“Thanks to your fantastic response to the original article we published on 9 January 2016, we have been able to add more substance and homes to the impressive list of mid twentieth century architectural gems that grace Mount Eliza. A special thank you to Alison Alexander, daughter of celebrated architect Ross Stahle of Mockridge, Stahle & Mitchell for her generous input in building out what would be a fabulous self-guided tour of Victorian mid twentienth century architecture.”
With sweeping bush and beach perspectives on generous sized blocks, it is no wonder that Mount Eliza became a darling of mid twentieth century architects.
Simple, linear, harmonious light filled spaces with clean, flowing lines framing expanses of glass to create a gallery of garden glimpses, defined mid twentieth century modernism.
Mid twentieth century architectural design evokes a sense of easy and social living – that holiday feeling.
Flirtatious Mount Eliza seduced holiday makers from Melbourne and further afield. It was no wonder that accomplished mid twentieth century architects brought their blueprints to the generous bush and sea view blocks of Mount Eliza. Our idyllic village and surrounds created the most perfect storm for showcase modernist architecture.
Head down Yamala Drive to the top of the stairs down to Davey’s Bay, and you’ll find a series of etched metal tributes celebrating Oliver Hill’s and Mount Eliza’s mid century architectural gems.
It was visionary timber merchant turned property developer, John Taylor that kicked off the evolution of Mount Eliza’s exclusive garden development for holiday makers – Ranelagh estate.
This immaculately designed estate, along with Mount Eliza’s stunning cliff top, bush and beach outlooks, that provided the perfect setting for post war modern architects to develop an epicentre of modernist homes.
1920s: progressive Mount Eliza stays ahead of the future
In 1922, timber merchant John Taylor bought Nyora Estate with an idea to develop it into a country club estate while preserving the natural flora and landscapes. Along with fellow timber merchant Australia Sharp, a development company called Sequoia Pty Ltd was founded. Sequoia engaged cutting edge twentieth century Chicago born husband and wife architect and town planner team Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin, along with Saxil Tuxen to bring the seaside holiday resort and country club to life. The original blueprint included 795 blocks and 13 reserves – that’s a generous reserve shared between every 60 properties! Each grouping of properties backed on to a shared reserve providing a safe haven for children to gather and play away from traffic.
Ranelagh Estate’s target market was professional urban dwellers that wanted an escape by the bay with recreational activities, parks and reserves to provide perfect backdrops for social and holiday frivolities. Ranelagh Estate is still celebrated today as a quintessential model of a garden estate.
Mount Eliza mid twentieth century homes
The catalogue of exemplary mid century modern (MCM) residences built in Mount Eliza is a long one. While many continue to be enjoyed by local residents, fabulous examples such as Myer House in Davey’s Bay Road have been demolished or modified to a degree that their MCM origins are no longer recognisable. Many contemporary Mount Eliza homes today pay respect to the areas mid twentieth century heritage by embracing modernist design.
“Mount Eliza is enchanted with a fabulous collection of iconic mid twentieth century homes – inspired by natural surrounds and built to capture wide expanses of gardens and stunning views. Situated on ample blocks of beautifully landscaped grounds, these homes are in demand but very tightly held because they’re such fantastic homes to live in.”
In compiling the list below, sorted by the date the original residence was estimated to have been built, we’ve tried to capture an impressive sub set of mid century Mount Eliza homes.
The sources we have derived these addresses from are listed at the end of this article if you’d like to explore further. Some of the addresses were also sourced from online real estate listings, and you’ll note that dates or architects may be tagged as ‘unknown’ where we’ve hit a dead end in our online research.
We know we may have missed some prime living examples, and would love our readers to right us on any wrongs, and add to the list if we’ve missed some fantastic examples that are still adorning our 3930 postcode.
Gather some friends together one weekend soon, and plan a self guided tour of the properties below, while taking in more contemporary properties and all that Mount Eliza has to offer. Make a day of it! Start with breakfast and coffee at a local favourite food haunt and finish up enjoying a lunch out followed by an indulgent afternoon of afternoon local shopping.
Grounds House ‘The Ship’, 35 Rannoch Avenue, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Image from Victoria Heritage Database (vhd.heritage.vic.gov.au)
Architect: Roy Grounds, a leader of Modernist architecture in Australia.
Built: c. 1934 (while it was built before the mid twentieth century, Grounds House paved the way for modernism in Mount Eliza.)
Ramsay House, 29 Rendlesham Avenue, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Architect: Roy Grounds
Built: c.1937
Sannazzaro House*, 46 Glen Shian Lane
Architect: Mockridge, Stahle & Mitchell
Built: 1949
* Information courtesy of Alison Alexander, daughter of architect Ross Stahle - from a list she collated in 2014 and kindly shared with Vicki Sayers following publication of this original article. Thank you Alison.
“My great uncle Bill Hanton approached Mockridge, Stahle & Mitchell to design Hanton’s Pharmacy in Frankston. My grandfather George Hanton - along with Bill and my other great uncle Keith - became partners in the pharmacy in the mid 1950s. On the Facebook group Mockridge, Stahle & Mitchell - Architects - Alison Alexander, Ross Stahle’s daughter referred to the brave interior of Hanton’s Pharmacy for its time!”
Tal Tal / Wade House, 51 Rosserdale Crescent, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Architect: Robin Boyd
Built: c.1951
Former McCutcheon House, Baden Powell Drive, Mount Eliza
Image: from digital.slv.vic.gov.au
Built: 1951
Architects: Bates, Smart & McCutcheon
Perry House, 15 Rendelsham Avenue, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Image: onthehouse.com.au
Architect: Esmond Dorney
Built: c. 1953
Dunlop House, 40 Canadian Bay Road, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Image: Google Street View snip
Architects: Mockridge, Stahle & Mitchell
Built: 1950
“My parents built 40 Canadian Bay Road, originally as a holiday house, but it became our permanent family home. I still have the architect’s plans. It was lots 19 and 20 Boundary Road, Ranelagh Estate. We later sold the back blocks where we’d kept our ponies and grew vegetables. We sold the home finally in 2004, and also no 38 which was my mother’s beautiful garden. It looks so different now. Boundary Road was a dirt road, and was later renamed Canadian Bay Road.”
Dikstein Holiday House or ‘Jutoru’, 4-6 Rannoch Avenue, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Image: slv.vic.gov.au. Donated by Mrs Naomi Fooks to SLV in 2005. Photograph taken by Wolfgang Sievers.
Architect: Dr Ernest Fooks
Built: c. 1954
“Jutoru was named for the Dikstein children, Judith, Tony and Ruth.”
Gulls Way, Frankston South
While not Mount Eliza, neighbouring Gulls Way is a treasure trove of mid twentieth century homes including exemplary Chancellor & Patrick examples.
8 Gulls Way was a delightful home to sell. A gracious example of architectural excellence, the home was viewed in awe. - Vicki Sayers
House Nedloh or Kiddle House*, 8 Harleston Road, Mount Eliza
Image: digital.slv.vic.gov.au. Photographer: Peter Wille 1931 – 1971. This is one of the three Chancellor and Patrick residences that were built in Harleston Road.
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: c. 1954
Clements House*, 15 Harleston Road
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1958
Anderson House, 20 Ravenscourt Crescent, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Image: Mornington Peninsula Shire Council. Significant Place Citations 2014 page 206.
Built: c.1958
Krieger House, 33 Wimborne Avenue, Ranelagh Estate, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Architect: Hugh Schroeder
Built: c. 1958
bache house*, 6 waveney road, mount eliza
Architect: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1958
Butler House, 1/32 Wimbledon Avenue, Ranelagh Estate, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Architect: John H. Butler
Built: c. 1959
quigley house, 5 candian bay road, mount eliza
Architect: Neil Clerehan
Built: c.1960
65B Canadian Bay Road, Mount Eliza
Image: snip from onthehouse.com.au
Architect: Peter Vaalburg
Built: c. 1960s
Parkhaven, 107 Baden Powell Drive
Image: snip from onthehouse.com.au
2 Nunga Court, Mount Eliza
Image: australianmodernistlandscapes.com
We’d love to know which architect designed and built this fabulous house. Feel free to enlighten us!
3 Orchard Lane, Mount Eliza
Image: snip from onthehouse.com.au
We’d love to know which architect designed and built this fabulous house. Feel free to enlighten us!
John Rouse House, 85 Kunyung Road, Mount Eliza
Corner of Kunyung Road and Acheron Avenue
Image: slv.vic.gov.au. Photo by Peter Wille 1931-1971 photographer.
Architect: John Rouse, Associate of Chancellor & Patrick.
Built: c. 1960
33 Allison Road, Mount eliza
Architect: John Rouse
“John Rouse designed my aunt’s home in the late sixties or around 1970 at 33 Allison Road. My family sold the home in the late 1980s.”
5 glen shian lane*, mount eliza
Architects: Gerd & Renate Block
Built: 1961
Simon House*, 33 daveys bay road, mount eliza
Architect: Neil Clerehan & Guilford Bell
Built: c.1962
Morison House, 28 Roehampton Crescent, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Architects: Harry A & Frank L Norris
Built: c. 1962
MacDonald's House*, 14 Glen Shian Lane, Mount Eliza
Image: onthehouse.com.au
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1963*
Watson House*, 27 erang drive, mount eliza
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1964
Gray House*, 102 Old Mornington Road, mount eliza
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1965
Knight house*, 5 rendlesham avenue, mount eliza
Architects: Robyn Boyd
Built: 1966
Beal House*, 19 Dueran street, mount eliza
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1966
Pearce House, 135 Rutland Avenue, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Image: snip from onthehouse.com.au
Architects: Phillip Pearce, Senior Architect with Bates, Smart and McCutcheon.
Built: c. 1966
CATHCART HOUSE, 75 WIMBORNE AVENUE, MOUNT ELIZA (RANELAGH ESTATE)
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1967*
Womersley House*, 4 Two Bays Road, Mount Eliza
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1968
Lulof's House*, 1 Allambi Court
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: 1969
Hamilton-Smith House, 52 Canadian Bay Road, Mount Eliza (Ranelagh Estate)
Architects: Andrew Reed & Associates
Built: c. 1969
48 Humphries Road, Mount Eliza
Image: snip from onthehouse.com.au
Architect: unknown to us.
Built: c.1970
19 wimborne street*, mount eliza
Architect: David Dalrymple
Built: c.1970
15 Otaria Street, Mount Eliza
Image: snip from onthehouse.com.au
Built: c. 1970
“The Otaria street house was renovated by a local who did a few houses in the area - Rob Pike. It was originally built in the 50s or 60s and Rob renovated it in the 70s a style ahead of its time :) An early open plan kitchen and European laundry/bathroom. A charming house. He also built huge decks :) The last house he renovated in Mt Eliza was around 2006 - also in Otaria Street and also with a huge deck. He was a great guy :)”
“I know Rob Pike’s house well. It’s a fantastic property.”
3 thornton road*, Mount eliza
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
12 Thornton Road*, Mount Eliza
Architects: Chancellor & Patrick
53 Kunyung Road, Mount Eliza
Image: Google Street View
Architects: Pettit & Sevitt
Built: c. 1970s
“Designed by Ken Woolley of Ancher, Mortlock, Murray & Woolley for Pettit & Sevitt Pty Ltd circa 1969. This example in Mount Eliza was briefly a display home and looks to be in fine condition.”
1 jamesbrad court*, mount eliza
Architects: Artec Design
Built: c.1973
johnstone house*, mount eliza
Architect: Cocks & Carmichael
Built: c.1974
23 Wimbledon Avenue*, Mount Eliza
Architect: John Rouse
Built: 1975
And there’s many, many more...These are not residential buildings, but we can’t miss a mention of the following educational facilities that are exemplary examples of mid and later twentieth century architecture:
Mount Eliza pre-school and Infant Welfare Centre
Image: free image pool slv.vic.gov.au (out of copyright)
Architect: Chancellor & Patrick
Built: Opened in 1955
Mount Eliza North Primary School, 6 Moseley Drive, Mount Eliza
Architect: Kevin Borland
Built: 1978
A strong community voice continues to preserve this progressive 1920s vision for Mount Eliza
Thanks to active, passionate and collaborative community voices, we can all still enjoy this seaside garden estate and see what the forward thinking developers, town planners and architects saw back in the early 1920s.
“Over half a century of advocacy and conservation efforts led by the Ranelagh Residents Association and supported by the Mornington Peninsula Shire and a range of Griffin experts culminated in heritage protection through listing in the Victorian Heritage Register in 2005.”
Feedback from you, our Mount Eliza community
We received an outstanding response to this article that was first published on 9 January 2017. Thank you.
We are lucky to own a home on Two Bays Road designed by Chancellor and Patrick, best known for McCraith House. Love the uniqueness of the property and the beauty of the modern design. Built in 1979 I think. So many great homes in Mount Eliza, we are very lucky. - Andrew Crozier
Article funded by Vicki Sayers, Live Love Mount Eliza | Written by Julie Pearce, Content Services MelbourneReferences
Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure > Heritage Alliance - Survey of Post-War Built Heritage in Victoria, Job 2008-07
Victorian Heritage Database Report – Ranelagh Estate, 19 September 2016
Mornington Peninsula Shire Council > paper by Built Heritage in 2013
Mornington Peninsula Shire Council > Ranelagh Estate Conservation Plan