Commercial Chambers "Wyoming" including interiors

Item details


Name of item:	Commercial Chambers "Wyoming" including interiors
Type of item:	Built
Group/Collection:	Commercial
Category:	Commercial Office/Building
Location:	Lat: -33.8679021823309 Long: 151.211056206519
Primary address:	175-181 Macquarie Street, Sydney, NSW 2000
Local govt. area:	Sydney

All addresses

Street Address	Suburb/town	LGA	Parish	County	Type
175-181 Macquarie Street	Sydney	Sydney			Primary Address

Statement of significance:


	Wyoming is an eight storey masonry reinforced concrete building constructed in the Federation Free Style. It has high historic significance as the earliest surviving 20th century example of high rise professional chambers, reflecting the development of Macquarie Street as a prestige address for the medical profession. It is an important building in the professional work of the noted architect J B Clamp. The building facade has high aesthetic significance as a fine and largely externally intact example of the Federation Free Style with identifying elements such as the extensive stonework and florid Art Nouveau detailing.
	Date significance updated: 09 Jan 06
	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:	John Burcham Clamp
Builder/Maker:	Turner and Loveridge Master Builders
Construction years:	1909-1911
Physical description:	Wyoming is located on a prominent corner site of Macquarie and Hunter Streets. The building is of Federation Free Style. The eight storey facade is highly modulated by the use of alternating balconies and articulated with corner parapets trimmed with sandstone. The base is sandstone with central doorway emphasised by oriel balconies to the longer Macquarie Street side. The facade features Art Nouveau details in the building date over the door. The bay windows incorporate decorative motifs and are supported on decorative brackets. A recent arch has been inserted in the base of the Hunter Street facade to provide access to the basement The rectangular plan is 24 x 122 metres with a rear light well. The entry stairs, handrail and timber entry doors remain as the only original internal fabric. A National Trust plaque exists in the foyer. Category:Individual building. Style:Federation Free Style. Storeys:8 + basement. Facade:Face brickwork, sandstone. Side/Rear Walls:Rendered brickwork. Internal Walls:Plastered brickwork, plasterbd. & stud. Roof Cladding:Waterproof membrane/metal roof. Internal Structure:Reinf. conc slab. Floor:Reinf. conc slab. Roof:Reinf. conc slab. Ceilings:Susp. plasterbd.. Stairs:1. Sprinkler System:Yes. Lifts:1. AirConditioned:Yes
Physical condition and/or Archaeological potential:	In general, the building is intact on the exterior with clear sealant to the external brickwork and new arch to the garage below. The roof garden has been enclosed, the basement converted to carparking and internally all finishes have been removed.
	Date condition updated:09 Jan 06
Modifications and dates:	1909-1911
Further information:	High Significance:All the intact original fabric of the south and east façade. Medium Significance:All remaining artefacts of the interior. Was a heritage item in 1989, and remains so since that time. Heritage Inventory sheets are often not comprehensive, and should be regarded as a general guide only. Inventory sheets are based on information available, and often do not include the social history of sites and buildings. Inventory sheets are constantly updated by the City as further information becomes available. An inventory sheet with little information may simply indicate that there has been no building work done to the item recently: it does not mean that items are not significant. Further research is always recommended as part of preparation of development proposals for heritage items, and is necessary in preparation of Heritage Impact Assessments and Conservation Management Plans, so that the significance of heritage items can be fully assessed prior to submitting development applications.


Current use:	Commercial offices
Former use:	Commercial offices

History

Historical notes:

The "Eora people" was the name given to the coastal Aborigines around Sydney. Central Sydney is therefore often referred to as "Eora Country". Within the City of Sydney local government area, the traditional owners are the Cadigal and Wangal bands of the Eora. There is no written record of the name of the language spoken and currently there are debates as whether the coastal peoples spoke a separate language "Eora" or whether this was actually a dialect of the Dharug language. Remnant bushland in places like Blackwattle Bay retain elements of traditional plant, bird and animal life, including fish and rock oysters.

With the invasion of the Sydney region, the Cadigal and Wangal people were decimated but there are descendants still living in Sydney today. All cities include many immigrants in their population. Aboriginal people from across the state have been attracted to suburbs such as Pyrmont, Balmain, Rozelle, Glebe and Redfern since the 1930s. Changes in government legislation in the 1960s provided freedom of movement enabling more Aboriginal people to choose to live in Sydney.

(Information sourced from Anita Heiss, "Aboriginal People and Place", Barani: Indigenous History of Sydney City http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/barani )

The building was erected as professional chambers and residential flats for John O'Brien, a grazier who owned a 13,700 acre property called Wyoming at Old Junee. This property was subdivided and auctioned in February 1908 and between April and December of that year O'Brien bought several blocks of land in Hunter and Macquarie Street, with a combined frontage of around 55' to Hunter Street and 80' to Macquarie Street. An original drawing for Wyoming as a 6-storey structure was submitted to the Third Biennial Exhibition of works by members of the Institute of Architects in 1909 but before building began two additional storeys were added to meet demand for tenancies. First tenants included clinical chemists, dental surgeons, physicians, ophthalmic surgeons, orthopaedic surgeons, dermatologists, an orthodontist, an oculist and a laryngologist. There were two professional women among the first tenants, one of whom, Jessie Aspinall was the first female junior medical resident officer appointed at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. The architect of Wyoming, Burcham Clamp, was responsible for many large city commercial buildings and many metropolitan and suburban buildings for the Church of England. He was active in the professional body and is considered to have provided a bridge between the nineteenth-century romantic and twentieth-century functionalist styles, presenting an originality to design which combined character with sound commercial possibilities.

Assessment of significance


SHR Criteria a) [Historical significance]	Reflects through its association with John O'Brien, grazier of Wyoming Old Junee, the role of the pastoral industry as a source of finance for city development. Earliest surviving example of early twentieth-century high-rise professional chambers, with Beanbah Chambers the only other comparable building surviving from the period. An important building in the professional career of noted architect John Burcham Clamp. Has historic significance at a State level.
SHR Criteria c) [Aesthetic significance]	Has aesthetic significance at a State level. Cultural:The building is an outstanding and early example of a prestige commercial office building of Federation Free Style. It is well resolved both internally and externally and is particularly noted for its stone work and florid Art Nouveau detailing which includes a building date.
SHR Criteria d) [Social significance]	Reflects the development of Macquarie Street as a prestige address for the medical profession and reflects the way in which social power can be expressed through a building location which capitalises on the natural advantages of Sydney's climate and scenery, particularly views of the Harbour, the Domain and the Botanic Gardens. Has social significance at a State level.The building is an outstanding and early example of a prestige commercial office building of Federation Free Style. It is well resolved both internally and externally and is particularly noted for its stone work and florid Art Nouveau detailing which includes a building date.
SHR Criteria f) [Rarity]	The earliest surviving of the first generation of high rise city professional chambers.
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:

General: The overall form of Wyoming should be retained and conserved. The building should continue as professional chambers. As the original building has already been extended the addition of further floors should not be contemplated. The facade finishes notably face brickwork and sandstone which were never intended for painting should remain unpainted and continue to be appropriately maintained. Surfaces which were originally intended for painting should continue to be painted in appropriate colours. Exterior: A Heritage Assessment is required prior to any proposal for new works which may impact on the existing intact facade. Any future development should preserve the existing form, external surfaces and materials of the facade and door and window openings should not be enlarged or closed in. All remaining intact original fabric on the external facades should be retained and conserved. Interior: As the interiors have been extensively remodelled and there is little of significance remaining, further alterations could be acceptable provided that the facades of the building are not compromised. The building should be retained and conserved. A Heritage Assessment and Heritage Impact Statement, or a Conservation Management Plan, should be prepared for the building prior to any major works being undertaken. There shall be no vertical additions to the building and no alterations to the façade of the building other than to reinstate original features. The principal room layout and planning configuration as well as significant internal original features including ceilings, cornices, joinery, flooring and fireplaces should be retained and conserved. Any additions and alterations should be confined to the rear in areas of less significance, should not be visibly prominent and shall be in accordance with the relevant planning controls.

Listings

Heritage Listing	Listing Title	Listing Number	Gazette Date	Gazette Number	Gazette Page
Local Environmental Plan	Sydney Local Environmental Plan 2012	I1878	14 Dec 12
Heritage study

References, internet links & images

Type	Author	Title
Written		Art and Architecture Vol V1 Nov - Dec 1909 pp 182-3 (drawing)
Written		Sydney Morning Herald 13.12.1910 p5
Written		Building 12 ay 1911 p45 (photograph)
Written	Anita Heiss	Aboriginal People and Place, Barani: Indigenous History of Sydney City

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

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Data source


The information for this entry comes from the following source:
Name:	Local Government
Database number:	2423821

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