Administrator's House, Christmas Island
The Administrator's House is a heritage-listed former official residence and now museum located 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) south-west of Flying Fish Cove in the Australian territory of Christmas Island. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004. It is also known as Tai Jin House. The house served as the official residence for the Administrator of Christmas Island.
Description
The Administrator's House is a substantial, two story residence, with a semi-detached service and servants wing, surrounded by a well developed garden. The residence is sited in a prominent location looking across Flying Fish Cove and can be seen from various vantage points on the higher terraces. The style and location of the residence appears to have been designed to emphasise the eminence of the Administrator. In 1965 the ground floor exterior doorways which had timber arches and lattice work infill were altered, the arches were bricked and the lattice work replaced by glass with etched patterns resembling the earlier lattice work. A portico was also added with a balcony above it. Upstairs windows, which were wood shuttered, were glazed.
Immediately to the north of the Administrator's House stand a number of ammunition bunkers and a gun emplacement which still contains a six-inch (fifteen-centimetre) naval gun. The complex also contains accommodation and support buildings including a gaol. On the cliff, approximately 10 metres (33 ft) above the gun, is an observation post and ranging station. The ruins of a Japanese washhouse is reported to be beyond the gun emplacement. The gun emplacement was built before World War II for the installation of the 6inch naval gun and a detachment of troops was stationed there. In March 1942 the detachment mutinied on the eve of the Japanese occupation of the island and several officers were killed. The occupying Japanese later took control of the site for the duration of the war.
The wider house precinct, including the former ammunition bunkers, gun emplacement and observation post and ranging station just to the north of the house, are also included in the heritage listing.
Condition
The Administrator's House was extensively remodelled in 1965 although the service area is little altered from its original form. The gun emplacement complex is intact despite the post war conversion of the ammunition bunkers to provide servants' quarters and other support functions for the Administrator's House.
Heritage listing
The Administrators House Precinct was listed on the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004.
The Administrator's House is a historic reminder and symbol of colonial rule of Christmas Island, when it was incorporated into the Straits Settlement of Singapore and has been the focus for official duties and functions. The imposing scale of the residence and its location in a prominent position looking across Flying Fish Cove emphasises the previous social importance of the Administrator and provides an important visual focal point from several other parts of the settlement. The gun emplacement and ammunition bunkers have historical significance as a reminder of earlier military threats to the Island and through their direct association with the 1942 mutiny and the subsequent Japanese invasion of the Island.
Museum
As of 2020, the house served as a museum documenting the history of Christmas Island. The upper floor of the building contains a museum. The museum reopened on 2 July 2018, after it had been unable to accept visitors due to the closure of the access road. The galleries show the history of Christmas Island, as well as its cultural heritage. The house and its precinct are often a location for local community-led events. It is open daily.
Memorials
The precinct is the site of annual remembrance day services. Nearby is the SIEV X Memorial, which commemorates the deaths over four hundred asylum seekers in 2001.
References
- ^ "Administrators House Precinct (Place ID 105337)". Australian Heritage Database. Australian Government. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
- ^ "Tai Jin House". Parks Australia. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
- ^ "Christmas Island: is this Australia's best kept travel secret?". Lonely Planet. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ^ "Opening of Smith Point Road and Tai Jin House". www.regional.gov.au. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ^ "Tai Jin House". Commonwealth Walkway Trust. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ^ Cole, Rebecca (2017). "Creating cultural memory: public memorials to asylum seekers in Australia".
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Bibliography
- Forrest, P. (1989). Christmas Island Cultural Heritage Survey.
- Godden Mackay Logan (1998). Christmas Island Heritage Review. Department of Transport and Regional Development.
- Paterson, Christopher (July 1996). Christmas Island Gun Battery - Conservation & Management Plan & Final Report on Urgent Works. Christmas Island Administration.
- Paterson, Christopher (June 1996). Christmas Island Naval Gun & Associated Buildings. Christmas Island Shire Council.
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Attribution
This Wikipedia article was originally based on Administrators House Precinct, entry number 105337 in the Australian Heritage Database published by the Commonwealth of Australia 2019 under CC-BY 4.0 licence, accessed on 15 May 2019.