633 Manchester Road

Address: 633 Manchester Road
Built: 1910
1912 householder: Allen McKechnie, newspaper employee

A building permit for this modest five room bungalow with a hipped roof was issued on 11 July 1910 to William Dunford & Son. To a casual observer, this may not appear to be an Edwardian-era building since so many of its original exterior features have been removed or covered with stucco. But its vintage is evident in the hipped roof and the cantilevered box bay on the front of the house.

The house may have been built as an investment property by the Dunfords. When the census was taken in June 1911, this was the home of Robert Sword, 29, an Australian born accountant; Violet Sword, 24, an English born homemaker; and their son 9 year old son, William. This may have been a temporary abode for the Sword family, because in the 1912 directory Robert Sword, stockbroker, is listed at 1020 Collinson Street. Allen McKechnie lived here from 1912 until the early 1920s. In the 1912 directory, he is listed as an “employee” with the Victoria Daily Colonist; in later years, he is listed as a clerk and salesman with various wholesale and retail firms.