Pat Reh’s grandfather, William Hough, would not recognise the house he built in 1929.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It has tripled in size with a tasteful renovation which pays tribute to family – past and present.
‘‘We’ve had weddings, Christmases and birthdays here for our family for generations and we wanted enough room to be able to continue that well into the future,’’ says Reh.
It was one of the first houses in Evans Street, which runs parallel to Kembla Street on the southern side of Crown Street.
‘‘It was decidedly blue collar with most of the residents either working in the steel or mining industries,’’ says Reh.
Generational change has re-generated the street with impressive renovations.
Pat as a baby with her mother June Brooks, great-grandmother Julia Hough and grandfather, William Hough.‘‘The fibro house next door belonged to my uncle Charlie Sweeney when I was a kid but it has also been dramatically modernised, and just recently sold,’’ says Reh.
It is a street where property is tightly held and the majority of turnover is done within families.
Reh and husband, Klaus, settled on a modern extension at the back of the original building but with touches of the past throughout.
These include the original house plans framed and hung in the front room, and the original leadlight exterior front window, which was relocated as an internal feature.
Reh clearly loves the house and describes her childhood in the house as ‘‘wonderful’’.
‘‘We moved here when I was one, when my grandfather died, and I remember it as a close-knit neighbourhood,’’ she recalls.
‘‘Christmas Day was really something when everybody would come over and celebrate and later watch my father entertain the whole street by riding a bicycle around the block backwards.’’
Reh moved to Dapto when she married Klaus but moved back after her mother died in 2002, just eight months after her father, Harry, died.
‘‘The family were pleased we retained the house and we love living here because it’s a stone’s throw from everything we want and it’s so quiet,’’ she says.
