Cohen Street, Fairlight: 1887 – 1919 - Manly Council

Cohen Street, Fairlight: 1887 – 1919.Cohen Street first appears in Sands’ Directory in 1888, along with Charles Street,which runs off Cohen.Gledhill, in Manly and Pittwater, was uncertain about the origin of Cohen Street’sname, writing: “Whether Mr [Philip] Cohen who kept the Pier Hotel in 1857 had anythingto do with the naming, I cannot say.” 1Philip CohenSwancott, in Manly 1788-1968, also mentions Cohen as licensee of the Pier Hotel,then the Steyne Hotel 1880-84, after it had been destroyed by fire and rebuilt. 2Another possibility is the Cohen of Cohen and McKenzie, auctioneers, who auctionedChapman’s Estate adjoining John Woods’ Fairlight Estate, on 21 November 1885. 3Perhaps Manly Council’s rate books will clarify whether Cohen (or Charles) held landaround Cohen and Charles Streets in the 1880s. 4In 1887 (Sands’ 1888) Cohen Street had six households already and Charles Streethad seven, so both streets must have been established around 1885-86, following oneof the many local subdivisions in the 1880s land ‘boom’.In 1887, Cohen Street was as follows:William Merser [sic – Mercer]G F E WoodWilliam HarperJohn BrownCharles FraserWilliam Willoughby1 Gledhill, p169.2 Swancott, p36.3 Swancott, p28.4 In 1877 Rates Book, a James Alexander Cohen had a house and land on “Dobroyd Hill”.1

Several of these households appear to have had links with established families inManly and Balgowlah: William Mercer was likely related to Andrew Mercer, stonemason,who built and lived in Edinboro, Sydney Road; Charles Fraser was probably the brotherof the builder and contractor David Fraser of Fraser Villa, in Eustace Street, Manly.William F Harper was a baker, perhaps with a small bakery in Cohen Street, as heremained there right through to his death in 1925 5 . Several households were involved inthe building industry: the Mercers; Frasers; G F E Wood, a carpenter from Leichhardt(Sands’ 1887); and William Willoughby, a carpenter from West Promenade, Manly(Sands’ 1887). Wood was listed in 1894 (Sands’ 1895) as a draughtsman, still living inCohen Street.House construction was in full swing nearby in the late 1880s. Around the corner inCharles Street, were other construction industry workers: Walter Arnold, stonemason;John Goss, plumber; and M George, carpenter.It appears that both Cohen and Charles Street provided low income housing forworking-class families and struggling tradesmen, a number with local roots. In additionto the Mercer and Fraser households, William Waters [sic – Waterer] had come fromRaglan Street, Manly, to Charles Street; William Willoughby from West Promenade toCohen Street; Walter Arnold from Raglan to Charles Street; James Clarke from Eustaceto Charles; and Charles Collins, gardener, from Sebastopol Street (ie, part of what alsobecame Sydney Road) to Charles Street.By 1889 (Sands’ 1890), Cohen Street “off Middle Harbour Road” (ie off part of whatbecame Sydney Road) had five households:Charles Skinner [fisherman – son of BenjaminSkinner, boatman]William MercerG F E Wood [carpenter/draughtsman]William Harper [baker]J J Higgley [sic – Higley], undertakerThe land boom had collapsed, and both Cohen and Charles Street households feltthe impact of the 1890s Depression. While several of the building tradesmen wereforced out of the area, an unusual concentration of bakers continued, both in Cohen andCharles Street: William Harper (Sands’ 1888 on); William Archer (1890 on); R C Perry(1890 on); John Lawson (1895 on).Also noteworthy were the Manly police constables who lived in Charles Street: W JOrr (circa 1890) and Edward Clibborn (circa 1895).By 1894 (Sands’ 1895), Cohen Street still had only five households:Charles Skinner, fishermanWilliam MercerG F E Wood, draughtsmanWilliam F Harper, bakerJohn Lawson, baker 6Charles Street had only four households, down from seven listed in 1887 (Sands’ 1888).5 Aged 73. His grave is in Manly Cemetery, plot Z677, General Section.6 Died 1911 aged 72, buried Manly Cemetery General Section, Plot U183. A photocopy of hishand-written Recipe Book containing baker’s recipes is in the Wellings Collection at LS W 641.5.2

Of all the five households in Cohen Street, four had lived there five years or more;compared to only one in seven in Charles Street. It appears that four of the thirteenhouses listed in 1887 were vacant in 1894, underlining how hard the depression had hit.By 1899 (Sands’ 1900), Cohen Street was showing renewed life, with eighthouseholds listed, while Cohen Street had only four. The first house names had begunto appear locally: William Archer’s Strathspey in Charles Street was first (Sands’ 1890),followed by John Reid’s Annandale in Cohen Street (Sands’ 1900); and Edward “Happy”Eyre’s View Cottage in Cohen (Sands’ 1902).John Reid had come to Cohen Street from Young Street, Annandale (Sands’ 1898)hence his chosen house name. Happy Eyre was to make a significant contribution tothe history of surf lifesaving in Australia, as Swancott recounts: 7“The Sly brothers owned the first surfboat to be used for lifesaving on Manly OceanBeach. William Alfred Sly (“Tod”) went to Sydney, ordered a life belt and was measuredfor the first one used on the Ocean beach. He was the first man to don the belt andshow the few early morning bathers how to work both line and belt. By means of somedummy rescues by Tod, E[dward] Eyre and others, the present idea of rescue by beltand line was put into practice… For years, “Happy” Eyre was the only lifesaveremployed by the Council on the beach”.Fred Eyre, Happy’s son, represented Manly at rugby union and was a leadingprofessional golfer, who played at the opening of Balgowlah Golf Club’s new clubhousein 1926.At Federation in 1901, Cohen and Charles Streets were as follows (Sands’ 1902):-Cohen Street (from Sydney Road)E[dward] Eyre, View CottageJohn Reid, AnnandaleWilliam F Harper, bakerJohn LawsonJ BorthwickJ McPhersonJohn PhillipsCharles Street (from Cohen Street)Mrs J Clarke [widow of James Clarke]B MurrayW[illiam] WatererJ[osiah] TrenerryF MurrayJohn ConwellC LeonardJohn HowesArthur CroallJosiah Trenerry, a printer and future editor of the Manly Daily and Manly Alderman,had moved up from Victoria, but must have struggled to survive in the depressedeconomic conditions of the late 1890s. By the early 1900s, Trenerry was able to movefrom the battlers’ blocks in Charles Street, around the corner into Cohen Street.As prosperity gradually returned in the years between Federation and the Great War,Cohen Street first stabilized at around eight households in 1904 (Sands’ 1905), thensteadily increased to twelve households in 1914 (Sands’ 1915). The first female headsof household began to appear in Sands’. By 1904 (Sands’ 1905) there was Mrs JamesSaunders in Cohen Street, and Mrs A Murray and Mrs Mary Clark in Charles Street.In Cohen Street, Sands’ 1905 distinguished “east” and “west” sides of the street, asfollows (from Sydney Road):-7 Swancott, p161. He died 1938 aged 69 and is buried in Manly Cemetery, Plot N135.3

EastJohn LawsonJohn PhillipsWestJohn McPhersonMrs James SaundersJosiah TrenerryWilliam F Harper, bakerJohn HowesNorbert BoughtonHappy Eyre had moved from Cohen to Charles Street; while Trenerry had moved fromCharles to Cohen.In 1909 (Sands’ 1910), Charles Street received house numbers but Cohen Street didnot (it was still unnumbered in Sands’ 1920). Charles Street was complete by this time,with small weatherboard, brick and stone cottages on narrow blocks facing only thenorth side of the street (* indicates female head of household):-Charles Street (from William Street1 Albert Edwards3 James Dilling5 James Edwards7 John Baker9 William Christie11 George Wollett13 Robert D Murray15 Mrs Mary Clark*17 Mrs Cottle*19 Mrs Travers*21 Mrs A Murray*Charles Street appears to have attracted a number of widows who could make a livingoffering rooms to let or running cheap boardinghouses for workmen. The Murrays hadbeen in Charles Street since Federation. Happy Eyre had moved out.In Cohen Street in 1909, apart from the “pioneer” baker William Harper, the widowedMrs John McPherson remained, along with another descendant of the prominent Skinnerfamily, Arthur Skinner, whose brother(?) Charles had lived there in 1894.Between 1909 and 1914, Cohen Street added four households, three on the eastside. The widowed Mrs J[ohn] Lawson was joined by Mrs Ada Bennett, in Bolton on theeast side; while the widowed Mrs Jennie McPherson was joined by Mrs Hawker inAnnandale, and Mrs Richard Friend in Gordon. Josiah Trenerry JP remained.In 1914 (Sands’ 1915), there were eight female householders in Cohen and CharlesStreets – an extraordinarily high proportion of the 23 households. This suggests aconcentration of rooms to let and boarding houses in both streets, especially in CohenStreet near Sydney Road with the new tramway between Manly and The Spit.During and after World War One, Cohen Street continued to grow as more semiswere built north toward Griffiths Street. The steep hill and distance from the SydneyRoad trams made this land less desirable and, therefore, cheaper. Between 1914 and1919 (Sands’ 1920), Cohen Street added six houses, a 50% growth. In 1919 it lookedas follows, from Sydney Road (still without street numbers):-4

North (formerly east)South (formerly west)(off 122 Sydney Road)J J MurrayMrs Emma McPherson*Miss Jane McPherson*Mrs J Lawson*Walter Stere [Steer?]A[rchibald] R May (off) Paget Bayly 8Mrs Ada Bennett*William SheedyJohn PhillipsPeter SutherlandFrederick PerkinsWilliam F Harper [retired? baker]Charles StreetCorrick and Molesworth [carriers?]Arthur AndersonMrs Rhoda Lewis*William H HerbertsGriffith StreetJamieson Bros [J & S Jamieson in 1922]There were still five female householders in Cohen Street, but two of those in 1914had moved by 1919. Josiah Trenerry, now owner of The Manly Free Press, had alsomoved as his printing and publishing business prospered – to high status LauderdaleAvenue, Manly.The first significant businesses were capitalizing on Cohen Street’s location on theoutskirts of a fast-growing Manly. Cohen Street was no longer in the “back-blocks” butsoon to be close to the Fairlight shopping centre developed in the 1920s.By 1925 (Sands’ 1926), Cohen Street was beginning to have street numbers, whilethe increasing frequency of house names suggested a more ‘established’ feel to thestreet. However, there was still only one house beyond Charles Street on the north side.NorthSouth(off 122 Sydney Road)1 H E Pearce, Denanah2 William J Day 3 G Driver, Bettincourt4 Mrs J Lawson, Dalmahoy 5 Walter DriverMiss M Lawson, costumiere [7] A[lex] A Currie, Wendouree 9Archibald R May[9] A S Ferri, AlbemarleMrs E Dean, BoltonWilliam F Harper[10] J Phillips, Kirkliston Arthur F Anderson, Gordon 10J Gillespie, BegaThomas Gray, BramleighCharles StreetW H Herberts, LemnosMrs Mary Buckley [Meridor]Mrs D Lane, PlymouthGriffiths StreetJ & S Jamieson, buildersWhile several families like the Lawsons, Phillips 11 and Drivers had put down newroots, only William Harper (now presumably retired) lived on in Cohen Street, forty yearsafter first taking up residence as the local baker.8 Paget Bayly died 1925, aged 76, and is buried in Plot U364 of Manly Cemetery.9 Alex Currie died 1929 aged 82, and is buried in Plot Z214 of Manly Cemetery.10 Arthur Anderson died 1933, aged 51, and is buried in Plot Z851 of Manly Cemetery.11 John Phillips died 1933, aged 72; his wife Annie died 1931 aged 78. They are buried in PlotS403 of Manly Cemetery.5

J & S Jamieson, builders, gave their name to Jamieson Avenue, Balgowlah, offSuwarrow Street, near the site of their builders’ yard which in the 1920s stood near thecorner of Cohen and Griffiths Streets.By 1930 (Sands’ 1931) several houses, including Albemarle (no 9) and Plymouth hadbeen subdivided into flats. William Harper had died in 1925 and his house was vacant,as were a number of others with the Great Depression beginning to bite. Cohen Streetin 1930 had less occupied houses (15) than in 1919 (18). While still a step or two on thesocial ‘ladder’ above Charles Street, the ever-changing residents of Cohen Street wereto experience many more lean years before prosperity returned in the late 1950s.Terry MetherellJune 2005.6