Description

Tay Creggan is historically significant as a reminder of the way of life of the wealthiest citizens of Victoria in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The magnificent heritage building on the Yarra was built as a family home by architect Robert Guyon Purchas in 1893. It showcases Victoria’s finest examples of Victorian Queen Anne Revival architecture, with elements of design inspired by Elizabethan Revival, 19th-century Eclecticism, Arts and Crafts, Picturesque Gothic and Art Nouveau movements.

An architect’s passion project, a home for his family influenced by his travels was what Tay Creggan was intended to be. The original plan, however, did not come to fruition. In 1892 funds ran dry and the building stood incomplete.

Tay Creggan became the property of the Ladies of the Grail of the Melbourne diocese of the Catholic Church in 1938, who operated it as a hostel for young women. Strathcona Girls Grammar purchased Tay Creggan in 1969 with the help of an anonymous deposit donation and opened Australia’s first independent Year 9 girls’ campus. It is now the home to the Year 9 Tay Creggan Envision Program that teaches life-ready skills through entrepreneurship and leadership.

What's On

Tour one of Victoria’s finest examples of unique architecture, Tay Creggan, also known as “the house on the rocks."

Take a tour of this magnificent building and learn about its interesting history from alumnae, students and staff. Explore the historical building and its surroundings and take a trip down to the banks of the Yarra River.

There will be visual displays and activities run by students highlighting the unique Year 9 Envision Program Tay Creggan offers focused around entrepreneurial and life ready skills. There will also be a Jam and Cream stall where our students will fundraise for Rotary FORaMEAL for emergency food relief.