McLachlan Street, Northcote

5 McLachlan Street, Northcote was known as 'West Bend'. John Grindrod of Collingwood purchased allotments 2 and 3 of Section 10 in the Northcote Township during October 1853. Soon after, it is claimed he built 'West Bend' there and moved in with his wife, Ann.

It would appear to have been the first house built in Northcote, but the family was living in Collingwood in the 1850s and appears not to have moved to Northcote until 1856 at the earliest. The family, with 12 children, lived there until Ann died in 1910.

Towards the end of her life she leased the house to James Gibbs, a contractor. After her death, it was owned by Lilian and John Hewitt. A Grindrod grand-daughter, Dorothea married the Hon. John Cain in 1925. The house is double-fronted, with 3 stages of development - stone (1850s), brickwork (1880s)and the last renovation in 1910. It faces the Merri Creek. The original stone section has been demolished.

Butler, Graeme (1982). City of Northcote urban conservation study. Alphington: City Of Northcote.