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182- 186 GEORGE ST

The three- storey terrace houses on George Street, East Melbourne, are a residential project by nineteenth century Melbournian architect Joseph Reed (1823- 1889). Originally designed and built for Dr. Murphy, later Sir Murphy Francis; the three- storey terrace was built in 1857. The houses located on 182, 184 and 186 respectively; sit on an East Melbourne address which was desirable for state politicians, church leaders and gentlemen of commerce alike. Joseph Reed, an English- man, arrived in Melbourne in 1853 and the following year won the competition to design the State Library, which set him up for a his well-known design spree which included both the Independent Church and Scots Church on Collins Street, the Exhibition Building, Ormond College and Rippon Lea to name a few highlights of Reeds career, who was remarkably the best known and most prolific architect in nineteenth century Melbourne. The houses were of rendered brick and no. 182 retains a timber veranda and balcony at on the ground level and the first floor. Although there has been some exterior changes and renovations over the ages and the verandas and balconies of no. 184 and 186 have been removed; the buildings still look quite intact and in respect to the original design and look by the celebrated Victorian architect. And currently no. 184 is undergoing restorations. The planning is nonetheless quite familiar with suburban terrace houses and seems to have been driven by the surrounding and urban nature of the site. The front of the building on all three levels begins with verandas, balconies and open spaces and then a very narrow space that has thresholds only parallel to the front and entry; leaving the sides for walls and circulation. And as you going up the levels, the program tapers, reducing the length of the building by a third on every upper level; allowing for more open spaces on the higher levels. The terrace is a heritage site in Melbourne and most importantly all the three houses remain as residential buildings, which is the obvious reason of their design and existence, and a great success for Joseph Reed as an architect. The interior of no. 184 has been renovated by renowned modern architect Atelier Wagner and has been fitted with a central atrium three storeys high. The houses remain on the prestigious real estate market and their original design and new renovations keeps them ‘timeless’ and usable in years to come, and as a legacy of the founding father of Melbourne architecture.