Lionel Samson Building, 31 -33 Cliff Street (Lot 9) with Fanny Samson cottage at 35 Cliff St (Lot 10)
History: Lionel Samson came to Western Australia in 1829. He is believed to have been one of the first three people to take up allotments in Fremantle in September 1829. He was granted a spirit merchant’s licence and began to operate a wine, spirit and grocery business in a small cottage. (reference) He returned to England in 1842 to marry, returning with wife, Fanny Levi. They were the first Jewish family in WA and lived in Perth until after the birth of their 6 children, when they moved to Fremantle in 1856. Son, W.F. Samson, took over the company after Lionel’s death in 1878, and the business remained in the family’s hands- on this original site, continuously for nearly 200 years.
A stone building on Lot 9 was demolished in 1891, and a larger office building (Lionel Samson Building 31-33 Cliff Street) was built for the company on the site in 1892 by Sir J. Talbot Hobbs. The cottage, office building and warehouse were burnt in a fire in the 1890s and all were rebuilt. (The fire also engulfed the old Customs Store at No. 40 Cliff Street.) The new building for the Head Offices of Samson Co. was completed in 1898 under the supervision of F. W. Burwell. The façade lettering ‘Established 1829’ refers to the business, not the building itself.
Samson Cottage (35 Cliff Street) was used as a warehouse in the 1870s. After Lionel died, his widow Fanny lived in the house until 1888. The cottage was then leased to a bank, and served as a commercial bank and residence. Samson Cottage was restored in 1978-79 for use as a museum by architect Kim Stirling. Works revealed that the limestone came from Arthur's Head and the bricks were French, used as ballast in sailing ships. An unusual truss system roof, used in some houses at Rottnest Island, was also revealed. A cinema room on the ground floor featured old seats from His Majesty's Theatre, Perth. The renovation received a Fremantle Award.
OCCUPANTS
1898 - 1938 Samson & Son, Lionel (estab 1829) wine & spirit merchants wholesale, & wholesale grocers (1898: government auctioneers; 1928-1935: John H Payne, manager)
1909 - 1938 Sun Insurance Office Limited, Lionel Samson & Son (1909-1929: agents; 1928-1938: chief agents)
1928 - 1929 Watkins, Mrs Agnes A, manager
1938 - 1949 Western Star Milling Co. Ltd., store
