Australian Arms Hotel

From Hotels of Ballarat
Australian Arms Hotel
Picture needed
History
Town Ballarat
Street cnr. Sturt Street and Lyons Street.
Known dates 1887-1909

The Australian Arms was a hotel in Ballarat, Victoria, <1887-1909>.

Background[edit | edit source]

Site[edit | edit source]

The hotel was on the north side of Sturt Street, Ballarat[1][2], at corner with Lyons Street.[3]

History[edit | edit source]

In June 1887 the hotel was decorated with a transparency of the Queen, V.R., and the Australian coat of arms, to celebrate Queen Victoria's fifty year reign.[4]

The hotel was offered for sale in October 1888. The sale also included an adjoining five wooden shops, and two two-story brick residences, with an extensive Sturt Street frontage. The seller was a Mrs. Mager:

THAT WELL KNOWN HOTEL, THE AUSTRALIAN ARMS, At present occupied by Mr C. Johnson, situated at the corner of Sturt and Lyons streets, And containing Bar and 9 Rooms, Passage, Cellar, and well fitted up with all requisite conveniences for doing large business, and the whole being in good order.[5]

In June 1891 the publican was one of two charged with breaches of the licensing laws:

Theresa Dansey, licensee of the Australian Arms hotel, and Emma Gilbert, licensee of the Stork hotel, were each fined £5, with 3s 6d costs, for having the bar doors in their licensed premises unlocked during prohibited hours.[6]

In November 1895 one of the gas lights started a fire at the hotel:

At about 10.30 o’clock last night the City Fire Brigade received an intimation of a fire at the Australian Arms Hotel, at the corner of Sturt and Lyons streets. The alarm was occasioned by the ignition of the decorations of the gasalier in the bar, but fortunately the flames were extinguished before any damage had been done.[7]

In October 1896 the publican Mark Cuskey was successful in his tender for a booth at the Caledonian Sports to be held at the Eastern Oval on the 9 November.[8]

In November 1905 the publican, Christine Barney was fined 40 shillings, with costs of £1/11, for having the wrong trademarks on bottles of spirits.[9]

In November 1905 the police opposed the granting of a lease because of the poor state of the hotel:

In reference to the Australian Arms hotel, Sub-Inspector Balchin said that the place was in a very had state of repair, and he had ordered certain repairs to be done, but the order had not been complied with, and until he was assured that the repairs would be effected he would not consent to the transfer. George Bunting, hotel agent, said that the Brewing Company’s lease had expired. Mr Kenna took it over a month ago, and the present applicant was to get a new lease when the place was repaired.[10]

The hotel's license was reviewed by the License Reduction Board in April 1908:

Mr H. G. Morrow, when speaking before the Licenses Reduction Board yesterday in favor of the retention of the Australian Arms Hotel, advanced, among other reasons, that the hotel was on the road to the handball court. “No, no," quickly chipped in Mr Andrews, chairman of the board, “we can’t let you have the handball court. The Royal Don has claimed, that as its particular property. I am afraid we can't let you have the haymarket either. About a dozen hotels claim that as their happy hunting ground. Can’t you find some thing fresh?” Eventually Mr Morrow did discover a new reason for the existence of the Australian Arms. He pointed out that it was on the road to the Hospital. He also showed that the nearest licensed house on the north side of Sturt street, in a westerly, direction, was the Crown and Sceptre, six miles away, on the Burrumbeet read. This rather staggered the board, until it was discovered that there are thirteen on the south side. Mr Barr remarked, that with seventeen hotels in Sturt street, as compared with the statutory number of 36 for Ballarat, it looked as if some had to be closed, but Mr Morrow promptly countered with the argument that as the congestion of licensed houses was on the south, the victims should be chosen from that side, and not from the north, where there were but four hotels in the whole length of Sturt street.[11]

The hotel was offered for lease in January 1909.[12]

The People[edit | edit source]

See also[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1904 'LICENSING COURT.', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 5 May, p. 3. , viewed 19 Sep 2016, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article210151760
  2. 2.0 2.1 1889 'No title', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 20 June, p. 2. , viewed 17 Aug 2019, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204045056
  3. 3.0 3.1 1891 'No title', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 8 October, p. 2. , viewed 19 Feb 2020, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204316716
  4. 1887 'THE ILLUMINATIONS.', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 23 June, p. 4. , viewed 20 Dec 2020, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article207770406
  5. 5.0 5.1 1888 'Advertising', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 22 October, p. 3. , viewed 21 Feb 2020, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article209449887
  6. 6.0 6.1 1891 'No title', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 17 June, p. 2. , viewed 01 Dec 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article209716537
  7. 1895 'No title', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 26 November, p. 2. , viewed 20 Feb 2020, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article203766620
  8. 1896 'No title', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 27 October, p. 2. , viewed 20 Feb 2020, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article207494808
  9. 1905 'COUNTRY NEWS.', The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), 29 November, p. 8. , viewed 12 Mar 2021, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article10016648
  10. 10.0 10.1 1905 'POLICE COURTS.', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 4 November, p. 8. , viewed 02 Mar 2021, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article211280891
  11. 1908 'LATEST FORECAST.', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 30 April, p. 2. , viewed 20 Feb 2020, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article205463279
  12. 1909 'Advertising', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 15 January, p. 5. , viewed 21 Feb 2020, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article217275901
  13. 1894 'LICENSING COURT.', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 6 September, p. 2. , viewed 07 Aug 2021, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article209218557
  14. 1895 'No title', The Ballarat Star (Vic. : 1865 - 1924), 7 December, p. 2. , viewed 16 Mar 2018, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article203767174


External Links[edit | edit source]