3 Ednie Street

The house at 3 Ednie Street is a single storey rendered masonry and iron structure built in the Federation Bungalow style of Architecture. It is unclear when this house was built, but it was approximately in 1900. This house is part of a rare intact historical streetscape along with nine other homes on Ednie Street. The street numbering was changed temporarily in 1931 when the house became number 4 (reference).

The following information gives an insight into the lives of the residents of 3 Ednie Street, Bunbury.

William and Mary Ann Jones

William and Mary Ann Jones were living in 3 Ednie Street until 1920. Mary Ann was the daughter of William and Mary Ann Rodwell, pioneers of Picton (reference). William and Mary Ann had one son, Owen, born in 1898 (reference). They sold the house in 1920 and moved to East Perth (reference). The couple returned to Bunbury to stay with Mary Ann’s sister. While they were staying there in 1926, William died aged 65 after a long illness. James Linn, another resident of Ednie Street, was one of the pallbearers at William’s funeral (reference). 

In 1928, Mary Ann was struck with another family tragedy when her nephew, Edward Rodwell, robbed her of church money while staying in hospital (reference). At this time of her life, Mary Ann was the treasurer of the Fremantle Salvation Army (reference). Mary Ann died in 1952 at 86 years old. Both William and Mary Ann are buried in the Bunbury Cemetery (reference). 

Alf and Grace Hewitt

Mr. F. Williams then purchased 3 Ednie Street. He then leased it to Mr. Alf Hewitt (reference). Alf, a postal worker, went to school in Southern Cross (reference) before joining the local post office. He was transferred many times during his career, first to Leonora in 1913 (reference), then to Westonia in 1915 (reference), where he married Grace Stock in 1916 (reference). He was the acting Postmaster in Westonia during the boom time (reference). Throughout his time in the Goldfields, he was well known as a footballer (reference; reference; reference). Their eldest daughter, Gladys, was born in 1917 (reference) and Alf was transferred to Bunbury later the same year (reference). Their next two children, Alfred (1918-) and George (1919-), were born in Bunbury (reference, reference). After Bunbury, Alf was transferred to Ravensthorpe, where he stayed until 1930 (reference). Alf and Grace’s two youngest children, Kevan (1926-) and Peggy (1930-), were born in Ravensthorpe (reference, reference). In 1930, Alf received a promotion and transferred to East Fremantle (reference). After the Hewitts left, Williams briefly leased the house to Mr. W. Clarke, a railway worker, before selling it to James Muir before 1922 (reference; reference).

James and Elizabeth Muir

James Muir and his wife Elizabeth (nee Clamp) had four children - Mabel, Evelyn, Allan and Edna (reference). Edna, the youngest, was born in 1922, shortly after moving into Ednie Street (reference). They moved house in 1940 (reference) and leased it to Mr. Lalla Smith who purchased it a year later (reference). The Smith’s were still living there in 1950 when their son Lionel was married (reference).

Residents of 3 Ednie Street

1900 William and Mary Ann Jones

1917 Alf and Grace Hewitt

1922-1940 James and Elizabeth Muir and children

Researched by Gaye Englund for the Museum of Perth