For information on Brickendon Estate see http://www.brickendon.com.au
]]>The small brick chapel with a shingle roof on Brickendon Estate, near Longford, is dated by its stained glass windows to the 1850s. It is in the centre of the farm village and was built for the religious observances of the farm workers and their families. It was built by William Archer (1788-1879) who had founded Brickendon in 1824. It possibly replaces an earlier chapel for convict labour. The chapel is consecrated and is still occasionally used for weddings. The chapel is in the Gothic Revival style and features a pointed arch entrance, buttresses, vaulted timber ceiling, porch, ornate timber details, and a bell tower topped by a spire.
For information on Brickendon Estate see http://www.brickendon.com.au
The church website can be visited at http://westtamarpresbyterianchurch.org.au/
]]>The West Tamar Presbyterian Church, commonly referred to as the Auld Kirk (Scots for old church), is located on the banks of the Tamar River in the small Tasmanian town of Sidmouth. Construction of the church began in 1843 with the support of the first Presbyterian minister in the area, Reverend Alexander McKenzie, and James Reid. McKenzie’s replacement, Reverend James Garrett, became the first minister to take a service in the church in 1846. The church was built of stone rubble by convict and free labour and it is in the Gothic Revival style. It features lancet windows and a pointed arched entrance. The church was badly damaged by fire in 1900 and was not restored until 1913, which is when the present brick bellcote may have been added. 'Kirk' itself is a medieval word and meant 'church' in Old Norse. It was introduced to Scotland by Viking settlers.
The church website can be visited at http://westtamarpresbyterianchurch.org.au/
For more on James Blackburn see: http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/blackburn-james-1789
]]>‘The Towers’ building is in the Hobart suburb of Newtown and lends its name to Tower Road. It was designed by English-born convict architect James Blackburn in c. 1845 as a grand domestic building built around an internal courtyard. The weatherboard house features a prominent three-storey stone tower with an additional level provided by a turret. The tower and turret are both crenellated and feature rounded arched windows. The rooms inside the tower feature marble fireplaces.
For more on James Blackburn see: http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/blackburn-james-1789