[1] In the 1830s the whole area from Potts Point to Kings Cross and up to Oxford Street was known as Darlinghurst- probably named in honour of Governor Ralph Darling’s (1824–31) wife, Eliza.

The rocky ridge that extended inland from Potts Point was called Eastern or Woolloomooloo Hill from the early days of white settlement.

The ridge of Woolloomooloo Hill beckoned, offering proximity to town and incomparable views from the Blue Mountains to the heads of Sydney Harbour.

[1] The private residences that were built on the grants were required to meet Darling's so-called "villa conditions" which were possibly determined and overseen by his wife, who had architectural skills.

These ensured that only one residence was built on each grant to an approved standard and design, that they were each set within a generous amount of landscaped land and that, in most cases, they faced the town.

By the mid-1830s the parade of "white" villas down the spine of Woolloomooloo Hill presented a picturesque sight, and was visible from the harbour and town of Sydney.

[1][2] Tusculum was named by its original owner, Alexander Brodie Spark (1792–1856), after a town in the Alban Hills, 10 kilometres south-east of Rome where wealthy Romans built luxurious villas – that of Cicero being especially famous.

[1] An interesting letter from Emily Crawley (née Broughton) to Phoebe Boydell, dated 22 September 1850, describes the accommodation arrangements at Tusculum for the Conference of Australasian Bishops held in October that year.

(letter to Coleridge, 16 February 1848) – 'lt is a sad, imperfect place and anything but episcopal in pretensions: but it is in a cheerful situation and good air, and answers my purposes tolerably well.

In the 1870s, heavy land taxes imposed by the administration of the Premier, Sir Henry Parkes, led to another wave of subdivisions of the original grants.

The cast iron balustrade design on the verandahs at Tusculum is very similar to those at Fiona, Edgecliff (1864), Guntawang (1869–70) and the Prince of Wales Theatre (1863) all works of Hilly.

[1] In the 1920s and 1930s, the original villas and the later grand 19th century residences were demolished to make way for blocks of flats, hotels and later, soaring towers of units.

[2][1] Following its use as a serviceman's club during World War II and a private nursing home, the building fell into disrepair and was the subject of a compulsory resumption in 1983, being the first under the provisions of the (then) recently gazetted NSW Heritage Act 1977.

[1] Subsequently, the NSW Chapter of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA) leased Tusculum for 99 years, on the condition that it will be responsible as custodian for the restoration and maintenance of the building and for making it available for public enjoyment.

In addition, the NSW Government sold the freehold of the back section of the Tusculum site to the RAIA and the Heritage Council gave permission for a new building to be constructed adjoining the villa.

The new building, which was the subject of a national competition, won by the architectural firm Levine & Durbach, houses the RAIA and subsidiary organisations, a 143-seat auditorium, and offices.

It retains significant components of the original Verge design, with overlays of other periods particularly 1870s verandah rework and internal stair modifications dating to Edwardian times.

Spark, it was one of the first villas to be erected on Woolloomooloo Hill, as part of an elaborate attempt by the Colonial Government to establish a prestigious enclave for the gentry in the 1830s.

[1] Apart from Bishop Broughton, the house is associated with many other prominent Sydney figures including Spark, a colonial merchant whose rapid rise and decline with the collapse of the Bank of Australia mirrored the depression of the 1840s.

Designed by the famous architect John Verge, Tusculum is one of the finest Regency mansions in Sydney remaining from the early Colonial period.

Together with its neighbour "Rockwall", also by John Verge, Tusculum was one of the first villas built on Woolloomooloo Hill as part of the Colonial Government's attempt to establish a prestigious enclave for the gentry in the 1830s.

As a social document, Tusculum demonstrates the "upstairs / downstairs" nature of domestic administration, typical of nineteenth century English houses.

It is the principal physical manifestation of the life of the emancipist William Long and his family whose occupation, alterations and substantial additions indicate his rise to fortune social acceptance as a merchant.

The site offers potential to explore the construction techniques and materials of Colonial Sydney and of later periods and as an example for comparative analysis of a rare villa design.