85-87 Penshurst Street, Willoughby
In 1864 Joseph Myerscough a nurseryman & florist bought 4 acres from William Lithgow. In 1884 after the death of Myerscough the property was bought by Joseph and Marie Griffiths. Laurelbank is thought to have been built in 1884, although some evidence suggests it wasn’t built until 1891. The building is brick, cement rendered to look like stone, on stone foundations. The roof is slate with an iron slightly hipped verandah roof. The front door is decorated with Waterford glass panels. A separate building containing coach house and stables with an upstairs loft is out the back. Joseph Griffiths died 23 Oct 1924, aged 85, and Marie died 17 May 1926, aged 87. In 1928 Mrs Lilian Hannah Warhurst purchased the property, selling to her daughter Lilian Emily Florance in 1934. The Florance family lived there until 1964. In 1942 & 3 extra land was purchased and a tennis court and tennis shed were built. In 1965 Laurelbank was purchased by Kuringai Lodge Pty Ltd, a Masonic lodge. The internal walls of the main building and the upper area of the coach house were converted for lodge use. A car park was built on the tennis court, and the tennis shed converted to caretaker’s quarters. New Lodge rooms were built out the back in 1966. In 1989 Laurelbank was placed under a Heritage Order. In the early 1990s the Lodge was restored.