HOUSES - what's in a name?

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The Doll’s House, 16 Cables Place, Waverley. 2019 Waverley Heritage & Design Awards winner Commendation for Emerging Architect - Lucy Shannon, Urban Rhetoric Pty Ltd.

At the beginning of Colonisation in Australia  there were so few dwellings that  everyone knew where you lived and people were easy to locate.   As the colony expanded and cities grew, houses began being named  for easier identification.  The numbering of houses became fully systematised early in the 20th Century.
Houses were often known by their names in the days before the numbering of houses became fully systematised early in the 20thC Often houses were named  relating to places in the  'old country.'  but  people also began having fun naming them.  The Sands Directories*   are  a great resource to  peruse house names.

*John Sands Ltd published the Sydney, Suburban and Country Commercial Directory each year from 1858 to 1932–33 (except for 1872, 1874, 1878 and 1881).The directories contain information that can help track when streets were named, when suburbs were divided, where people lived and what occupations they held. Each directory contains an index, an alphabetical street listing (first for the City of Sydney, then for suburban Sydney), an alphabetical resident occupier listing and a directory of trades, companies, organisations, institutions and government departments.

Akoonah is an aboriginal word meaning 'running waters'.

For example, the 1915 Sands Directory for Woollahra lists properties with names such as Willesden, Kirkdale, Brighton, Stratherne and Linwood; all referring to places in the UK.  There is a Te Aroha named after a NZ town.  Other names such as 'the Glen' indicate nostalgia for  Scotland.  More fun is  'Iolanthe' named after a comic Gilbert and Sullivan Opera of 1882.   My own Great Grandfather, ROBERT HENRY MORRIS, and his family lived in a house on Lennox St named 'Dulce Domun'  meaning 'Sweet Home' in Latin. 

Aboriginal words were also freely appropriated for naming houses.  Mia-Mia, (shelter), Karinya (peaceful place) and  Cooinda (happy place) were a few that were regularly used.  My Great Grandmother EDITH EMILY BAX  lived in  Alt St, Waverley and she named her house which she built, 'Amaroo'  which translates to 'Beautiful Place'. 

Plaques with names were often attached to the front of the house.  Many of these still survive.  People still today choose house names and erect signs as a nod to nostalgia.


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​As an aside,  original outside taps can often help to indicate the year a house was built, particularly in NSW.  They were usually inscribed with the year they were manufactured  and  approved by the Metropolitan Water Sewerage & Drainage Board (MWSB). The side or the curved part of the tap are usually where you can find the stamped year.

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On a fun finishing note, I  recall a trip to Tasmania, many years ago,  where we  came    across Doo Town.   Nearly every home  was a pun on Doo; Make Doo, This will Doo,  D oo come in, Just Doo it,    Love Me Doo, Much-A-Doo  etc.

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​Do you want to know more about your house?  There is a plethora of  material available and local councils are a wonderful resource.  Trove is a wonderful place to start.  I have found so many fabulous tid bits about houses my ancestors have lived in.  It can really bring the house and its inhabitants to life.  Typing the address into Trove is a good starting point.  Also a good facebook group to join, 'Our old house'.

Here are some links:

https://trove.nla.gov.au/

www.library.gov.au/learn/adults/lifelong-learning/how-trace-history-your-house

www.facebook.com/groups/1706748102970911/posts/3401609216818116/