Less to trumpet about, James Morrison relists The Eyrie on Bungan Head
The Newport home of legendary jazz musician James Morrison has been relisted for sale, with reduced $3 million plus price expectations.
The Eyrie, an unusual sandstone five-bedroom house with tower on a 1665-square-metre block at Bungan Head last traded for $790,000 in 1994.
Coming with views of both Newport and Bungan beaches, it's being marketed as a potential development site.
Its McGrath listing agent Geoff Grist was initially seeking $3.75 million-plus for rendered sandstone house, The Eyrie in March this year.
It has has sweeping lawns, a 20-metre lap pool, a Balinese cabana, pizza oven and a guest cabin overlooking the pool.
When it was bought in 1994 from Ross Barwick, Sir Garfield Barwick's son, it was being advertised as an "unfixable dump".
Title Tattle recalls when the then neglected estate was auctioned in 1994 it was hotly contested by the tenants of 14 years, Rodney Booth and Sue Cummings, but a determined Morrison paid $90,000 more than the reserve.
Morrison sold his other Newport home for $935,000 shortly after.
Bungan Head Road's most recent sale was around $2.9 million at 58 Bungan Head Road sold before auction earlier this month, having sold in 2012 at $2.66 million, and there are whispers of another off-market sale.
RP Data list around 116 properties on the road, with 16 sales above $2 million over the years. There have been four sales above $4 million, topped off at $4.65 million in August 2006 some 11 months after being listed with $5 million hopes. There are six properties with 1500 square metres or more on dress circle strip.
The name Bungan is first recorded in a survey in 1814 as Bongin Bongin, referring to the 700 acres which included present day MONA VALE and Bungan granted to Robert Campbell junior.
Bungan Beach is bordered by MONA VALE to the south and Newport to the west and north.
The land rises to the summit of Bushrangers Hill at 103 metres, a natural lookout point - which despite the name has no known connection with bushrangers.
In 1890s Alfred Yewen built a cottage, Bungania, at the north end of the beach headland.
Before the 1920s few people lived at Bungan.
MONA VALE library records reveal in 1908 that the Napier Thomson family of Whitecourt, Cremorne built The Eyrie, presumably then a one bedrrom cottage on a much bigger land holding.
In 1919 Adolph Albers built Bungan Castle atop Bungan headland.
Transport in those days was by horse and cart or on foot, the library archives noted. Families kept a few cows to supply milk. Apparently time was spent walking, fishing, boating, or bathing. And presumably entertaining themselves with musical instruments.
The Thomson's were still in residence in 1939 when there was a report of their daughter's 21 birthday party with guests including Trafford Whitelock, the ballet dancer.
"A gay assortment of shorts, playsuits, dirndls and coloured cotton frocks was worn by the guests at the treasure-hunt which was given on Saturday afternoon and evening by Mr. and Mrs. L. Napier Thomson, of Cremorne at their charming stone cottage, The Eyrie, which is perched high up on the cliffs at Newport, in honour of the twenty-first birthday of their elder daughter, Miss Hazel Napier Thomson. The actual treasure-hunt was followed by a picnic tea on the verandahs and lawns."
