PHOTOGRAPH: DOYLE COURT, 177/191 ROKEBY ROAD, 1988

Part of a study undertaken by KA Adam and Associates architecture firm and the City of Subiaco in 1988 on the main streets of Subiaco, including Rokeby Road and Hay Street.

The building was constructed from 1905.

Doyle Court originally comprised butcher, chemist, draper & residence, Cadman's stationer & confectioner and grocers c1905. It was named after Henry Doyle, first Mayor of Subiaco, elected in May 1897. (See Spillman p102, re Cadman's.)

Subiaco began to develop as a residential and commercial area in the 1890s, with the first buildings being established along the railway line. In 1895 Rokeby Road was not yet gazetted and Hay Street was called Broome Road. By the turn of the century most of the main roads in central Subiaco were built, including Rokeby, Heytsebury, Hamersley, Bagot, Townshend, Park and Nicholson Roads. Many businesses had been established in Broome Road. Broome Road was named after Governor Broome, and was renamed Hay Street after Vice-Secretary of Colonies, 1829.

There were many land releases in the late 1890s and early 1900s as Subiaco become a popular place to settle, and businesses were attracted to the opportunity of opening in a new but stable suburb. The Rokeby Road and Hay Street commercial area was firmly established by 1915.

Over the years the nature of businesses have changed. Originally there were estate agents, dressmakers, tailors, confectioners, drapers, grocers, restaurateurs and bakers; in fact most shopping could be done without leaving the suburb.

(Sources: Wise's Post Office Directory 1893-1915; Real Estate Maps, Battye Library Collection; Spillman, Ken, Identity Prized: A History of Subiaco, City of Subiaco, UWA Press, 1985, pp. 92-110; Chate, A. H., History of Subiaco, c1952.)