Portsea lime kiln

Portsea lime kiln

Beneath the cliffs at Portsea where luxury holiday homes command enviable views of Port Phillip Bay is a bathing box that is, in heritage terms at least, equally as impressive. It is a unique 1930s conversion of a 19th century lime kiln, transformed in sympathy with the grand mansion, "Ilyuka" standing above it

Adding substantially to our appreciation of the importance of the lime industry in Victoria's history, the box tells the story of the change in Portsea from a largely industrial area to a fashionable seaside playground.

Portsea stands at the tip of the Mornington Peninsula and it was this area which saw much of the State's lime burning activity. Our knowledge of the industry comes largely through the study of the region's remaining kilns.

An important building material

Lime is known to have been an important building material from the early days of colonial settlement. The industry commenced operations in Victoria in the late 1830s. Remaining Mornington Peninsula lime kilns date from the 1840s and are amongst the oldest buildings in Victoria.

Demand from Victoria's burgeoning building industry kept the lime burning alive until cement replaced lime at the turn of the century.

The Portsea kiln was built circa 1886 by lime merchant W.A. Blair on land that he owned. At the end of the century it was still operating as a lime-burner. Lime was heated in the kiln to change its chemical composition so that it could be used as a combining agent in mortar and plaster.

The Kiln Courtyard

Typical of kilns constructed between 1840 and 1900, the Portsea Kiln was built of limestone rubble and brick. It was built hard up against the cliff face, with wings extended towards the sea.

Kilns were usually built close to the lime deposits for easy, cost effective processing and transport. They were generally constructed as a single shaft with an open top for loading and a narrower opening at the base for discharging the finished lime product.

Metamorphosis

The kiln's metamorphosis into a bathing box was at the professional hands of notable Victorian architect Harry Norris who designed "Ilyuka" for wealthy American oil executive Henry (Harry) Calvin Cornforth. "IyukaI" was built in the Spanish Colonial, or "Pueblo" style, popular in the late 1920s and the 1930s. Even though the house was only ever used for holidays, it was lavish in its proportions and loudly proclaimed the success and social position of the Cornforths.

The bathing box was a fitting accessory, providing a stylish retreat which bathers could use to change into and out of their swimwear with decorum; or just avoid the heat of the sun.

Preservation

A picturesque heritage place, the converted kiln is also an excellent illustration of how old buildings, sensitively treated, can be given a new and useful life while retaining their historical significance. The rear wall of the building incorporates the kiln shaft, arch and draw hole; features which face inside to what is now the box's lounge area.