Arnott’s Bakehouse
Quarter
The
Bakehouse Quarter in George Street Homebush is the redevelopment of the former
Arnott’s Biscuit Factory, which was relocated to Huntingwood in 1997. The
Bakehouse Quarter incorporates a range of businesses such as Arnotts and NRMA
Head Offices, shops and cafes. It has successfully readapted many historic
buildings of the former Arnott’s Biscuit Factory, preserving icons such as the
prominent SAO neon sign.
Arnott’s Biscuits and the Arnott family are important in the history of
Strathfield. Many members of the Arnott’s family lived in Strathfield including
its founder William Arnott and his sons and grandsons, who managed the business
after his death in 1901.
Arnott’s Biscuits were originally established in Newcastle but the first Sydney
factory at Forest Lodge was opened in 1894. In 1905, the Arnott family wanting
to expand, decided that a larger factory was required. Requiring access to the
railway for transportation, the Arnott’s purchased a six and half acre site at
Homebush in 1906. The purchase was known as ‘Arnott’s Folly’ as the site was
considered too far from the City to attract workers. However, the Homebush
factory which opened in 1908 was eventually the largest in the Southern
Hemisphere and exported biscuits from Homebush to the rest of the world.
The architect Charles Slatyer was engaged to design the new factories in 1906.
Slatyer, one-time President of the NSW Institute of Architects was also a
resident of Strathfield until his death in 1919. He designed many private
residences in Strathfield but also designed commercial buildings such as the Art
Nouveau remodelling of the YMCA in Pitt Street Sydney. Slatyer’s Arnott’s
factory designs have been described as Edwardian factory buildings at their
best, incorporating fine brickwork detailing.
Though the Arnott’s factory has left Homebush, the Bakehouse Quarter provides
many references to its Arnotts history ranging from the SAO sign to small
Arnott’s Parrot emblems woven into building facades. George St has been recast
with a cobblestone road and Edwardian style-lighting harking back to the days in
the early twentieth century when the Arnott factory was first built.
This article was first published in Strathfield Scene February 2005.
Author and Copyright information
This article was written by Cathy Jones, 2005
© Cathy Jones 2005. This article is subject to copyright and may not be
reproduced without permission of the author.
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