Dougleen

In the 1920s, local stonemason Frank Williams embarked on a labour of love that resulted in the creation of this family home. Before building Dougleen, Frank had resided with his parents in “Almondsbury” and then in a timber home on the corner of Park and Thorn Streets. Upon his return from overseas in 1923, he subdivided the Park/Thorn allotment and began a decade of hands-on work that resulted in the quality craftsmanship still visible today.

A low set, one-storey rendered and painted brick house, all the materials used for Dougleen’s construction were made on the property. At the front of the home, above centrally placed, tapered columns, the name Dougleen was set within a decorative scroll framed by a rose, shamrock and thistle. The name Dougleen is believed to be a portmanteau that pays tribute to his wife, Georgina Douglas Williams and daughter, Kathleen Williams, whilst the flora embellishments are possibly a reference to his earlier visit to England, Ireland and Scotland.

Including unique characteristics in the construction of the family home seems to have been important to Williams. To the brick wall surrounding the front porch, he added blocks featuring alternating motifs of crosses and apostrophes, while the piers at the corners of the porch were surmounted by blocks with a club motif. For the interior of the home, he designed and built a multi-colour, ornate marble archway for the dining room. Williams also spent time in his back shed making unique cornice decorations, casting individual figures in plaster and ultimately creating friezes that featured sporting and Australian motifs. 

When Georgina and Frank died in the 1940s, Dougleen passed out of the Williams family, though subsequent owners have understood the importance of its heritage. In 2006, grant money was used to undertake conservation work of the shed in which Frank created the bricks, marble features and plaster friezes.  In 2017, Dougleen's owners received an Ipswich City Council Award for Excellence (National Trust, Best Maintained Property).