Nepean House
1–3 Mitchell Street
Camden
Lot 1, DP 782848
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| Figure 1 Nepean House Mitchell Street Camden. The house is item 22 on Camden Heritage Walking Tour. (I Willis, 2021) |
History and Description
The site of Nepean House was originally part of Camden Park Estate, then an allotment in the sub-division of the town area in 1840. The allotment (83 feet x 83 feet) was purchased in 1855 by storekeeper James Bensley and sold in 1859 to carpenter Thomas Jones.
Construction of the house commenced around 1855 for Camden surgeon John Bleeck, who purchased the property in 1862. Bleeck practised as a medical practitioner in Camden from 1855 to 1865 and sold the house to The Oaks builder William Packenham in 1884.
Packenham built the verandah, installed the iron lacework at the front of the house and replaced the wooden shingled roof with corrugated iron. The Packenham family lived in Nepean House until the death of William Packenham's daughter, Emma Cranfield, in 1944 when the house was sold to Camden engineer Howard Southwell.
In 1971, Camden solicitor Paul Bowring purchased the house, who added a single-storey pavilion in 1973 designed by Sydney architects Fisher Lucas.
At the rear of the house are the 19th-century timber-slab stables with loft.
The house is described as a two-storey brick and stucco early Victorian Gothic style house with picturesque and colonial characteristics. These features are the gabled windows, carved barge boards and high pitched roof, four-panel doors and shuttered French casement windows. (NSWSHI)
Condition and Use
The split timber shingled roof was replaced with corrugated iron in the late 19th century.
The house is in good condition and privately owned. (NSWHI)
Heritage Significance
The house is an excellent example of a Victorian gentleman’s townhouse and residence.Heritage Listing
Camden Local Environmental Plan 2010 Item 169Macarthur Region Heritage Study Heritage Item ID 1280064
Read more
Camden Historic Places (Camden Historical Society)Camden Heritage Walking Tour - Stop No 22 (Camden Visitor Information Centre)
