Levey left Sydney for London in 1826 and there in June 1829 he gave James Holt, a cousin of Daniel Cooper who had arrived in Sydney from London via Hobart Town in November 1825 with a capital of A£2,300 and had taken up a position in that firm, a limited power of attorney to deal with certain of Level's partnership assets.

Subsequently, in June 1831 Cooper gave a similar power to Holt when he left Sydney in that year for London never to return to Australia.

[1] Possibly feeling the need for a house away from the city, and the Waterloo Warehouse the firm's principal place of business, and no doubt in view of his impending admission to partnership in the firm, Holt instructed John Verge in September 1834 to prepare plans for "a cottage proposed to be erected at Rose Bay".

A the time of this settlement (December 1843) the whole of the 460-hectare (1,130-acre) grant was described as "occupied by a dwelling house erected thereon and about (blank) acres cleared and cultivated now or late in the possession of James Holt.

He returned to England at the age of 14 to complete his education, but came back to Australia in 1843 and became a commercial partner with James Holt.

In the Sydney Morning Herald in March of that year, there was an advertisement stating that "Rose Bay Cottage", the residence of Sir Daniel Cooper was available to rent.

[5] By this time, Sir Daniel Cooper was a member of Parliament and had been elected as Speaker of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.

He said "Rose Bay and its one large low house, alone and its orderly grounds, crisp trim lawns and splashing fountain (is) where Sir Daniel Cooper once dispensed his generous hospitality'.

[6] A photograph of his house in 1855 showing its isolation in Rose Bay and a close up picture of the fountain referred to is shown below.

No express provision was contained in the lease permitting the lessee to make improvements and if any were made these became the property of the lessor.

[1] After Cooper vacated the house it is said to have been occupied for a short time by Walter Lamb (1825-1906) before Sir John Hay (1816-1892) took up a lengthy residence of it.

Overthorpe's magnificent specimens of great age and scale are testament to the 19th century passion for collecting and displaying rare and exotic trees.

At this sale Victor Louis Bosker Haigh, barrister and Grace Ann Friedericks, married woman, purchased the house and its present grounds.

Subsequently, they sold it to Leah Abrahams in 1912 and after her death in c. 1951 it was transferred to Muriel Deborah Quirk, Alma Madeline Marks and Vera Gwendoline Hinde in equal shares.

Evidence was submitted at the inquiry that confirmed the heritage significance of Rose Bay Cottage and that the main building could be attributed to architect John Verge.

Following a conference between the parties, Commissioner Dr. Alan Gilpin adjourned proceedings to enable further investigations on alternative uses for the building.

[1] The Heritage Council considered four options for the use of the site to permit an economic form of development and retain and restore the original cottage.

An approach was made to Woollahra Council to gain support for changing the use of the property and if necessary rezoning the site as incentive to the owners to undertake restoration.

[1] The earliest section of Rose Bay Lodge was a single storey colonial verandahed cottage villa in a suburban situation.

Cooper was the first elected Speaker of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly in 1856 and a generous philanthropist, contributing to the relief of widows and children of soldiers killed in the Crimean war.

Levey left Sydney for London in 1826 and there in June 1829 he gave James Holt, a cousin of Daniel Cooper who had arrived in Sydney from London via Hobart Town in November 1825 with a capital of 2300 pounds and had taken up a position in that firm, a limited power of attorney to deal with certain of Level's partnership assets.

Subsequently, in June 1831 Cooper gave a similar power to Holt when he left Sydney in that year for London never to return to Australia.

[1] Possibly feeling the need for a house away from the city, and the Waterloo Warehouse the firm's principal place of business, and no doubt in view of his impending admission to partnership in the firm, Holt instructed John Verge in September 1834 to prepare plans for "a cottage proposed to be erected at Rose Bay".

A the time of this settlement (12/1843) the whole of the 460-hectare (1,130-acre) grant was described as "occupied by a dwelling house erected thereon and about (blank) acres cleared and cultivated now or late in the possession of James Holt.

[1] After Cooper vacated the house it is said to have been occupied for a short time by Walter Lamb (1825-1906) before Sir John Hay (1816-1892) took up a lengthy residence of it.

At this sale Victor Louis Bosker Haigh, barrister and Grace Ann Friedericks, married woman, purchased the house and its present grounds.

Subsequently, they sold it to Leah Abrahams in 1912 and after her death in c.1951 it was transferred to Muriel Deborah Quirk, Alma Madeline Marks and Vera Gwendoline Hinde in equal shares.

[1] The earliest section of Rose Bay Lodge was a single storey colonial verandahed cottage villa in a suburban situation.

It is a rare extant example of a pre 1840s single storey colonial verandahed cottage villa of consequence built in a suburban situation.

[25][1] The original house was designed by John Verge, a prominent architect is Sydney during the 1830s and is characteristic of his work in both planning and detailing.