Who
Sydney Philip Emanuel, younger brother of Isadore, was born 1861 in NSW. He was on that back-breaking first journey, with the original party led by Michael Durack, his father’s partner’s son. They landed at Cambridge Gulf and made their way along the Ord River through the West Kimberley to Beagle Bay.
He married Alice Denton (39) in Perth in 1899, but they did not have children. He contracted architect Charles Lancelot Oldham to design their home, Bellevue, in Forrest Street, Peppermint Grove before moving in 1903 to another Oldham designed home - Craigmore on Kings Park Road, the only house between Outram Street and Ventnor Avenue.
“Is one of the wealthiest of the ‘chosen people’ in Perth. His father owned a station in the Nor’-West, but resided at Sydney. S P ran a livery stable in Sydney for a while, but it did not pay, so he emigrated to Westralia before the gold rush. Fell in with the late Alec Forrest, whose service he entered, subsequently becoming his partner in the firm of Forrest, Emanuel, and Co. Owns stations in the Nor’-West about the size of England, and formed the meat ring which enabled them to regulate the supply and prices in the metropolis. About 5ft 10in high, dark, and pleasant looking, ‘Syd’ is one of the best judges of horseflesh in the State and is a capital whip. Has one of the finest homes in Perth. Free-handed and open-hearted, has no false pride and is consequently well-liked. Adopted the daughter of the late Justice Moorhead, being married, but having no olive branches of his own.”
Through the Spyglass by ‘Truthful Thomas’, 1905
In 1918 Sydney retired to Marylebone, London, where he died, aged just 58, on the 27th of April 1919, leaving an estate worth roughly $14m today. Alice outlived him by nearly thirty years and died in 1947, aged 87.
What, Where, When
Sydney bought this 1907 Humber from the Armstrong Cycle and Motor Agency in October 1907, shortly after which this photo was taken:
“On page 30 is shown a very handsome 15 hp Humber car, fitted up most luxuriously, lately sold by the Armstrong Cycle and Motor Agency to Mr S P Emanuel. Beyond the regular Humber features, handsome detailed finish, luxurious upholstery and fittings, and extreme quietness of running, this car is remarkable from the fact that it is the first car received in the State fitted with the new type of gate change speed with selector levers. Amongst experts this is recognised as the simplest and safest form of gate change ever introduced, and by its employment the driver can change from the first to the top gears, or vice-versa, without going through the intermediate gears.”
Western Mail, 19 October 1907
They are parked at the front of Craigmore, with Sydney standing at the rear and Alice seated in the back. The younger woman in the front bears a strong resemblance to Muriel Emanuel, Sydney’s sister in law. The other woman in the back is unknown. Driving is Sydney’s English chauffeur Alfred ‘Alf’ Adams, who was extremely well-known in the motor car industry
Humber (15 H.P., 4 Cyl.) the property of Sydney Emanuel, Esq.
Craigmore, Sydney Emanuel’s home on Kings Park Road, West Perth, c1905. Designed by Charles Oldham, it was described as “one of the finest homes in Perth.” It was rented by St Mary’s Anglican Girls’ School in 1959 to 1965 before being demolished and replaced in 1967 with the green-roofed apartment block, Kingsway Gardens. The cupola, on the roof, was sold to Alan Herman of 143 Forrest Street, Peppermint Grove, and the subsequent owner (from 1966) installed it as a ‘tea house’ beside the pool. When the house sold again in 1996, the new owners donated the cupola back to St Mary’s, where it now stands proudly in their grounds. Courtesy State Library of Western Australia, Image 006622PD.
The purchase of Sydney Emanuel’s Humber in the Western Mail, 19 October 1907.