07. Tyrell Street Character Area

Tyrell Street was declared a ‘Character Area’ by Council in 2006 because the streetscape demonstrates the traditional preference of Australians for single family houses, providing a diverse range of house styles and sizes predominantly single storey dwellings. Two properties have been listed as of local heritage significance and other properties exhibit particular characteristics or have a special history.

The area around Tyrell Street was part of 60 acres granted to Mrs Hannah Mary Thompson, nee Russell, by Governor Bourke in 1835. Hannah (1801-1881), a free settler arriving on the Northampton in 1815, married convict Thomas Thompson in 1828. The couple had 13 children.

The land changed in ownership multiple times and in 1877, the title passed to Edward Harte Acres (1829-1892), a grazier of Baulkham Hills. Acres subdivided the land as Gladesville Park in 1886. Tyrell Street was named after William Tyrell (Tyrrell) a First Fleet convict who arrived on the Alexander and was granted land nearby in 1792. Tyrell served seven years for the theft of lead from a Crown building in England. In 1810, his house and barn were struck by lightning and burned down. His partner Ann Sandell was paralysed by the strike. In later years, he worked as a carpenter and a labourer.

The subdivision was first auctioned by Hardie and Gorman on 31 July 1886 but there was little interest, and it was subsequently offered for sale again in 1896 and 1899.

Gladesville was by then well established as a village centre and had road access to Sydney via the Gladesville and Iron Cove Bridges. However, the development of land was slow with building works in Tyrell Street not commencing until the arrival of the tram service along Victoria Road in 1910.

By 1909, there was one house in the street, increasing to 13 by 1915, and 27 by 1924. No street numbers were used until 1929 and 19 of the houses were named. The last block was not built on until the 1980s when land, formerly used as a plant nursery by Truscott’s, a Gladesville florist, was sold. Subsequently, several original weatherboard houses have been replaced by modern structures.

Location

Tyrell Street, Gladesville 2111 View Map

Skip to below map

Skip to above map