Just one street back from the Patawalonga, Cottage Homes’ Glenelg community has a history stretching back more than 130 years.
Today, Glenelg comprises 27 one-bedroom homes across ground and first-floor units, including three cottages dating from 1952. With individual and communal gardens, established shady trees and lawned areas, residents can enjoy a peaceful community while remaining close to the shops, dining, services and public transport of Glenelg.
A generous beginning
The Cottage Homes story at Glenelg began nearby in 1891, thanks to a bequest from successful South Australian businessman Ludwig Vosz.
Born in Hanover, Vosz arrived in South Australia in 1846 and established a painting, glazing and decorating business that grew to become one of the largest in the colonies and eventually became Clarkson’s Glass. He was also responsible for creating impressive stained-glass windows throughout South Australia.
His bequest funded 10 two-room homes and a large reading room at Adelphi Terrace, St Leonards, which became known as The Vosz Homes.
Other benefactors followed. In 1926, three homes were built alongside the Vosz Homes through a gift under the will of David Mundy. In 1952, three cottages opened in Tod Street following a donation from Mrs J. Alwyn Mudge in memory of her parents, George Wright and Emily Twyford Murray.
Between 1966 and 1969, proceeds from the sale of Cottage Homes properties at Brompton and Adelphi Terrace helped fund the construction of three two-storey blocks of eight units on the Tod Street site, where they remain today.
History that can still be seen
Across Cottage Homes’ locations, plaques and foundation stones provide reminders of the people whose generosity helped create homes for generations of older South Australians.
At Glenelg, a 1952 plaque commemorates Mrs Mudge’s gift and the Murray Homes, while the David Mundy cottages are also marked in recognition of his contribution.
The site continues to evolve, with partial and full refurbishments undertaken across a number of Glenelg units in 2025 as part of Cottage Homes’ ongoing work to maintain and improve its properties.
Music, gardens and creativity
Of course, the real story of any Cottage Homes location is found in the people who live there.
Long-term resident Joan Baseby, now 92, has called Glenelg home for 16 years and has been surrounded by music since childhood. Her father played piano for silent movies, while Joan studied piano from the age of seven and achieved her Associate in Music, Australia (AMusA).
Six years ago, through volunteering at the William Kibby VC Veterans’ Shed, Joan discovered the ukulele. Today she regularly plays with community groups, with her cheerful strumming also a welcome sound around Glenelg.
A keen gardener, Joan has volunteered in the Michael Herbert Memorial Garden, which honours the local pilot who lost his life serving in the Vietnam War aged just 24.
Gardening also brings back special memories for resident Patricia, who fondly recalls helping her father establish trees, preserve fruit and build a chicken coop in their family garden after the war.
Glenelg residents Philip and Anna Pike have both enjoyed fascinating careers in the arts.
Philip worked in radio, television and with the Queensland Performing Arts Trust, while also pursuing music, fine arts and writing. He has published two books and exhibited his artwork in South Australian galleries. In one memorable career highlight, his paintings inspired a symphony that was performed at St Stephen’s Cathedral while the works were exhibited in the adjoining chapel.
Anna enjoyed a long career as an actor and voice and drama coach, including playing Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire. She later became an examiner with Queensland’s Australian Music Examinations Board, travelling throughout the state as part of her role.
While pursuing their careers and raising four children, Philip says: “It was always a team effort.”
Continuing the Glenelg story
From the generosity that established the first Glenelg homes in 1891 to the residents who call Tod Street home today, this community carries with it an important part of Cottage Homes’ history.
While the buildings have changed and generations of residents have come and gone, the purpose remains – providing older South Australians living on the Age Pension with affordable, secure rental accommodation where they can live independently and be part of a community.
More than 130 years after the first Vosz Homes were built, Glenelg’s story continues on today.
