Government House
In 1834, the current Governor James Stirling tasked Henry William Reveley, Western Australia’s first civil engineer, with designing the new Government House. Initially, the architecture of the first Government house was based on one of Reveley’s previous projects, the Old Court House located in Stirling Gardens. However due to a lack of funding, the building unfortunately did not live up to Stirling’s expectation with a leaking roof, damp walls, termites in the flooring, shortage in accommodation and the inability to facilitate large events for the Governor.
It wasn’t until 1857 that Captain Wray of the Royal Engineers presented plans to build a new Government house in a classic Revival style for Governor Arthur Edward Kennedy. This plan was then modified to become a more impressive building by the Lieutenant Colonel Edmund Henderson of the Royal Engineers and Comptroller of Convicts. Building commenced in 1859 and only finished in 1864, delayed by ongoing changes to the design due to indecision and difficulties in sourcing materials from England.
Engineers have also contributed significantly to political life in Western Australia. John Sanderson (2000-2005) and Ken Michael (2006-2011) were appointed as the 29th and 30th governors of the state, respectively.
Reference:
Martens, Jeremy, Government House and Western Australian Society 1829-2010, UWA Publishing, Crawley, 2011.
