Gannon House
This simple Georgian-style building is a rare surviving example of a middle-class Sydney house of the period
10am–4pm
![[object Object]](https://images.mhnsw.au/fotoweb/embed/2025/10/02118535cf2c428eae157efc1dafdb68.jpg)
About the building
Irish-born Michael Gannon was a convicted highwayman sentenced to transportation for life. He arrived in Sydney in 1820 and received a pardon in 1836.
Gannon prospered as a carpenter and joiner and built and accumulated real estate in The Rocks. He built this two-storey stone-and-brick house for his family in 1839. A rare surviving example of a middle-class Sydney house of the period, it was constructed as a dwelling with an attached shop, and workshops and stables at the rear. Gannon constructed a number of low-cost ‘speculative’ buildings in the same simple Georgian style with little ornamentation and using standard techniques and finishes. In the 1840s, he advised Sydney Council on its building code, based on his extensive building experience. From around 1916, the building served as a boarding house or hostel for the next 60 years. In 1936, it became Nurse Susan Francis’ Hostel for Homeless Women and Girls – possibly the earliest refuge for women escaping from abusive domestic relationships. The hostel was later operated by Susan Francis’ daughter and grandson until 1976. Thereafter it was conserved by the Sydney Cove Redevelopment Authority and served as commercial premises and later as an art gallery.
Built
1839
Architect
Michael Gannon
Alterations
Placemaking NSW 1976, 1997, 2025
Acknowledgements
Gannon House is owned and managed by Placemaking NSW
Find out more about this building here
Gannon House
45 Argyle Street, The Rocks
Entry details
Visitors will have access to the entire building
10am–4pm
3.30pm
Need to know
Accessible featuresThere are two steps at the entry from Argyle Street. The upper floor is only accessible via a staircase
Toilets availablePhotography allowed
