-, ROY.I\L HOTEL HARTLEY. N.S.W. Stat ment of Cultural Significance Conservation Analysis Conservation & Development Guidelines August, 1987 ".";,. ,,",., . ". , .:; ROYAL HOTEL Hartley Historic Site N.S.W. Statement of Cultural Significance Conservation Analysis Conservation and Development Guf del lnes • Prepared for National Parks and 'Wildlife Service Blue Mountains District 65 Leichhardt St., BLACKHEATH. N.S.W. 2785 By: R.A.D. BROWN DAWSON BROWN PARTNERSHIP PjL 47 Wi 11 i am St., PADDINGTON. N.S.W. 2021 "in association with: ANNETTE GREEN Heritage Consultant 108 Moore St., LEICHHARDT N.S.W. 2040 August, 1987. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE AND CONSERVATION REPORT ROYAL HOTEL, HARTLEY. CONTENTS PAGE 1.0 Introduction 1. 1.1 StudyBr 1. 1.2 Aim of Report 1. 1.3 Study Area 1. 1.4 Methodo logy' 4. 1.5 Terms 4. .r 1.6 Limitations; 4. 1.7 Author Identification 4. 2.0 Documentary Evidence 5. 2.1 Introduction 5. 2.2 Summary of Documentary Evidence 5. 2.3 Historical Photographs Sa. &5b. 3.0 Physical Evidence 12. " 3.1 Site Survey Drawings 13. 3.2 Schedule of Building Finishes 14. 3.3 Photographs 23. - 34. 4.0 Analysis of Evidence &Summary of 35. Conclusions. 4.1 Analysis of Documentary & Physical 35. Evidence 4.2 Unsolved Questions 4l. 4.2.1 History of Use 4l. 4.2.2 Physical Development 4l. 4.2.3 Archaeological Evidence 42. 5.0 Statement of Cultural Significance 43. 6.0 Constraints 44. 6.1 Physical Constraints 44~' .J 6.2 Procedural Constraints 44,. ' . 6.53 External Constraints 45.- 6.4 Constraints Arising out of the Integrity & 46. Condition of the Place 6.5 Constraints Arising out of the Documentary & 46. Physical Evidence about the Place 6.6 Significant Fabric - Grading Zones of 47. Signifi'cance for Internal Space. ,- I CONTENTS ; PAGE ....t 7.0 Conservation Guidelines ·lf9." 7.1 Generally 49. 7.2 Policy 50. 7.3 Guideline Implementation 50. 7.4 Location & Design of Additions 51. 8.0 Repair &Reconstruction Works 53. 8.1 General 53. 8.2 Exterior 53. 8.2.1 Urgent Works 53. 8.2.2 Long Term Works 54. 8.3 Interior 55. 8.3.1 Urgent Works 55. 8.3.2 Long Term Works 55. • 9.0 Appendix (A) - Brief 57 . (B) - Chronological History 59. (C) - Hotels of Hartley 66. (D) - Detail Drawings 69-78. (E) - Wallpaper Samples 79. (F) - Bibliography 81. 10.0 List of Illustrations Fig. 1.1 Plan of Lots 3 - 8 2. Section 14, Township of Hartley Fig. 1.2 Site Survey 3. Fig. 2.1 Survey of Western Road showing 8. location of old Hotel (1906) Fi g. 2.2 alb Historical Photographs Sa.& 5b. Fig. 3.1 Physical Survey. 13. Basement, Ground, First Floor. Fig. 3.2 - 3.20 Photographs of Present Site. 23.-34. ;Fig. 4.1 alb Conjectural Plan. 39.-40. Fig. 6.1 Zones of Cultural Significance 48. Fig; 7.1 Location and Designs of addition plan. 52. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE AND CONSERVATION REPORT ROYAL HOTEL, HARTLEY 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 STUDY BRIEF The brief for this Study required the preparation of a Statement of Significance for the Royal Hotel at Hartley Historic Site and the identification of constraints arising from that Statement. As part of the above the brief required: a review of the existing documentary evidence additional minor historical research an assessment of the physical evidence an analysis of th~ documentary and physical evidence the preparation of a Statement of Significance the identification of constraints arising from the Statement of Significance (including guidelines for future development as an addition or adjunct to the existing buildings.) the identification of essential works to provide stabilisation. A copy of the full brief, as provided by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (N.P.W.S.), has been included as Appendix A. 1.2 AIM OF THE REPORT Hartley Historic Site, which includes The Royal, is now under the care and control of National Parks and Wildlife Service. It is the Service's intention to call for expressions of interest for the future use of The Royal, with emphasis on commercial/residential/restaurant type usage, similar to its previous function. The purpose of the Brief is to provide researched documentation to guide the Service in seeking these expressions of interest. 1.3 STUDY AREA The Royal Hotel is located on lots 3 and 4 of Section 14 in the" J Township of Hartley. In" 1853 the Hotel site also included lots"5 and 7, and from 1858 to 1969 lots 3 to 8 were combined under the one title. Early dJvelopment associated with the hotel is ther.efore likely to have been located on lots 3,4,5 and 7, but later development may have taken place on lots 6 and 8. For the purpose of this report the Study Area has therefore been taken to include lots 3 to 8 of Section 14 in the Township of Hartley. (See Figure 1.1) 2. Figure 1.1 Site Plan showing the new alignment of the Great Western Highway and the original layout of Lots 3 - 8, Section 14, in the Township of Hartley. 3. Old West ern Road SITE PLAN 1,500 cpprox.. Fig. ;1-.:1 A~ust 1987. \ \ 4. 1.4 'METHODOLOGY This report follows the general structure as set out in following documents: • , Australia ICOMOS Charter for the Conservation of Places of Cultural Significance (The Burra Charter), 1981. Guidelines to the Burra Charter: Cultural Significance, 1984. Guidelines to the Burra Charter: Conservation Policy, 1985. - Kerr J.S. The Conservation Plan, National Trust of Australia (N.S.W.), 1985. 1.5 TERMS The terms place, preservation, 'reconstruction, restoration, adaption, and conservation used throughout this report have the meaning given them in the ICOMOS 'Burra Charter'. N.B.: Restoration has a limited meaning as follows: II returning the EXISTING fabric of a place to a known earlier state by removing accretions or by reassembling existing components without the introduction of new material. 1I 1.6 LIMITATIONS In accordance with the brief only minor historical research has been undertaken to supplement that already included within the National Parks and Wildlife Service file on the Royal Hotel and the Hqrtley Historic Siti. This has meant that some questions about the history of the site have remained un-answered and these have been outlined in Section 4.2. In addition to the above it has not been possible within the budgetary constraints of the study to include an archaeological assessment of the site and accordingly the potential for archaeological remains has not been fully determined. In terms of the recommendations for essent1~1 stabilisation works a visual inspection has been undertaken by the consultants, but t~e site has n~t peen inspected by a structural engineer. Physical investigation was limited to two days. No physical intervention:has been undertaken. Areas which 'are considered to be worthy of further investigation are outlined in 'Section 4.3 1.7 AUTHOR IDENTIFICATION This report was prepared and written by Robert Brown of Dawson Brown Partnership and Annette Green, Heritage Consultant. Illustrations were prepared by Diana Lorentz of Dawson Brown Partnership P/L. '. 5. 2.0 DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE 2.1 INTRODUCTION In accordance with the Brief the documentary research has been based on a review of the historicaJ documentation held by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS),' plus minor additional research as required to provide a clear overview of the history of the site. The major part of the documentary research therefore entailed a review of the NPWS files provided to the consultants by the Cultural Resources Unit and by officers at the Hartley Historic Site. In addition to the above the following sources were investigated to i'dentify any other relevant information : Land Titles Office (land ownership records); State Archives, Land Titles Office and Department of Lands (historical maps); General Reference and Mitchell Libraries, State Library of NSW, and the Department of Education, History unit (secondary sources catalogued under IHartley'); State Archives and Mitchell Library (hotel and wine license records); Newspaper Reading Room, State Library (local and state newspapers dating from the time of early land sales). The history of the site has been summarised in the following section and a fully referenced chronological history has been included as Appendix B. In addition to this, a summary of the hotels which are known to have operated in Hartley has been included as Appendix C. 2.2 SUMMARY OF DOCUMENTARY EVIDENCE The Western Road was constructed between Sydney and Bathurst in 1814-15, but the Government soon placed restrictions on travel along this route in an attempt to control settlement in the new western districts. Travel restrictions continued to be enforced throughout the 1820s and during this period little road-side development took place along the, Western Road. The 1830s saw an easing of these restrictions under Governor Bourke and as travellers over the mountains increased in number, so did the number of' inns which were developed to accomodat~ them. In about 1830, Major Thomas Mitchell proposed a new line for the western descent-from the Blue Mountains via the pass of Mount Victoria and set aside an area of approximately 259 hectares at the crossing of the River Lett for the purpose of a government town. At about the same time 1.2 hectares of ·Jand was granted to Pierce Collits at the river crossing and l Hartley's first hotel 'The Royal Garter , was subsequently erected on this site. From this time on at least one hotel was licensed within the town for each year- until 1895 (See Appendix C.) Governor ~ourke approved the laying out of a village in this location in 1836, and the Deputy Surveyor-General, S.A.