About Glebe

John Verge

Lyndhurst and Toxteth Park Estates

By 1828 many Glebe allotments were auctioned and while many purchasers were speculators, there were also some successful professional men who sought a convivial location upon which to build family residences on ample grounds with a fine view of the harbour. Today only two of these large Regency houses remain, Toxteth Park and Lyndhurst, both designed by John Verge.

Toxteth Park was built for George Allen (1800-77). Originally designed by John Verge, Toxteth Park was a rectangular two-storey block with single-storey wings, a stone-flagged verandah on two sides, with the kitchen and servants' quarters behind. During extensions in 1878-81 the ground floor was renovated, but the present-day long drawing-room and bay window retain many original features.

Lyndhurst is the only other surviving Regency villa in Glebe and was built for Dr James Bowman, the son-in-law of James Macarthur. Dr. Bowman was Principal Surgeon of Sydney Hospital and in1823 he married Macarthur's second daughter, Mary.

Lyndhurst, now a private home,
but occupied by the Historic Houses Trust of NSW for several years..

Because of its proximity to the hospital, James Bowman became interested in Glebe and, by 1833, had purchased 36 acres for 1,500 pounds.

By this stage John Verge was building Camden Park for his brother-in-law, William Macarthur, and thus, Verge began to build Lyndhurst by year-end, with the villa having its finishing touches in 1837.

Lyndhurst featured a portico of coupled Tuscan columns with the back enclosed by single-storey domestic quarters (subsequently demolished in 1878 and 1885 upon subdivisions) and only the main two-storey block remains today. As both Lyndhurst and Camden Park were built contemporaneously, it is not surprising that they have common features, such as the size and proportion of the main reception rooms, the joinery and "plaster-groined" ceilings etc.

Following James Bowman's retirement in 1838, Lyndhurst was used for a few years by the Macarthur family, and in 1847 became St. James College, to train young men for the clergy until 1849. Lyndhurst was then purchased by the Catholic Archbishop and St. Mary's College for the classical education of upper-class secular and day students, as well as priests for the ministry. By 1870 Lyndhurst had declined and the grounds were subdivided in 1878 and 1885.

In 1972 when The Glebe Society was in its infancy, the NSW government proposed that Lyndhurst should be demolished for the north-western expressway through Glebe. After a long public campaign, the expressway was abandoned and historic Lyndhurst was saved, thanks largely due to the efforts of our Society's founding members who were prepared to stand before bulldozers and put themselves at risk. Although Lyndhurst was in a deplorable condition at that time, it has been slowly conserved and is currently a private home.