Ward Avenue is a relatively new  street in this area having been part of Roslyn and Kellett Streets until 1937. Even in 1924 it was described as being: “covered in bush”.

Aboriginals camped in what is now Rushcutters Bay Park, eating oysters, cooked to prise them open, and catching fish from Sydney Harbour.

Their heritage protected oyster middens (remainder piles) still exist.

Ward Avenue then later joined Elizabeth Bay Road, the original entrance drive to Elizabeth Bay House (built circa 1834), on the pedestrian crossing curve behind today’s Fitzroy Gardens.

Number 12 Ward Avenue, Oxley apartments, built 1936, contains 20 units each about 38 square metres. It’s on the corner of Roslyn Street on a sloping block with four levels on the larger Roslyn Street side and three levels on the principal but smaller, Ward Avenue side.

The front entrance retains its original tiles, repainted green since 2017 according to archived photos. The original vertical, plain eau de nil glass windows, designed to emphasise its height in the Art Deco style, have also been replaced since 2017 with a rich mixture of design elements and with the name “OXLEY” emblazoned in their glass-paneled centre.

The red brick design is interesting as it contains an emphasis on verticality, typical of Art Deco design, but also adds other fashionable design elements of the same period. In the 1930s there was an “Olde Englishe” revival. Other apartments in the areas such as Selsdon, 16 Macleay Street, incorporated various neo-Elizabethan architectural elements such as entrance bollards, heraldic shields, gargoyles, towers and tracery.

The Elizabethan period is defined as an epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1 (1558–1603).

Oxley adds Elizabethan-style window surrounds taken from this English architectural period as well as entrance bollards, castellations and small towers on its corners.

It all adds to the interest of its design on this corner location in this fascinating historic streetscape.

By Andrew Woodhouse Heritage Solutions