The Hermitage Geraldton

The Hermitage - Geraldton

The History

The Hermitage was designed by Hawes and built  as the Chaplain's residence for the Geraldton St John of God Hospital. It is a small brick and tile residential building with design elements of the Inter-War Old English architectural style and with internal features such as cut out hearts, reflecting the  Arts & Crafts Movement influence. It is one of the few domestic buildings in the trail.

Hawes actually paid for the land (£45) but the title was placed in the name of the Bishop of Geraldton. The builder,  Stephen Harvey, was a friend of Hawes  who had previously borrowed £200 from Hawes in 1930 to build his own house.  Harvey appears not to have repaid the debt so Hawes saw Harvey’s labour as being a way of recouping the debt.

The Occupants

Hawes was considering the position of Hospital Chaplain for himself following his retirement, and therefore designed the building to suit his simple needs. This however  did not eventuate.  Instead, the first occupant was a close friend of Hawes,  Fr James Prendergast, who lived there from 1936 to 1943, serving as chaplain for the hospital.  Hawes did consequently  stay overnight in The Hermitage on many occasions, together with his dog Dominie, as a guest and friend of Fr Prendergast,  who also had a fox terrier, Rory, the son of Dominie. 

After the death of Fr Prendergast The Hermitage was used by St John of God Hospital as nurses      accommodation and later became a St Vincent De Paul meeting and store room.

In July 1990 Bishop Hickey, Bishop of Geraldton,  took up residence in The Hermitage until his transfer to the Archdiocese of Perth in August 1991.

From 1990 to 2014, The Hermitage was occupied by tenants and opened occasionally for public  inspection.

Internal Features

The roof timber beams are all karri and axe-hewn by sleeper hewers at the timber mills in Manjimup in the south of Western Australia. 

A feature of The Hermitage, which is typical of Hawes work, is an inscription painted on a purlin on the ceiling of the Mezzanine floor. It is written in Latin and is Psalm 38:14. It reads,

 Remite mihi ut refrigerer priusquam abeam et amplius non ero   

This translates to,  Forgive me that I may be refreshed before I depart and will be no more

The large stone for the  fire place  was salvaged by Hawes from old Geraldton cottages,  some of the earliest buildings in Geraldton.  The  parquet floor  was cut from well- seasoned old rafters from the same cottages and the doors were also salvaged from these buildings.

The cottage featured a carving of Hawes's Dog Dominie by the timber craftsman Ewart Johnson but this was destroyed by vandals during the 1970s. The position of the dog's feet can still be seen on top of the newel post. There is also a doggy door in the wet area.

As the house was designed specifically for the hospital chaplain, there is no kitchen as the priest would have taken his meals in the SJOG convent across the road. 

Ownership

The Diocese of Geraldton relinquished ownership of The Hermitage on 13 June 1984 as part of a    necessary but reluctant land exchange. The State of Western Australia gave the Management Order for the Hermitage to The National Trust of Australia (WA) and restoration works were commenced by the National Trust in 1984 and completed in 1990.

On 2 January 2019, the Management Order for The Hermitage was given to the Diocese of Geraldton.

The Diocese is now  looking to purchase The  Hermitage from the State Government.  This will allow this very unique and significant piece of Hawes’ heritage to be re-united with the majority of the built heritage of Hawes which is in the possession of the Diocese of Geraldton. Once in the ownership of the Diocese it is planned to make The Hermitage available as a B & B, for tours, and small meetings or gatherings. The cost to purchase The Hermitage from the Government will be in the vicinity of $70,000. If you would like to contribute towards this cost (large and small donations or  an interest free loan are welcome),  please contact
Fr Robert Cross  99 213221  heritage@diocese-geraldton.org

 Play the Audio Tour