THE home at 24 Lakeside Terrace, Medowie, currently owned by Francess Zahra and Mark Tipper has a strong history.

When Francess and Mark were first shown the property last year, they were immediately drawn to it.

They recognised the style of the footings on the building as being a clear giveaway that the home and adjacent granny flat were not originally built on the premises, and had been relocated there some time ago.

Francess and Mark purchased the home soon after, and set about restoring this old homestead to her former glory.

The renovations included stripping the floors and renovating the original floorboards, which appear to be nearly 100 years old, resheeting the walls and 11 foot ceilings back to the original bones, and restoring bathrooms.

They remarked to News Of The Area that they cannot explain the strong connection they immediately felt with the home.

Francess said, “When I saw the home, even before we viewed it, I was instantly drawn to it, and felt like it was ours.”

“Visiting the home on our first viewing only cemented that feeling, the feeling was so strong that it was meant to be our home.”

‘We knew it had good, old, strong bones, and we have thoroughly enjoyed restoring her to be our much loved home,” she said.

Francess and Mark began researching the history of the home, with the assistance of News Of The Area, the Raymond Terrace Historical Society and long-time residents from Medowie.

It has been discovered that the home at Lakeside Terrace was in fact originally a family home in Raymond Terrace, situated across from where the Historic Raymond Terrace Courthouse still stands.

When the area around the courthouse and home in Williams Street eventually became commercial, the home then became the premises for Edstein Monumental Stonemasons who moved from their old King Street Raymond Terrace shopfront in 1900.

The business had a manufacturing workshop on site, and examples of headstones and memorials in the surrounding yard.

In 1970, the area was redeveloped into true commercial buildings, and the home was put up for sale to be relocated.

It was moved to its current location in Lakeside and had two owners before Mark and Francess purchased the property.

The granny flat on the property also has a special history, with the uncovering of information that the building was originally a classroom at Raymond Terrace Public School, before becoming their tuckshop, situated across the road from the school in Swan Street.

The building was purchased by a teacher at the school, who owned the relocated Lakeside House, and he had the tuck shop relocated onto the Lakeside property to be used as a granny flat around 1972.

Francess and Mark have the exterior of the homestead and the old Tuck Shop next on their renovation list.

A home that would potentially look like many others in the older sections of Medowie when you drive past, is one that holds so much significant history.

 

By Rachael VAUGHAN