Birchgrove House 1966 (demolished)

House Histories

House histories are gratis for members of The Balmain Association for their own house for non-commercial purposes. The house must be in Balmain (including Balmain East, Birchgrove, and Rozelle) and have been built in the 19th or early 20th century. Non-members can qualify by taking out Membership for one year at least.

For commercial purposes, e.g. for the heritage report required for a Development Application or for a real estate sale, a fee is payable to the BA. In that case, please contact info@balmainassociation.org.au for further information.

The histories are based solely on information available without charge on the Internet, mainly the Sands Directory, land titles, and newspapers (Trove).

It depends on the particular house, but the histories usually don't run much past 1932, and rarely beyond about 1960. Basic aims are to find when the house was built; who built it; its name, if it had one; the householders up to 1932; and the history of the land title. This will usually provide a good historical grounding on the house and early residents.

Other aspects may include births in the house and possibly deaths, commercial activities that may have been conducted on the premises, etc. If the house has any particularly interesting connections they will be explored within reason. Current and recent owners and residents are not identified.

Volunteers from The Balmain Association can also assist those doing their own house history research.

Contact info@balmainassociation.org.au

Family Histories
Please identify:

• the person you are looking for including full name and their birth, marriage and death dates.

As all research is carried out by volunteers we encourage you to become a member of the Balmain Association which entitles you to use our facilities and assistance with your search.

If you would like to do your own research, you may find the following sites useful.

Inner West Council House History Research
Inner West Council House History in Local Notes
Inner West Council Leichhardt Historical Journal
Balmain Association Newsletters 1966 to the present
City of Sydney Archives
Births Deaths and Marriages
NSW State Library - Balmain Maps
Sands Postal Directory
Trove-Balmain Observer