The five-storey residence at 4 Wiltshire Drive, Kew, was built on the former administration building of Kew Lunatic Asylum.
A five-storey home built on a former shelter that hosted Australia’s best cricketers has gone on the market for around $2.75m in a suburb of Melbourne.
The former Kew Lunatic Asylum, later renamed Willsmere, was one of Australia’s largest and operated for over a century from 1871-1988.
Some of its notable patients included Bill Farnan, Australia’s first heavyweight boxing champion, and Test cricketers Billy Midwinter and Patrick McShane who both died in the asylum – although they were in another part of the administrative building where the home is located.
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George “Harry” Trott, an Australian cricket captain and test player in the 1800s, also wound up in an asylum after suffering a mental health breakdown following the nation’s 1897-1898 Ashes victory.
Tom Wills, who helped found Australian rules football, also spent time in a mental hospital.
Originally conceived to accommodate Victoria’s growing population of lunatics, idiots and drunkards, the Italianate design by architects GW Vivian and Frederick Kawerau is considered a Melbourne landmark.
Sold by the Victorian government shortly after decommissioning, the former asylum and its extensive surrounding gardens were redeveloped into housing which opened in 1993.
![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 1280 720"%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Australia’s national cricket team of 1893, including Harry Trott at left end of the middle row.
The main living area of the home is a spacious area larger than the rest of the houses themselves.
High-style living within a five-level apartment.
One of its most impressive residences is 4 Wiltshire Drive, a five-bedroom, five-storey house now hitting the market with an asking price of $2.75m which would make it among the most expensive in the building.
The home is built on the premises of the former administrative unit.
Lloyd Lawton of Jellis Craig Boroondara said the listing price was based largely on the sale of another home in the complex, 106 Wiltshire Drive, which has a larger, seven-level floor plan and sold for $2.85m in 2024.
Records show the current owners paid $1.95m for Number 4 when they bought the home in 2018, but Mr Lawton noted it was actually their second purchase in the property.
![A photo of Australian Rules football founder Tom Wills with a cricket bat.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 768 1024"%3E%3C/svg%3E)
A photo of Australian Rules football founder Tom Wills with a cricket bat.
An open plan home office and sleeping area on one of the upper floors of the home.
A large kitchen gives residents plenty of space to cater for a crowd or family.
“These owners bought it, and they lived in another part of the building before,” he said.
“So this was better. And a lot of people do that after they come in.”
He expects families, who may have teenage children who will attend highly sought-after local schools, to be the most likely buyers.
“And it’s good for safety and security, once you’re inside the walls, you can let the kids run around safely like my generation did when they were kids,” he said.
Expats and those looking for a place to lock and move in Melbourne can also enjoy the offer.
The frontage of the administration building is large and impressive.
Soaring interior ceilings and herringbone floors give the home a character appeal.
The home also has a balcony with impressive views, surrounded by trees.
And while the space may have had a reputation as a shelter, it was intended to be a place of health and rejuvenation — something the current owners have embraced by turning the third-floor living space into a yoga retreat with a sauna.
The extensive grounds include a gym, pool and tennis court.
Mr Lawton said the home also offers a number of features that cannot be duplicated elsewhere in the area.
A four-story floorplan cannot be achieved with maximum height throughout a three-story suburban area. Compared to the loft, the views from the upper level of the home are incomparable in almost any other living space.
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