Elphin, Toowoomba

Elphin on tree lined Anzac Avenue, Toowoomba, is large low-set single storey residence designed by prolific Toowoomba architect William Hodgen for Longreach pastoralist Andrew Crombie and his wife Ellen in 1907. According to The Chronicle of 16 January 1988 the house had 15 rooms, including four main bedrooms, two servants' bedrooms plus a guest room. Features included leadlight fanlights and windows, pressed metal ceilings and nine fireplaces. An extensive electronic maid call system was still in working order in the early 50s. It was very advanced for the time identifying the calling room. The house was sold before auction to a local businessman and his wife who refurbished it as a family home. Elphin was selected to be on the 1993 Heritage Building Society calendar because the society's chairman claimed, in The Chronicle of 25 November 1992, that they only desired "those buildings which are examples of rich history of imaginative architecture for which Queensland is known". == Description ==

Elphin is a large low-set single-storey weatherboard home, set well back from the road and located on a large block on Anzac Avenue, Newtown, Toowoomba. Elphin is L-shaped in plan and asymmetrical on all elevations. A classical gable pediment in timber over the front steps separates a pair of gables that project from the medium-pitched corrugated iron hip core roof. The pair of gables have the 1920s half-timbered appearance, and both are enhanced with a turned-timber finial and pendant. There are four brick chimneys with double rendered tops. The front of the house is nine veranda bays long. To the right of the entrance is it three bays in width and there are five bays on the other side. Simple posts with astragal and capitals support the skillion verandah roof which is stepped down from the main roof. The verandah is edged with a triple rail dowel balustrade and is open except for the end bay on the left side. This pavilioned room still has a type of metal sunhood. The entry has a five-panelled front door with fanlight and is flanked by sidelights above a timber panel. All windows opening onto the encircling veranda have step-through windows. There are gables projecting from the core on both side elevations and these repeat the front gable's decorative features. The large front garden contains a mixture of mature and recent plantings. A long paved drive down the right hand side leads to the old garage and shed at the very rear of the property. A bore was present approximately to the north east of the building which continued to be utilised in the 1940s to 60s. Pumping was by a large windmill. During WWII a large underground air raid shelter was constructed to the east of the main house. To the south (eastern end) of the house was a large glass plant conservatorium. Two large elevated water tanks were sited to the rear of the house. The office and storage room, and bottle washing facility were sited in the original stables to the rear of the property. The bottle washing plant included an extremely early automatic steam driven bottle washer and steriliser. == Heritage listing ==

Elphin was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register on 28 July 2000 having satisfied the following criteria. '''The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history.''' Andrew Crombie was a progressive pastoralist involved in promoting the export of frozen lamb and establishing the first graziers association. Elphin was built as the town house for his wife and family and was primarily entertainment. For pastoralists and other rural people Toowoomba was important as social and education centre and place to move to when retiring from the land. That Elphin has been the large home of a wealthy pastoralist, home and business premises of a bottle merchant, used as flats and is again a home, demonstrates the changing usages of residential properties. The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a particular class of cultural places. Elphin is a large low-set timber house designed by Toowoomba architect William Hodgen in 1907 for Andrew Crombie. Elphin is an excellent example of a large Toowoomba timber home that was designed by prominent architect William Hodgen. The place is important because of its aesthetic significance. The siting of the house, the design of the building, its fine classical detailing and layout of the garden with its mature plantings exhibited aesthetic characteristics of the early 1900s that are still valued by the community. == References ==