Cremorne, Hamilton Hill

Cremorne, Hamilton

Cremorne, 34 Mullens Street Hamilton QLD

Cremorne is one of the most spectacular timber houses in Brisbane.

• It is perched on the side of Hamilton hill with views across the Brisbane River and beyond.
• The house was built circa 1905 for JD O'Connor of the eminent publican family.
• The design was from Sydney-trained but Queensland-owned firm Eaton & Bates, who favoured pavilions and deep verandahs,

The following photograph was taken in around 1906 and gives an idea of the extensive views - the Brisbane River is in the background.

• Three generation of the O'Connor family lived here until the property was sold in the 1990s.
• JD O'Connor and his brother Denis owned or had interests in hotels throughout Brisbane, among them the Wickham, the Treasury and the Prince Consort.

Cremorne (Photo: State Library of Queensland and John Oxley Library; #80451)

It’s dripping with history, and has featured in multiple publications as one of the best kept historic homes in the city.

Cremorne is listed on the Queensland Heritage Register, where it is described this way:

• "The house is almost L-shaped in plan, and has a corrugated iron roof which is a complex of hips, gables, ridges and pavilions, with decorative gablets and finials, and three brick chimneys.
• There are verandahs, with separate roofs, on all four sides. Several of these have been enclosed. The open verandahs all have simple timber balustrading and timber frieze, and ceilings of narrow tongue and groove timber.
• Most of the walls are single-skin tongue and groove timber, but where exposed to the weather, are clad externally with chamferboards."

Apparently the interior is just as grand as the outside.

Previous owner Ms Neilsen has really put considerable time and effort into the renovation

• “The lady that did the renovation has really put considerable time and effort into it,” Mr McMahon said of previous owner Ms Neilsen.
• The high ceilings throughout give the home a sense of grandeur but also help keep the home cool.
• Pressed metal ceilings and stained glass windows are present, fireplaces with marble surrounds in some rooms, as well as timber arches in many entrances.
• Sitting at the top of one of the most expensive streets in Hamilton, Cremorne has its original stained glass windows, 13 foot ceilings, century-old ceiling roses and panels, multiple fireplaces and chandeliers.

• Sale listing and photo gallery

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Historic mansion has an ace up its sleeve - its view of the Brisbane River can never be built out

• Sophie Foster, News Corp Australia Network August 27, 2016

ONE of a kind seems an understatement when it comes to Cremorne, a 110-year-old historic mansion at 34 Mullens St in blue chipHamilton which has held the affection of three families across a century.

• Built by Brisbane publican James O’Connor in 1905, it remained in his family until 1998 when former Bretts Wharf restaurant co-owner Genny Nielson bought it and had it fully restored and updated.

The McMahon's were only the third owners of the award winning property with sweeping views of the Brisbane River.

• According to the Queensland Heritage register, Cremorne is the only example of the domestic work of renowned Queensland architects Eaton & Bates.
• They paid $6,625,000 for the five bedroom home in late 2015.
• Four art pieces that have been original to the house were painted in 1899.

The home receieved a heritage-approved pavilion extension by Donovan Hill Architects - now BVN Donovan Hill, in consultation with heritage specialist architect Robert Riddel.

Hamilton Hill mansion with rotundas and city views

• yours for $7m-plus
• EMILY PETTAFOR, The Australian September 18, 2015
  

This striking heritage property on Brisbane’s sought-after Hamilton Hill has been home to only two families since it was built in 1905.

• Vendor Genny Nielson grew up down the road and says she always admired the majestic architecture of the home, “with its enormous verandas and rotundas sitting grandly above the Brisbane River”.

There is a 180-degree view of the river and city from the rotundas.

• She bought the property in 1998 from its original owners, the O’Connor family, three generations of whom had lived here for 90 years.

The property sits on 2435sq m with 180-degree views over the central business district and river.

• Its distinctive octagonal rotundas and sweeping verandas frame the views and capture cooling breezes.
• Between 2006 and 2009, Nielson oversaw a full renovation of the Eaton and Bates-designed home, including an extension built from imported French zinc by renowned architects BVN Donovan Hill.
• The renovation won the 2009 Australian Institute of Architect’s Residential award for Queensland houses.
• Nielson says she loves the seamless integration of the original home with its modern extension. “It allows you to live with the craftsmanship and beauty of a Queenslander as well as the cutting-edge design of a Donovan Hill home.”

The renovation won the 2009 Australian Institute of Architect’s Residential award for Queensland houses.

The property has stunning stained-glass windows, 4m ceilings, chandeliers, open fireplaces and polished timber floors. There are five bedrooms and four bathrooms.

• Nielson says she will miss the expansive views from nearly every part of the home.
• “Each one a little different but none more amazing than another,” she says.

Hamilton is one of Brisbane’s most affluent suburbs, on the north bank of the Brisbane River.

References

• Brisbane property: Hamilton Hill heritage home leads rush
• Hamilton Hill mansion with rotundas and city views - yours for $7m-plus
• Historic mansion has an ace up its sleeve - its view of the Brisbane River can never be built out
• David McMahon to sell Hamilton Hill home steeped in history
• Fone Zone's David McMahon fails to sell historic Hamilton Hill home
• Queensland richlister puts landmark Hamilton Hill home back on market
• Wikipedia: Cremorne, Hamilton
• Your Brisbane: Past and Present - Cremorne, Hamilton