Next chapter of Montrose House is yours to write

MONTROSE House has a rich, character-filled story to tell that dates back 208 years and includes a Hollywood star and a bushranger.

Classified by the National Trust, the six-bedroom home is among Tasmania’s oldest properties alongside TMAG’s Commissariat Provision and neighbouring Ingle Hall.

Montrose House was built from convict bricks and timber in 1813 by Scottish immigrant Robert Littlejohn – it’s a property that predates Richmond, Sorell and Port Arthur.

It is nestled in an uninterrupted and idyllic garden setting amid protected century-old trees, rose bushes, and a creek with wild ducks and ducklings – it is pure bliss.

For homeowners Maureen and Lynden, the opportunity to serve as the property’s most recent custodians has been a pleasure – and plenty of hard work, too.

The couple have been restoring the home since the day they moved in.

They said it started in the garden and took 105 ute loads to clear out the space before they could give it new life.

“Inside, the home has been completely refreshed, including installing a country farmhouse-style kitchen,” Maureen said.

Who would be the ideal buyers of a property such as this?

“It is a family home, but perhaps someone business-minded. We have had workshops, book clubs, birthday parties and Halloween is a tradition here that pre-Covid brought thousands of people here,” Maureen said.

“Or, if you want to retire here, it is a wonderful place to live.”

Maureen said Montrose House was a property that a lot of people have a connection with.

In the 1980s it was a bed and breakfast and more recently it has been used as a successful B&B, especially with international travellers.

Maureen said at one time Martin Cash, a notorious bushranger known for escaping twice from Port Arthur, would tie up his horses at the property.

“He was around here in the 1860s toward the end of his life,” she said.

“Jerry Hall stayed here in the Lady Chatterly room, she was escaping from the media around the time that she was with Mick Jagger.

“She had been in Hobart shooting a promotion with Wrest Point.”

While these tales are fun to re-tell today, there was a point where the property was doomed.

In the 1970s Montrose House was approved for demolition, prior to it being heritage-listed.

It’s such an incredible home, it’s hard to imagine that it could have been torn down, said Nick Cowley from Harcourts Signature.

“There is so much wonderful history here,” he said.

“And there’s potential, too. Take the glorious Long Room as an example. It’s easy to see that space used for a function, bridal shower or a wedding with the ceremony held on the other side of the creek in the gardens.

“With the shingle roof and the views, it’s simply spectacular.

“Montrose House is a property where every room tells a story, you could spend hours here exploring.”

Stroll around the home and you will discover original fireplaces, high ornate ceilings with original chandeliers, decorative cornices, eucalyptus and Huon pine floors, exposed beams and a mix of cedar sash and casement windows.

The Georgian front door leads into a stunning entry down a wide, impressive hallway with a glass chandelier and servant bell.

An original blackwood staircase leads to the upper-level accommodation including the master bedroom with built-in pine wardrobes and sweeping views over the property.

Upstairs there are four further bedrooms, two with elegant ensuites, and a bedroom that is currently configured as a chic dressing room.

A highlight in the main bathroom is the opulent English freestanding cast iron slipper bath with ball and claw feet.

An exquisite formal dining room is located on the ground floor.

In the library, the pressed tin ceiling is a work of art.

The magnificently appointed farmhouse style kitchen has Baltic pine benches, a double bowl sink and a large walk-in pantry.

The kitchen flows seamlessly through to the Long Room with a stunning wood fire, original double-sided chimney and handmade shingle ceiling.

Off the large sun-drenched courtyard stands the original heritage six-stall stable with a powered workshop and original convict-cut beams.

For the homeowners, so many memories have been made here and there is a lengthy list of things that they will miss after moving on to their more “modern” new home, built in the 1920s.

“I’ll miss the serenity, the veranda is my favourite spot,” Lynden said.

“A cup of coffee in the morning, the water trickling by, the ducks coming to visit – it’s wonderful.

“We have been very privileged to live here.”

No.76 Montrose Road is priced at “Offers over $1.5 million”, it is listed with Harcourts Signature.

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