John Charles Smith. 1888.

John Charles Smith is the person most associated to date with the building of Yester Grange. He was a former sea captain and at the time Yester Grange was built he was Managing Director of Goodlet and Smith, a large Sydney timber, pottery and building firm (see illustration after house plan).

It has been recorded that Yester Grange was built for his retirement - although he was only twenty eight when the house was built. His father James was a prominent, wealthy citizen of the colony and, looking at the house and the estate, John Charles must have been as well.

There is still much to learn about John Charles and his wife Susan. Ongoing research in Australia and Scotland will update this short history as our quest continues!

We do know that Goodlet and Smith built the house and also provided much of the timber and wrought iron for the railings around the scenic lookouts at Wentworth Falls as well as the lamp standards for Katoomba's first gas street lights. They also produced all the wonderful leadlight work in the Queen Victoria Building near the Town Hall in Sydney which, thanks to the superb restoration of that fine building, we are still able to enjoy today.

Yester Grange is believed to have been designed by James Barnet Jnr., the son of the New South Wales Colonial Architect, James Barnet, who designed the GPO in Martin Place, the facade of Customs House at Circular Quay, The Australian Museum and many other fine buildings we enjoy today including most of the Post Offices, Court Houses and Police Stations in the large country towns of NSW.

The house is built of the finest New Zealand kauri timber that Goodlet and Smith could obtain and the completed house was important enough to be featured in the Illustrated London News of the day.

It appears the house is named after 'Yester House' in Gifford, near Edinburgh in Scotland, which was built circa 1700. The initials of Captain Smith and his wife Susan are in the leadlights of the doors in the main hallway. Looking at the restored house today gives us a glimpse of how very wealthy, prominent citizens of the day enjoyed their leisure.

PREVIOUS | NEXT

Blue Mountains 1788 | Charles Darwin 1836 | The Yester Grange Estate 1878
Sir John See 1902 | Biography of Sir John See | Margery & James Anderson 1944
Gil & Elizabeth Clarke 1975 | The Crockett Group 1999

Yester Grange Historic House & Estate
Enquiries: PO Box 7027 Leura NSW 2780
Tel. (02) 4757 1110    Fax. (02) 4784 2510

About Yester Grange | Wedding Receptions
Cottage Accommodation | Contact Us | Home

Site Design © Millennium Management Services