaide for the Congregational Church, Gawler, South Australia. The façade of the organ was decorated by Heinrich Ludwig Vosz (1812-1886). In 2011 the organ was gifted to the Organ Historical Trust of Australia. In 2015, Dr and Mrs Moran purchased the organ and engaged Hargraves Pipe Organs Pty Ltd of Mt Evelyn, Victoria, to undertake substantial restoration work over the course of more than a year, resulting in the organ being restored to its former grandeur.^[60]

Out of a total of eleven new organs constructed by Fincham & Hobday during the 19th century, this is one of only three instruments by the Adelaide firm to survive intact, retaining its original mechanical key and stop actions, pipework, casework with carved detail and attached console. It is the only example of its work to be found outside South Australia. It is of considerable significance for its outstanding quality of workmanship and choice of materials, its delightful sound, and the retention of the original façade pipe decoration. The superior mechanical and tonal style of the organ has been strongly influenced by the 1877 Hill & Son organ in the Adelaide Town Hall, which the firm worked upon, and differs considerably from the firm's Melbourne productions. The organ was opened at Gawler on 13 September 1885 and was enlarged by Fincham & Hobday to two manuals in 1888.

Heritage listing

As at 10 March 2009, Swifts is of State significance as, apart from Government House in Sydney, it is the largest remaining Victorian Gothic Revival house in Australia. Swifts remains on its original grounds and still consists of the original landscape, statuary, terrace wall, stairs and paths. It is a prime example of how the upper-class people lived in the 19th century in Australia. Swifts is also of cultural significance as it was home of two well known Sydney business families, the Lucas-Tooth and Resch families. Swifts connection with the Roman Catholic Church is also of social significance as it was home to three cardinals; Gilroy, Freeman and Clancy. The building is also significant because it is an example of the work of Gustauus Alphose Morell, a prominent Sydney architect in the late 19th century.^[61][4]

The western section of the garden of Swifts formed an integral part of the original design of the grounds. The special relationship of the grounds to the mansion is a significant factor in determining the status of the grounds as an item of environmental heritage. The building together with its site is an item of environmental heritage (excerpt from "Findings" of Commissioner of Inquiry, 1983, p. 55).^[4]

Swifts was listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999 having satisfied the following criteria.^[4]

The place has a strong or special association with a person, or group of persons, of importance of cultural or natural history of New South Wales's history.

Swifts is of State significance for its associations with two brewing families - the Tooth's who built the house and the Resch's who subsequently lived in it.^[4]

Swifts is of State significance as the official residence of three cardinals: Gilroy, Freeman and Clancy.^[4]

The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales.

Swifts is of State significance as a unique ensemble of late-Victorian house and extensive landscaped ground, complete with statuary, balustrade terrace wall, stairs, paths, mature trees that, in their picturesque setting within the foreshores of Sydney harbour, epitomises the development of "taste" in nineteenth century colonial New South Wales.^[62][4]

The place possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales.

Swifts is of significance as a rare example of the work of architect Gustavus Alphose Morell.^[4]

The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of cultural or natural places/environments in New South Wales.

Swifts is of State significance as Sydney's largest and most intact late Victorian mansion. With the exception of Government House, it illustrates the complex planning and detail thought necessary for an upper-class family at the endof the nineteenth century. this includes the total ensemble of house, service rooms, outhouses and grounds.^[4]

Bibliography

• Austral Archaeology (1997). 14 Hampden Avenue, Darling Point - Archaeological Monitoring of Excavation at the Former Gardener's Compound, Swifts Estate.
• Bastians, Kate (2017). 'Moran legacy will shape generations'.
• Chancellor, Jonathan (2008). "Coe takes the prize with Ritossa Sale' in "Title Deeds"". The Sydney Morning Herald.
• Chong, Oi (1983). A report on the Garden and Grounds and their Significance.
• Clive Lucas, Stapleton & Partners (1994). Swifts, Darling Point Road, Darling Point, Sydney, Conservation Analysis and Conservation Guidelines Final Report.
• Evans, Elizabeth (1983). Swifts: Conservation Plan.
• Grant, Jim (1997). The Gardener of Swifts.
• Images for Business (2016). Photographic Report for Arcival Recording of Swifts, 68 Darling Point Road, Darling Point, 15th November 2016.
• Kehagias, Melissa (2016). 'Sneak peak of life inside a 56-room Gothic mansion'.
• National Trust of Australia (NSW) (1983). Swifts, 68 Darling Point Road, Darling Point : submission to Commission of Inquiry pursuant to section 41 of the Heritage Act 1977 / National Trust of Australia (NSW).
• Swifts Sydney (2012). "'History', in "Swifts Soirees 2012" - Artistic Director David Rowden - The Grand Ballroom, 68 Darling Point Road, Darling Point - Inaugural Concert series in support of the Opera Foundation Australia".

Attribution

This Wikipedia article contains material from Swifts, entry number 00146 in the New South Wales State Heritage Register published by the State of New South Wales and Office of Environment and Heritage 2018 under CC-BY 4.0 licence, accessed on 1 June 2018.