James Read - Cottage - 76 Serpells Road, Templestowe
This Templestowe cottage once stood on a large farm allotment on the west side of Cemetery (now Church) Road owned by James Read, pioneer fruit grower, in the early 1860s.(250). Read, who came from Bedfordshire, where he specialised in growing fruit trees, ran a market garden and fruit tree nursery in Collingwood before coming to Templestowe in the 1850s. He reputedly planted the first orchard in the Templestowe district.(251) Read's property (as shown in Registrar-General's Office records and early maps) was bounded by Foote Street on the north and stretched down across the present Serpells Road.(252) It was originally part of Unwin's Special Survey subdivided into the Carlton Estate farm allotments c.1850 by Robert Campbell (253) Read purchased Allotment 1 in Section B from Campbell in 1861 at a cost of over 387 pounds.(254)Read's farm was rated in the earliest surviving 1863 Templestowe District Road Board records.(256) The earliest house on the property, a very modest cottage judging by its low valuation, was joined in the early 1870s by a larger house.
At this time, James went into partnership with his son, John .(257) The second house is most probably the present timber cottage at 76 Serpells Road.
In 1873, the Read's Cemetery Road farm and garden had the substantial valuation of 70 pounds(258) An 1874 map showed Read's Lot 1B owned by Read and Lacey.(259) In fact, Read sold the eastern section to Lacey in 1861.(260)
By 1875, two houses and gardens were rated on the Reads Cemetery Road property. James lived in the smaller house and his son in the larger.(261) Early district rate records often listed as a garden what was later described as an orchard. The Read orchard listed for the first time in 1882 may, therefore, have an earlier date. It was worked by James son, John.(262)
By 1888, John was the sole owner of the farm and over 38 acres of land in Cemetery Road, Templestowe.(263)
Of local significance. as an example of a simple timber cottage associated with James Read, pioneer district fruit grower, typical of the housing built by farmers and orchardists, but becoming increasingly rare within the municipality.
250 RGO Search 10612.
251 Irvine Green, The Orchards of Doncaster and Templestowe, p.7.
252 RGO Search 10612; Plan a/Subdivision of the Carlton Estate, Property of Robert Campbell, compiled by D. Halliwell. 7 July 1933.
253 Plan of the Farm Subdivision of the Carlton Estate, R. C. Bagot c.1850; RGO Search 485.
254 RGO Search 10612.
255 Plan of Bulleen, Parish of Bulleen, Plan 526 B, 1874 (this map shows the location of the Chivers property).
256 Templestowe District Board RB 1863 No. 137.
257 Templestowe District Board RB 1872 Nos.190-192.
258 Templestowe District Board RB 1873 Nos.214,215 (combined valuation).
259 Plan of Bulleen, Parish of Bulleen, Plan 526 B, 1874.
260 RGO Search 10612.
261 Shire of Bulleen RB 1875 Templestowe Riding Nos.96,234 (NAV 20 pounds, 50 pounds)
262 Shire of Bulleen RB 1882 Templestowe Riding NO.89.
263 Shire of Bulleen RB 1888 Templestowe Riding No.110 (NAV 138 pounds 10
shillings).
Doncaster and Templestowe Heritage Study Additional Research Carlotta Kellaway - July 1994 -
http://www.manningham.vic.gov.au/file/26136/download. Pg. 41-42
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