Photo by: J Bar licenced under (CC-SA)

7-10 Bridge Street. Erskineville, New South Wales.

This is a row of is actually part of a row of nine (this one of four and another identical row on the street of five) broken by a single storey terrace house in between.  While Brian Turner’s book Australian Terrace Houses has a historical photo of a near identical row of seven terrace houses in Erskineville, the book also says that it was demolished, so I’m not sure whether the book is incorrect, that there were once clones of this terrace in the area or that just some of the houses in one of these vestigal rows were demolished.  The terraces themselves are straight out of the Victorian Regency textbook with a touch of mannerism,  with heavy square columns forming a recessed portico columnade and loggia.

There is classical entablature and the bottom storey of which is rusticated.  The parapet completely hides the roof and is dressed in a simple balustrade above the heavy cornice.  Each two Double pilasters and mark the party walls between the individual terraces and each of the columns terminate in exaggerated miniature cornices.  The upper storey has a large set of french doors and a railing dressed in cast iron lacework.  The lower storey has a single room configuration with doorway to one side with a single skylight above and a flat arched window.  Cast iron fencing contrasts and adds to the dominant impression left by the row.

I’m not sure of the date or architect, but I’d estimate early 1870s for this row given the style.