Kallara

7 Kars Street, Frankston

History
Many Frankston streets were names after Crimean War heroes such as Nolan, Williams, Raglan and Dundas.1 Kars Street was named after the Crimean War's famous siege of Kars, were Sir William Fenwick Williams surrendered the Turkish garrison in November, 1855.2

John Allen of Union Road, Ascot Vale, owned Lots 2 and 3 in Kars Street and in 1912 had a house built there.3 Allan owned the property until the late 1930's but his principal place during this time was in Ascot Vale.4 He called the house Kia-ora.5

By 1940 Christopher Proctor, a builder, had become the owner of Lot 3 and probably built this house giving his address is 7 Kars Street.6 Bruce Stone leased the house for a short time in the early 1950s, but by 1954 Christopher 7 Joyce Proctor and probably their daughter Shirley Proctor, a nurse, occupied the property again.7 Joyce & Christopher owned and occupied Kallara at least until the early 1960s.8

Description
A hybrid design, this red brick attic-type house has elements of the 1920s Swiss Chalet Bungalow style (fretted gable and balustrade details and helm-gable to main roof), combined with 1930s details such as the tapestry brick around openings. The Moorooduc rubble stone front fence and are notable landscape elements.

External Integrity
Unusually complete, given a high landscape and building integrity.

Context
A sloping site and cut-in street levels provide the potentially dramatic sitting: this site enhances the street with its stone wall and hedge. Surrounding houses are mixed in period and generally later than this house.

Significance – Study Grading C
Architecturally, this house is typical only of a conservative domestic design but it gains some distinction by being unusual stylistically, in the Frankston area. It is also unusually complete and of an eariler date than most small-to-intermediate sized houses in that locality: of local importance.