Ruins of Powder Works

Item details


Name of item:	Ruins of Powder Works
Type of item:	Archaeological-Terrestrial
Group/Collection:	Transport - Land
Category:	Road
Primary address:	2 and 10 Manor Road, Ingleside, NSW 2101
Parish:	Narrabeen
County:	Cumberland
Local govt. area:	Northern Beaches
Hectares (approx):	2.83

All addresses

Street Address	Suburb/town	LGA	Parish	County	Type
2 and 10 Manor Road	Ingleside	Northern Beaches	Narrabeen	Cumberland	Primary Address

Statement of significance:


	The Ruins of Powderworks are significant as their fabric expresses an unusual (rare) 19th Century industrial activity and are important through their association with Carl Von Bieren and his gun powder manufacturing venture, a significant event in the locality with the area being subsequently named ‘Ingleside’ after his house. The listing does not include the houses (fronting Manor Road) located within the curtilage of the Ruins of Powderworks.
	Date significance updated: 14 Mar 15
	Note: The State Heritage Inventory provides information about heritage items listed by local and State government agencies. The State Heritage Inventory is continually being updated by local and State agencies as new information becomes available. Read the Department of Premier and Cabinet copyright and disclaimer.

Description


Designer/Maker:	Unknown
Builder/Maker:	Carl von Bieren
Construction years:	1884-1886
Physical description:	Cobblestone road associated with former Powderworks. Other stone structures as well as powderworks ruins. The place is located in a small gully at the junction of two creeklines about 200m north of the site of the former Ingleside house. The place consists of the ruins of sandstone block buildings and retaining walls that were built in the mid 1880s for the purposes of gunpowder manufacture. The main items are in two areas. One area on the southern side of the creekline has the remains of two structures - one corner of each structure is standing. The other area is on the northern side of the creekline where part of a wall remains standing on the top of a small cliff. Numerous sandstone blocks are strewn throughout the area. Erosion of a small creekline threatens the stability of the structures on the southern side of the creek (Tropman 1993).
Physical condition and/or Archaeological potential:	Relatively poor condition.
	Date condition updated:21 May 14
Further information:	Construction of the powder works ceased in 1886 and they remained incomplete.


Current use:	Residence
Former use:	Industrial (powderworks)

History

Historical notes:

Carl Von Bieren moved to Ingleside towards the end of 1882. The Powderworks built by Carl Von Bieren in 1884 formed part of what was a large estate (249 acres) bought by Von Bieren in the 1880s. Von Bieren intended to manufacture gunpowder on the site. In March 1884 the press reported on "An important industry" being established "for the manufacture of gunpowder" (Champion & Champion 2007). The project was hailed as "the only manufacturer of its kind in the colonies" (Champion & Champion 2007). In May 1884, to generate funding for the continued development of the powderworks, Von Bieren floated his enterprise into a company, of which he maintained a one third share.

The road from Narrabeen to these works was surveyed by Mr L Burdett in January 1885 and became known as Powderworks Road.

The Powderworks were still incomplete when his company experienced financial difficulties and he fled the country in 1886 (Tropman 1993). He made his escape from Sydney by boarding a ship to London with plans to meet up with his wife back in America. However, a Manly policeman named Murphy, traced von Bieren to London where he was arrested. He was charged with fraudulent insolvency and sentenced to two years and ten months in prison (without hard labour) (Champion & Champion 2007). He was released after serving two years of his sentence, after which he returned to America.

In 1978, a two by two meter shaft was discovered near the junction of Powderworks Road and Mona Vale Road. According to a Manly Daily report, the mine shaft was 13 metres deep to a water table and 13 metres below this level was the base where a police diver discovered a tunnel barred by planks. The shaft was big and dug through sandstone, which would have been difficult given the tools and equipment of the time and the dangers associated with mine excavation. To this day, despite much speculation, nobody knows why it was dug (Jacobs, 2008).

Historic themes

Australian theme (abbrev)	New South Wales theme	Local theme
3. Economy-Developing local, regional and national economies	Industry-Activities associated with the manufacture, production and distribution of goods	(none)-

Assessment of significance


SHR Criteria a) [Historical significance]	The ruins are important in the course of the local area’s cultural history. They provide evidence of a significant human activity (the production of gunpowder).
SHR Criteria b) [Associative significance]	The ruins are associated with the works of Carl Von Bieren who was the only gun powder manufacturer in the colonies at the time. Ingleside was named after his own home which was built in the 1880s.
SHR Criteria c) [Aesthetic significance]	The cobblestone road, stone structures and the powder works ruins are all associated with a particular rare industrial process of the late nineteenth century.
SHR Criteria d) [Social significance]	The site gave its name to its access road, a distinctive name which remains in use today and maintains awareness of the historical background. Associated with early identities, it is a distinctive part of local community identity.
SHR Criteria f) [Rarity]	The cobblestone road, stone structures and the powder works ruins are all associated with a particular rare industrial process of the late nineteenth century.
SHR Criteria g) [Representativeness]	A rare ruinous early industrial site in the municipality.
Integrity/Intactness:	The ruins have a low level of integrity as they are not substantially intact and perform no function.
Assessment criteria:	Items are assessed against the State Heritage Register (SHR) Criteria to determine the level of significance. Refer to the Listings below for the level of statutory protection.

Recommended management:


	A Conservation Management Plan should be prepared for the site, so as to facilitate the survival of the ruins.

Listings

Heritage Listing	Listing Title	Listing Number	Gazette Date	Gazette Number	Gazette Page
Local Environmental Plan			04 Feb 94
Local Environmental Plan	Pittwater Local Environmental Plan 2014	2270133	27 Jun 14

Study details

Title	Year	Number	Author	Inspected by	Guidelines used
Pittwater Community Based Heritage Study Review	2015		City Plan Heritage		Yes
Ingleside Warriewood Urban Land Release Heritage Study	1993		Tropman & Tropman		No

References, internet links & images

Type	Author	Year	Title
Written	Hugh Barry	1977	Elanora. A History of the Country Club
Written	Ian Jacobs	2008	A fascinating heritage of Sydney’s northern beaches
Written	Tropman and Tropman	1993	Ingleside/ Warriewood Urban Land Release Heritage Study

Note: internet links may be to web pages, documents or images.

(Click on thumbnail for full size image and image details)

Data source


The information for this entry comes from the following source:
Name:	Local Government
Database number:	2270133

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