By MICK ROBERTS ©
THROUGH wheatbelt country, to the rugged, but beautiful south-west and Margaret River regions of Western Australia, our February 2025 road trip provided an opportunity to visit a selection of fascinating pubs, explore their history, and discover a few yarns along the way.
We talked with publicans and locals, enjoying their hospitality and soaking-up the atmosphere on a 1,140km road trip, which began at one of Perth’s oldest hotels. We stayed the night at the Criterion Hotel before collecting our hire car, and driving east into the hills to the Wheatbelt country.
The Criterion Hotel, Perth
The art-deco façade of Hay Street’s Criterion Hotel greets you with impressiveness as you approach. It indeed looks grand from the street. However, once you’re inside you quickly realise there’s a lot more work needed to return this old lady from Perth’s past back to its grandeur.
The Criterion seems tired, and, to be honest, a little neglected.
The hotel claims to be Perth’s oldest licensed hotel. However, if the hotel continues to hold its liquor license as claimed, it’s currently not in use, with the street-front bar closed, and with no sign of re-opening. In fact, I’m told the bar has not operated for many years.
While researching the history of Criterion Hotel, I came across a number of inconstancies in its establishment year. However, through careful research I’ve managed to discover that the Hay Street hotel opened as the John Bull Inn in the year 1850. John Bull was slang at the time for England or typical Englishmen.
The single-storey inn was owned by William Rogers, who prior to leaving Perth for the Californian gold-rush, organised for 27-year-old Thomas Roach to gain a license for the property as an inn or tavern.
The building was more than likely the home of Rogers, Mary his wife, and half-a-dozen of their children.
Thomas Roach licensed Rogers’ property as the John Bull Inn on January 1 1850. Beside the taproom, the inn contained three sitting-rooms and two bedrooms. The pub became famous for its courtyard, with its ferns and creepers, and bird aviaries, a feature for over 80 years.
Twenty-two days after the inn was licensed 45-year-old William Rogers sailed for California leaving his wife, Mary and his tribe of children behind in Perth.
As the times dictated, a man received a liquor license much easier than a woman, and a plan was likely hatched for Roach to license Rogers’ Hay Street home. This would provide Mary an income while her husband sought his fortune in the Americas.
Whether Rogers ever made his fortune is unknown. However, Mary’s husband is believed to have never returned to Australia and likely died in the United States.
The license of the John Bull Inn was transferred from Roach to Mary Rogers seven months after her husband sailed for California, in August 1850. Mary was 41 and heavily pregnant with her sixth child.
Despite her husband leaving her with a tribe of children, Mary Rogers would become a successful colonial innkeeper, and she hosted the John Bull Inn for 11 years from August 1850 to January 1861.
After retiring as host, she leased the inn to numerous publicans, while running a millinery store on Adelaide Terrace, Perth. She eventually sold the freehold of the pub to 31-year-old John Charles Chipper in 1878. Chipper and his wife Emelia had been leasing the pub from Mary Rogers since 1871.
Mary would live to the age of 84 and died in 1893. She was described by newspapers at the time of her death as one of Western Australia’s “oldest and most respected colonists, having arrived at Fremantle within a few years of the colony’s foundation, in 1834”.
After buying ‘The John Bull’ in 1878, Chipper – who had previously worked as a carpenter (a brilliant surname for a carpenter) – improved the business by enlarging the small inn. In March 1878 he began making “extensive additions to the premises, which will render this favourite hotel one of the most extensive and accommodating in the metropolis”.
In 1883 Chipper replaced the single storey inn with a new two-storey hotel. The name of the new hotel was officially changed from the John Bull Inn to the Criterion Hotel on 3 December 1883.
After more than 20 years as host of the Criterion, Chipper leased the pub to R. J. Gooch in March 1893 and went on to other business ventures before selling the freehold to Sir Arthur Stepney in 1894.
John Charles Chipper continued as a publican in Geraldton for a number of years before retiring to Perth where he died in 1906 at the age of 59.
Stepney’s official title, Sir Emile Algernon Arthur Keppel Cowell-Stepney, the 2nd, was a wealthy and eccentric British landowner who arrived in Western Australia in December 1893 at the age of 59 to invest in property. He had been a member of the English House of Commons for Carmarthen, Wales, before arriving in Australia, buying significant estates, mines, and vineyards.
After the departure of Chipper from the Criterion Hotel, its new owner, Cowell-Stepney leased the property to Swan Brewery. For almost the next century, the Criterion Hotel became exclusively ‘tied’ to the Swan Brewery, selling only their beer, and products.
The Criterion became a favoured hotel to the wealthy and famous during the 1890s and early 1900s.
Former United States president, Herbert Hoover was a regular guest at the old Criterion Hotel on his periódical trips to the Western Australian goldfields.
Before his presidency and political career, the American mining engineer visited the Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie goldfields in 1897.
After his marriage in the United States in 1899, Hoover returned to Western Australia in 1902, 1903, 1905 and 1907 for long periods, inspecting, re-organising and rationalising his mining interests.
His wife Lou Henry Hoover stayed at the Criterion Hotel in Perth rather than accompany her husband to the goldfields and was a permanent boarder there for lengthy periods.
A philanthropist, geologist, and the future first lady of the United States from 1929 to 1933, Lou Hoover had fond memories of the old festoons of ferns that trailed coolly and gracefully from the residential balconies of the hotel.
It’s also worth mentioning here that 22-year-old Hoover is rumoured to have had an affair with a barmaid at Kalgoorlie’s Palace Hotel during his visits to Western Australia.
Hoover reportedly fell in love with the barmaid before leaving to marry his college sweetheart and continue his mining career in China, before rising to take the American Presidency in 1929. He is also claimed to have composed a poem to the barmaid, an excerpt of which is on display in the Palace Hotel. The public library in Kalgoorlie attributes the poem to Hoover, as does the local Goldfields Museum.
First published and credited to Hoover in 1933 by Australian journalist Arthur Reid, the poem has become part of Australian folklore.
“Do you ever dream, my sweetheart, of a twilight long ago,
Of a park in old Kalgoorlie, where the bougainvilleas grow,
Where the moonbeams on the pathways trace a shimmering brocade
And the overhanging peppers form a lovers’ promenade,
Where in soft cascades of cadence from a garden close at hand
Came the murmurous mellow music of a sweet orchestral band?“
Hoover’s biographer, George H. Nash dismissed the poem as a hoax and said there is no evidence to prove its authenticity.
What is authentic though is an elaborately carved mirror which stands in the foyer of the Palace Hotel in Kalgoorlie. The mirror was Hoover’s parting gift to the hotel where he spent much of his time when he was in Kalgoorlie.
Coming back to the Criterion, Arthur Cowell-Stepney would own the Perth hotel up until his death in 1909.
Aged 74, he was found dead on a railway station at Yuma, Arizona, in the United States on 2 July 1909, having apparently gone there to try to add a rare butterfly to his collection.
After Arthur Cowell-Stepney’s death, the Swan Brewery purchased the Criterion Hotel from his estate in 1910.
A long line of licensees and proprietors would host the Criterion over the following decades, until the hotel was demolished and replaced with the current structure in 1936.
Ted Church had been at the helm of the Criterion since 1930 when owner Swan Brewery demolished the hotel in November 1936 and had temporary bars built a few doors east between the current site and Pier Street.
The replacement hotel, which Ted Church would host until 1949, was built at a cost of £42,000, with an additional outlay of over £7000 for furniture and other furnishings. The architects of the hotel were Messrs. Hobbs, Forbes and Partners, and the contractor for the building was Mr. H. A. Doust. The Perth Sunday Times reported the hotel’s opening on 4 July 1937:
IMPRESSIVE MASONRY
NEW CRITERION’S KEYNOTE OLD FAMILIES REMEMBERED
Chaste, refined and impressive is the new Criterion, which gives new dignity to the east end of Hay street. It stands as a monument to Arthur Jacoby’s [general manager of Swan Brewery] good taste and faith in the future of the State.
With Mrs. Jacoby, he received on Friday afternoon with cheery greetings members of the Norrish and Chipper families, who were identified with this hotel in days gone by, in company with a number of friends.
The honoured guest was Mrs. J. W. Norrish, who in 1878 when a very small child, laid the foundation stone of the old Criterion, then known as the John Bull Inn. She was invited to perform this second ceremony, the unveiling of a commemorative tablet which has been set in the jarrah panelled wall of the hall, thus maintaining a link with the original building. Mr A. C. McCallum first of all spoke to the gathering and recalled a number of incidents and memories of old days and remarked on the enterprise of the Swan Brewery Company in reconstructing and modernizing the hotel which is a landmark-among old buildings in Perth.
Mrs Norrish, whose son briefly replied on her behalf and expressed pleasure on being invited to unveil the tablet, then pulled the cord to release the covering Union Jack.
Mr. Norrish in speaking of the old days of the State, in which his forebears had played such a prominent part, said that not only did a member of his family lay the foundation stone of the first Criterion Hotel, but his grandmother was the first woman to pay an annual subscription to “The Sunday Times.”
Among the old-timers there were many interesting exchanges of anecdotes dipping back into the distant past. One visitor recalled how, in the nineties, Herbert Hoover, destined to become President of the United States of America, in 1929, had, with his wife, spent many weeks at the old Criterion, his favorite hostelry. Thirty-five years after Western Australians visiting the White House were plied with questions such as: “Is the old court-yard still there?” “Are the ferns, creepers and birds kept as they used to be?” For up to the time of its demolition early last year, the open court-yard with its old time greenery was a feature of the ancient building as they were of the first hotel erected on the site in 1844.
At the conclusion of the ceremony afternoon tea was served in the sunlit lounge, where the tables were artistically decorated with Iceland poppies. An orchestra provided pleasing accompaniment during the afternoon.
During the 1980s the hotel was sold by Swan Brewery and renamed the Regatta Hotel Complex before the sign returned to The Criterion in 1996 after a major refurbishment. Today the Criterion is owned by a Singaporean based investment company.
After a comfortable night at the Criterion, we leave Perth’s last remaining art-deco hotel, to visit what many consider is Western Australia’s oldest pub.
About 14kms north-east of the Criterion Hotel, about half an hour’s drive, is one of the state’s most historic pubs, and a must visit while in Western Australia – The Rose & Crown at Guildford.
The Rose & Crown, Guildford
There is some debate over whether the Rose & Crown is the state’s oldest pub, with the Albany Hotel, over 400km to the south, also contesting the coveted title.
Although records are difficult to find, the Albany Hotel is said to have opened in 1836 as The Horse and Groom, with the name changed to the Albany Hotel in 1892. The current heritage-listed hotel was built in 1852.
Guildford’s Rose & Crown claims to have been built and opened in 1841.The main hotel building is Georgian in style and built of from local hand-made bricks.
Thomas Jecks established a general store on the site in 1839, a little more than when the colony of Western Australia was a decade old. Jecks extended the business in 1841 to include the two-storey licensed inn.
If the above facts are correct, this would make the Albany Hotel Western Australia’s longest or oldest operating pub, while the Rose and Crown would be the state’s oldest pub building. I think we can all agree, the two pubs are historic treasures which should be preserved.
When we arrived at the Rose & Crown we were given a tour by a staff-member, who took us into the cellar, built by convict labour with hand made nails and hand sawn Jarrah beams, and shown its enticing bricked-up tunnel.
A four-metre deep well in the cellar is said to have been used to draw water for making illicit grog. The illegal barrels of rum were discreetly moved from the cellar through the tunnel, which leads to the Swan River. From here the grog could be safely smuggled to various inns or shanties away from the prying eyes of the law.
The bricked-up entrance of the tunnel can still be seen today. Our guide told us that the tunnel was also used for legally bringing barrels of beer and other stock from the Swan River into the pub.
The Rose & Crown is the first of three pubs we visited that lay claim to a resident ghost, or ghosts. On a winter’s night, a waitress Elizabeth Croswell was the first to see one of the resident ghosts at the Rose & Crown. It was unusual busy night when she was rushing from the dining room (Now called 1841 Room) to the kitchen with dishes. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a little old man in period clothing smoking a roll-your-own cigarette, stooped over his elbows on his knees.
The waitress went into the kitchen and asked staff what the old man was doing in the foyer. When they went to inspect, he was gone. After a search outside and around the pub, there was no sign of the old man. Legend has it that the ghost was a former publican, who was killed in the cellar when a beam fell onto him. Others say the resident ghost is bushranger, Moondyne Joe, who some say hid at the hotel during the 1860s while on the run. Whatever the truth, guests and staff at the hotel often report ghostly figures wandering the halls of the old pub.
After our tour, and a refreshing drink, we thanked our guide, and made haste to another historic pub, the Mahogany Creek Inn, which also has links to bushranger Moondyne Joe, and where tales are told of resident ghosts.
Curiously, stories of ghosts were raised at three of the pubs visited on our road trip. What’s even more peculiar is that the spirits are said to inhabit room 10 at two of the pubs! More on that later.
Mahogany Creek Inn, Mahogany Creek
The Mahogany Creek Inn is the oldest hotel on the Great Eastern Highway, once known as York Road. It began its legacy as a military barracks and evolved through time into roles as a wayside house, convict depot, and family residence before returning to a house of hospitality in 1991.
Originally founded as a military barracks, the inn served as a guardian, offering protection and solace to travellers along the rugged paths. This period marked the inception of a legacy, laying the groundwork for what would become a pivotal rest stop and gathering place for generations.
Licensed as a public house to retail liquor by 32-year-old Edward John Harold Byfield in 1843, the Prince of Wales Inn opened to service travellers on the mountain road between Guildford and York. This era saw the construction of the inn’s older sections, establishing it as the first stop for the mail coach on its weekly journey to York. The inn’s walls, bearing witness to brisk business and lively exchanges, resonate with the stories of those early days.
In 1856, the inn played a crucial role as a convict depot, its cellar a temporary hold for prisoners en-route to Perth. This chapter of its history is preserved in the cellar’s barred windows and the original table, offering a tangible link to its past.
Notably, the Inn became a haunt for infamous bushrangers, including ‘Five Day Jack’, John Purcell, and ‘Moondyne Joe’. The story of how Moondyne Joe famously jumped from the inn’s cellar window to escape the police has become part of local folklore. Whether he did or not, is uncertain. However, a picture on the wall of the inn’s cellar, showing Moondyne Joe’s shoot-out with police, is said to have been carved into the timber boards by the bushranger, while he was held there by troopers returning him to Fremantle. It shows his shoot-out with the police.
The Perth Sunday Times described Moodyne Joe in 1924 as a “weird Westralian celebrity of the romantic past”, who, while on the run dressed in marsupial skins which he got while being chased by the police after his sensational escape from the gaol”.
“The now built-up arch through which he made his exit can still be seen on the north wall of the Fremantle prison. The famous “Moondyne Hill” out on the Perth-Toodyay road was named after Joe, he having camped around there while allegedly bushranging. As a matter of historical fact, Joe was an estimable man of good and chivalrous nature, and never harmed a man or beast.”
The first record of the story of the bushrangers’ escape from the Mahogany Inn appears in newspapers from 1929. While this is an entertaining account, no evidence – except for newspaper stories published more than 60 years after the event – can be found.
Interestingly though, the story of Moondyne Joe’s escape from custody at Mahogany Creek has similar overtones to another notorious convict of the time, who did make his bid for freedom from Byfield’s inn.
A few years before Moondyne Joe terrorised the Darling Ranges, convict, John Thomas escaped while working on a road gang, attacking 71-year-old Duncan Urquhart with an axe while on the run in 1863.
Thomas was recaptured, and after Urquhart’s death from injuries sustained in the robbery, he was charged with murder. Thomas was sent to the gallows for his violent crime. This occurred a few years before Moondyne Joe was bushranging in the region, and over time may have been confused with Thomas’ escape from the law at Mahogany Creek.
John and Sarah Symonds rented the inn, which contained five bedrooms and two sitting rooms from the Byfield brothers in 1881, renaming the business, “The Oxford Inn”.
The Symonds took over the pub on the eve of great change on the Darling Ranges. The Eastern Railway was under construction, and its completion would mean the demise of coach travel, teamsters and other travellers along the Guildford to York Road, impacting trade at the wayside inn.
While the railway was under construction, the Symonds undoubtedly experienced a short-lived boost in trade, with big-drinking navvies, working on the railway, joining the bullock-drivers, timber-getters and travellers at the bar of the Mahogany Creek inn.
The Byfield brothers sold the Mahogany Creek property, including the inn, to Stephen Parker, a prominent politician ad Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Western Australia in 1883 for £450.
Symonds knew the end was neigh for the once popular wayside inn, with the Guildford to Chidlow section of the Eastern Railway nearing completion.
The Fremantle to Guildford section of the railway had opened in 1881 and when the Guildford to Chidlow line opened, it would leave Mahogany Creek, literally, high and dry, except for occasional travellers.
Symonds made plans to remove the license of the Mahogany Creek inn to a purpose built hotel at the new Chidlow rail terminus. A month before the Guildford to Chidlow section of the line was officially opened on March 11 1884, Symonds was granted permission to remove the license of the old wayside inn at Mahogany Creek to what was then known as Chidlow’s Well.
Symond’s new pub retained the name Oxford Inn, and the building contained four bed-rooms and two sitting-rooms, besides the usual bar rooms, kitchen and outhouses. The Oxford Inn at Chidlow continued to trade until 1891.
For a more detailed history of the Mahogany Inn, visit the Time Gents’ story: Bushrangers and desperadoes gathered at the Mahogany Creek inn
Meanwhile after the sale of the Mahogany Inn to Stephen Parker, in 1883, the historic sandstone building became a private residence. It would remain a private residence for almost a century.
From 1972 to 1978, the Conway family owned the inn, and operated a café from the premises. It became famous for its Devonshire teas, and on a Sunday would sell thousands of scones to day-trippers from the city.
In 1978, a couple from Singapore bought the inn for their son, who was a chef, and it became an upmarket café. He had a short stay at Mahogany Creek, and the business closed 18 months later.
More than 107 years after last drinks were called at Mahogany Creek the beer flowed again at the old wayside inn when a license was gained for the premises in 1991. The inn was returned to its original purpose as a licensed house of hospitality.
From the early 2000s the inn was owned by Darren and Paula Smith, who sold it to Tony Aveling for $1.6 million in 2008.
On our visit, the inn was busy with city day-trippers lunching, or spending a enjoying the ambience of the historic watering hole. We were greeted by current publican and part owner of the Mahogany Creek Inn, Jim Middleton.
Jim bought the pub in November 2023 with his life partner, Dannielle Pasquale, and business partners, David Doyle and Gillian Fitzgerald.
The two couples bought a 20 year lease, with an option to buy the freehold from Mark and Tracey Weber, who had been at the helm of the inn since 2010. Interestingly, the Webers also owned the Rose and Crown at Guildford Hotel at the time.
Jim, with his business partners, have built the business considerably over the years, adding a distillery and garden bar to the historic inn. They currently employ 32 staff, provide live music five nights a week, and offer a ‘members draw’ with a difference.
Jim says the inn is not just about great food, drink, and entertainment; it’s about creating a space where history and hospitality intersect, offering onsite accommodation that invites exploration and relaxation.
“Our latest venture, the distillery, crafts the spirits of Mahogany, a tribute to our Inn’s rich history,” he said.
“Each spirit is a homage to the legacy that has shaped us, inviting guests to experience history with every sip.”
Jim, 61, has a swag of experience when it comes to pubs.
A business broker, he has sold a lot of pubs over the years. He’s also hosted at least half-a-dozen pubs, including the Bassadeena Hotel, Mundarring Hotel, the Halfway House, between York and Guildford, and the Last Drop at Canningvale.
“For me its about providing an environment that people feel safe and comfortable,” he said.
The publican is passionate about the Mahogany Creek Inn, spending 14 to 16 hours a day at the pub, which he says makes it the success it is today.
“I’ve built a pub, like a place I want to go,” he said.
“The Mahogany Inn is the old fashioned ‘local’, with a modern twist, where – whether you like me or not – customers can be approached me and tell me what they don’t like about the place.”
Jim is also passionate about the inn’s history. He tells the story of the pub’s friendly ghosts – at least three of them.
The most tragic is the ghosts of two children who many swear occupy room 10 of the accommodation wing of the Mahogany Creek Inn.
During the late 1970s, a new accommodation wing was built onto the back of the pub. Heritage laws and regulations, not being as they are today, meant that the new wing was built over the grave sites of two girls, aged six and four.
The graves are remembered by older residents, and were fenced with wrought-iron. The children are believed to have died from typhoid fever in the 1920s. Their last resting place is said to be directly under room 10 of the Mahogany Creek Inn’s accommodation wing.
Jim showed us room 10, and it undoubtedly had an eerie feeling. The publican tells us the room is the coldest of the inn’s accommodation quarters, and he explained how the housemaids often find supernatural activity when making-up the room.
A large rug often moves up to 500 millimetres from its original position, and the housemaids often see the shadows of the two young girls moving about in room.
“The housemaids always talk with the ghosts, and are not scared of them,” Jim said.
Another ghostly figure is sometimes seen in ‘Joe’s Room’, Jim says.
Shadows are often caught on security cameras in the room where bushranger ‘Moondyne Joe’ is said to have escaped police custody while at the Mahogany Creek inn.
The room where the bushranger is said to have made his escape from a dormer window of the inn’s roof is now known as ‘Joe’s Room’.
“There’s always a lot of unexplained activity in Joe’s Room,” Jim said.
“The service door, although securely closed, is often found wide open, and windows that rarely can be opened, are discovered by staff wide open in the mornings.”
Leaving the Mahogany Creek Inn, and Jim’s hospitality, we head south-east for a 144kms journey to our next destination – the Exchange Hotel at Pingelly.
Along the way, of course we took time to visit a few historic wheatbelt pubs before making our way to a next overnight destination at Pingelly.
Exchange Hotel, Pingelly
There’s no denying that Karen and Peter Eldridge have a huge job ahead of them.
We arrived at their historic pub in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia during their first anniversary celebrations as hosts of the Exchange Hotel.
Despite the celebrations, we were well looked after by the Eldridge family, and our hosts had prepared comfortable accommodation, and, although the kitchen had closed, had arranged a delicious feed.
This is Peter and Karen’s first pub and regardless of the daunting journey ahead of them, they are enthusiastic about their task as custodians of the much-loved country pub.
“We both have a love of old properties,” Karen said.
“Our house in Perth was 120 years old.”
The Eldridges’ new life as publicans began in 2022 when they bought Pingelly’s neglected motel. They are renovating the motel, offering modern, comfortable accommodation for their guests, just a short stroll from the historic pub.
Before Peter’s new role as Pingelly’s ‘Mine Host’, he had a successful building company, employing men on various projects in the Wheatbelt region.
Before relocating to Perth, the couple raised their children about 60kms east of Pingelly at Yealering.
“After moving to Perth, we continued taking-on bush jobs,” Karen said.
“We were always looking for places to accommodate our workmen in the region.”
Peter was driving past the old Pingelly motel and spotted a ‘for sale’ sign out the front.
“It wasn’t in a good way. It was completely trashed,” she said.
“He called me, and suggested we buy it and renovate it.”
Now the proud new owners of the motel, the renovations got underway, and the couple became ‘regulars’ at the nearby Exchange Hotel.
At the time the pub was struggling to survive, and was opening limited hours.
The Eldridges bought the Exchange Hotel from Ian and Jeanette Jeffrey in 2023.
The Jeffreys had hosted the Exchange since 2000 before ill-health forced the couple to lease the pub about 2020. However, the new lessees struggled, and the pub’s future looked uncertain.
“The locals kept saying – almost pleading with us to buy the pub,” Karen said.
“We knew we could handle the renovations and restoration of the hotel. Though we were uncertain about running a pub,” Peter said.
“We had never run a pub before.”
By December 2022 the Exchange Hotel had closed, and Peter and Karen made the decision to buy, restore and ultimately save the historic landmark.
“There was no real estate agent involved, and we were handed the keys in January 2023,” Karen said.
The pair and their adult children began the massive task of returning the much-loved, run-down pub back to working order.
“The actual renovations weren’t that difficult, as we are use to it,” Peter said.
“The difficult part for us was restoring a working bar. There were no beer lines, taps and other equipment. They had all been removed.”
The couple returned the beloved Exchange Hotel to Pingelly in February 2024.
The opening night though did not go quite to plan.
During the celebrations the town’s ageing power generators outside the pub overloaded and electricity to the pub was lost!
The band had to improvise with acoustic music, gas was quickly acquired to continue providing meals, and good ol’ cash was the only means of buying drinks.
“Around the corner, there was a line-up in front of the town’s only ATM,” Peter recalled.
“We had to reduce the cost of a pint (of beer) from $11 to $10 because we quickly ran out of change.”
The Eldridges have big plans for the Exchange – plans that are already noticeable.
“We want to make the Exchange a family friendly hotel,” Karen said.
“We will extend the beer garden, providing more grass and shady trees, where kids can run around.
“We want to give the town something that they haven’t had for so long.”
The big ticket items though will take a little longer to complete.
The restoration of the pub’s magnificent balcony is one of those items.
“We would like to see the balcony utilised in some way. It has great views of our town.”
Another big ticket item is the restoration of the pub’s historic brick stables.
“The stables need a lot of work and restoration. We will eventually transform them into a venue room, where we can host weddings receptions, and other functions,” Karen said.
The couple’s ultimate aim is for the Exchange Hotel to become Pingelly’s hub, a place for not only locals, but for visitors alike to visit and enjoy.
“We are only an hour and half from Perth,” Karen said.
“We want to bring outsiders here to enjoy what we have to offer. That will have a flow-on benefit for business in town and the region in general.”
After sitting-down to enjoy a delicious and generous dinner serving, and a few Swan Lagers at the bar, we returned to our recently renovated, comfortable motel room, with all the mod-cons, and parking at our front door. The motel rooms are a short stroll from the pub, and feature air-conditioning, fridge, kettle and everything expected in modern accommodation quarters.
If you’re planning a road trip out Pingelly way, make sure you drop into the Exchange for a hearty meal, and a cold drink or two. If you would like to take a little more time exploring the history and beauty of the region, we recommend a stay at the Exchange, where you too can experience their warm hospitality.
We have little doubt the Eldridges will achieve their goals in returning this beautiful historic hotel to its former glory, and establish it as a favourite meeting place for their local community. We wish them well.
The Exchange’s friendly ghosts
We all enjoy a good ghost story. And Pingelly’s Exchange has a few up its sleeve to keep you entertained.
At least three people from Pingelly’s past are said to haunt the corridors of the old pub – and strangely, one black Labrador dog!
In quite an unnerving twist, one of the hotel’s ghosts, like at the Mahogany Creek Inn, inhabits guest room number 10.
Ellen Cook, whose parents hosted the Exchange revealed some chilling tales of the Exchange’s supernatural guests. Her mother and father, Jenette and Ian Jeffrey were hosts for over 20 years. We sat down with Ellen and had a chat.
“I never felt threatened by any of them,” she told us.
“The most sad story relating to the ghosts is the little girl from room 10. The number has been changed to room 9 since I lived here.
“I believe she is buried in the local cemetery in an unmarked grave, and died at the hotel from Diphtheria. She’s now a lost soul, and has never found her way to the other side.”
As a girl, Ellen recalls the ghost, who she estimates was aged about 10 when she died, wandering the corridors of the Exchange.
“Room 10 was the coldest room in the hotel. In the end we couldn’t put guests in there.
“At night I would always hear the little girl crying; night after night. She was scared of the dark, and the lights in room 10 were continually found to be switched on. I could hear her wandering the halls outside my room, and when I went to have a look, all the lights in the corridors, despite switched off earlier, were back on.”
The other ghost haunting the hotel is said to be Dr Frederick Hitch. A little research found that the good doctor practiced from the pub. He had moved from a practice in Perth to Pingelly in October 1906, bringing the number of doctors in the town to two.
Born in England, having graduated at Guy’s Hospital, London, he came to Australia in the 1890s, becoming a leading Perth physician. He arrived in Pingelly with his wife and six children in 1906, setting-up practice in the Exchange Hotel.
Dr Hitch, with his orthodox top-hat, frock-coat and slate-coloured pants, became a familiar sight around Pingelly, treating many patients from the hotel, before making a move to his own “private hospital” in 1907. However, his time in Pingelly would be short.
Dr Hitch died in August 1908 after a painful illness, caused by an injury to his foot two months earlier, which ultimately developed into blood poisoning and heart failure. He was 55.
As far as I can gather the good doctor never died at the Exchange Hotel, and why his ghost would haunt the pub is a mystery. However, Ellen, and others tell of how the doctor’s spirit, in his top-hat and frock-coat, is often seen wandering the pub’s corridors.
Another of the Exchange’s supernatural tenants is a mysterious old woman, and a black Labrador. Ellen says as a child she often heard the dog scratching at her bedroom door, and when going to investigate would see the ghostly apparition disappearing into the darkness of the hotel’s hall.
Pingelly’s Exchange Hotel rich history
On our visit we were lucky enough to have had an audience with the town’s number one authority on history, and the administrator of the Facebook Group, Lost Pingelly Heritage, Peter Narducci.
A former and long-serving councillor on Pingelly Shire Council, Peter has delved into the history of the pub, and spent time sharing his knowledge with us over a couple of drinks at the Exchange.
“The hotel was built, like many in the region of this size and grandeur, for an amazing £4,500 in 1906,” Peter said.
“It took six months to build.”
“The hotel was the second to be built in town, and followed the Pingelly Hotel, established in 1890.”
The opening of the Great Southern Railway in 1889 resulted in an economic boom for the district along the rail line, including Pingelly, where a station was built.
The town’s first pub opened soon after, with G. W. Sewell granted a wayside house license on December 1 1890.
Peter explained how the Exchange, when completed 16 years later, was the more upmarket of the town’s two hotels.
The Exchange Hotel founders: Tom Humphries and Billy McIntosh
The Exchange Hotel was built by Thomas Jeffery ‘Tom’ Humphries and was leased from him by William ‘Billy’ McIntosh. It opened in August 1906.
Humphries and McIntosh likely met at Parker’s Range, a gold mine about 200kms south-east of Coolgardie in Western Australia.
Born in 1872 at Kanmantoo, a mining town in the Adelaide Hills, Tom Humphries, accompanied by his father made his way to the Broken Hill minefields in NSW during the mid 1880s. His father, William John Humphries opened the Newmarket Hotel at Broken Hill in 1890 and was host until 1895. It was here as a teenager Tom would learn his trade as a hotelier.
In his early 20s, Tom married Annie McKee at Broken Hill in 1895, the same year his father sold the Newmarket Hotel. With his new wife Tom made his way to Western Australia in 1896 where the newly discovered goldfields were opening opportunities for those interested in working hard to make their fortunes.
Tom’s experience gained at his father’s Broken Hill pub found him working as a barman at the Lady Shenton Hotel at Menzies in 1897. Menzies is a goldfields town about 130km north-northwest of Kalgoorlie.
The following year, Tom was hosting his own pub – The Exchange Hotel at Southern Cross, another gold mining town, located about 365kms south-east of Menzies.
While host of the Exchange Hotel at Southern Cross, the paths of Tom Humphries and Billy McIntosh would intersect, and they became business partners, and later brothers-in-law, prospecting together for gold in the Western Australian goldfields.
Billy McIntosh had developed a gold mine at Parker Range, about 105km south of Southern Cross, in 1888. An interesting character, McIntosh was born in Victoria before making his way to the Western Australian goldfields. While goldmining he also hosted a pub, known as the Parker’s Range Hotel from 1895 for 12 months.
The Parker’s Range Hotel later became known as the Terminus Hotel and closed for business shortly before the outbreak of the Great War in 1911.
McIntosh married Christina McKee, the twin sister of Annie Humphries, the wife of Tom Humphries, in 1902 in Perth. McIntosh and his new wife would not stay in Perth for long and they settled in the goldfields where Billy worked as an underground mine manager before taking a mining lease in Malcom. Malcolm is now an abandoned town located between Leonora and Laverton. About this time the town had a population of around 400, along with six hotels and a brewery.
Meanwhile Tom Humphries had made quite a success of his business at Southern Cross since opening the Exchange Hotel. An interesting guest of Humphries while he hosted the hotel at Southern Cross was serial killer Frederick Bailey Deeming.
Deeming was arrested in Southern Cross in 1892 and convicted for the murder of his entire family in Rainhill, England, and his second wife in Melbourne. He was executed for the murders and is remembered today because he was suspected by some of being the notorious serial killer Jack the Ripper. Read more at Wikipedia.
Humphries likely saw the writing on the wall for Southern Cross as a prosperous mining town, and made plans to relocate his successful business formula to Fremantle.
An all-round sportsman, who excelled in cricket, and who was said to have revived horse racing in the region, Humphries, with his wife, Annie, baby son, Allan, and toddler, Eileen left Southern Cross for Perth in 1904. The year prior, the couple had lost their six-month-old daughter Una at the Exchange Hotel and were likely looking for a change of scenery after her death. The Southern Cross Times reported on 21 May 1904:
Mr. Tom Humphries, whose fat and jolly face has decorated the Exchange Hotel bar for the past six years, has sold out and intends to try the hot springs of New Zealand as a gout cure. He is to leave for the east early next month.
Humphries took over the lease of one of Fremantle’s oldest pubs in 1905. The Fremantle Evening Mail reported on 12 August 1905:
Mr Thomas Humphries, late of Southern Cross, has taken over the lease of the Commercial Hotel, High-street, Fremantle, where he will be pleased to welcome all old-time goldfield friends. Mr Humphries has had a long experience of hotel management, and purposes making his hostelry up to date in every particular. Clients may rely on receiving the best attention and a table equal to any in the State.
While in Fremantle Humphries made a name for himself as a staunch supporter of rowing and football, and was a founder of the Western Australian Trotters Association.
Beside the Commercial at Fremantle, Humphries had another business plan underway. He began preparations to build a grand two-storey hotel at Pingelly in January 1905, and gained a provisional license on 13 December 1905. At the same time, the town’s only other hotel, The Pingelly Hotel also underwent major additions in an effort to compete with its new competitor. The Narrogin Advocate reported on 18 October 1905:
The contractors for the brickwork are rapidly pushing ahead with the additions to the Pingelly Hotel, and when finished the extra rooms should materially help to cope with the increased business which is being daily transacted. Mr. E. C. Monger, the genial proprietor, returned to Pingelly yesterday, after an extended holiday.
Meanwhile, Billy McIntosh was granted a license for Pingelly’s new Exchange Hotel at the York Licensing Court on 7 June 1906. The Pingelly Leader reported on 3 August 1906:
The new hotel, the Exchange which has been built at the rising and prosperous township of Pingelly, on the Great Southern Railway (says the “Licensed Victuallers’ Gazette”) is now in full swing, and a prosperous future appears to be assured for the Exchange Hotel. The owner, Mr Tom Humphries of the Commercial Hotel, Fremantle, has spared no expense in providing what is certainly the finest hotel on the Great Southern Line, and the architect, (Mr McNeice) was given carte blanche to provide an up-to-date house. His effort has been most successful, the arrangements, being complete in every particular, and whilst convenient, tend to economical and efficient working. The house is two storeyed, and contains thirty-seven apartments, including billiard and dining rooms, bars and parlors. It has a frontage to two streets. The ground floor comprises a fine billiard room fitted with an Alcock’s table with all requisites. The bar adjoins this room, with a servery between. The bar proper is subdivided, and is of large dimensions. Off the bar is a very excellent parlor. This portion of the house also contains a commercial travellers’ room, card room, and an office for the use of the public. The dining room is separate from the bar by a passage, and is a fine room, capable of seating 120 guests. It is in communication with the kitchen and serveries. The furniture is of oak, and the sideboard is a remarkably fine piece of cabinet work. The kitchen is filled with one of Metters’ latest pattern ranges, and has capacity for cooking for a large number. The upstairs portion of the building consists of 22 bedrooms, all of which are furnished in the very best style, several containing double beds. The drawing room is also on this floor. It is a very handsome apartment, and is furnished ornately. It opens on to a balcony which runs the whole length of the building. A further balcony runs at the rear of the building ; and steps therefrom lead to the yards and back premises. The sanitary arrangements are very complete, and include numerous shower and plunge baths. The water supply is also fully provided for by means of 10,000 gallons of rain water, supplemented by a well of good water. The house is lighted throughout by means of an acetylene gas plant, which includes about 100 lights. The licensee, Mr William Mcintosh, has spared no pains so that everything is modern in every detail, having personally superintended the fitting up of the house, in which he was further assisted by Mr Humphries. Messrs. Brigdale and Wilkerson were the contractors for the building, which reflects much credit upon them.
McIntosh took a seven year lease of the hotel from his old-mate, Humphries, and paid a weekly rental of £8, with an ingoing fee of £600. Mcintosh with his wife, Christina proved valuable citizens of Pingelly. Billy McIntosh with Tom Humphries were said to have rejuvenated the local horse racing club, introduced trotting to the district, and were big supporters of the Agricultural Society. They also supported a variety of sports, not only in the district, but throughout the region, and they each owned race-horses.
McIntosh was also reportedly broadminded and his hotel was a meeting place for everybody. On one notable occasion he was said to have had preachers from the Catholic, Wesleyan, Presbyterian and a Salvationist denominations staying under his roof at the same time – with no reports of any conflict! He also was noted for never charging a clergy man for bed or board of himself or horse.
Meanwhile, Tom Humphries, now 34, and with three young children had plans to build another hotel – this time to replace his old Commercial Hotel at Fremantle with a grand three-storey brick building with views of Fremantle Harbour. The Fremantle Evening Mail reported on 9 April 1908 that the old Commercial was under demolition and that Humphries’ “temporary bar (was) “the only bit left”.
The Humphries remained as hosts at the new Commercial for another four years before they pulled-up stumps and moved to Adelaide in 1912. Two-years later, his old mate, business partner, and brother-in-law, Billy McIntosh followed, selling-out of the Exchange Hotel at Pingelly. The Southern Cross Times reported on 13 June 1914 that the pair motored round South Australia “inspecting race courses, hotels, trotting nags, and other delegates”.
Billy McIntosh and his family eventually headed east, where they hosted a number of pubs in NSW, while Tom Humphries and his family remained in Adelaide.
Billy McIntosh was hosting the Trundle Hotel in 1915, located in a rural township 55kms north-west of Parkes, NSW. By 1918 the former goldminer, now 44, was in Sydney, where he was licensee of the University Hotel on Broadway. The following year he was the publican of the Emu Inn on Regent Street Sydney, before he managed his last pub, the Royal Standard at the corner of Castlereagh and Bathurst Streets, Sydney in 1922.
McIntosh came to a rather unusual end on 2 April 1923. Leaving his wife in Sydney, he boarded the steamer Wyandra – a passenger vessel that sailed up and down the Australian east coast – on his way to Queensland.
Billy McIntosh was sailing to Townsville where he was looking at a business venture. He had been complaining of pains in the stomach during the voyage before he suddenly died aboard the steamer. The body was brought by tender to shore at Flat Top, near Mackay and removed to the hospital morgue for a post mortem examination, which revealed he died of “natural causes”. He was 49. A letter addressed to his wife Christina was found in his possession, stating he had pains in the stomach and was taking pills.
Just eight months later, in December 1923, his widow, Christina also died at the Coast Hospital, later known as the Prince Henry Hospital at Little Bay, Sydney.
Interestingly, the two pioneering publicans, Billy McIntosh and Tom Humphries, who established Pingelly’s Exchange Hotel, died within months of each other in 1923.
Humphries, who had remained in Adelaide, was also 49 when he died at his family home in Commercial Road, Hyde Park, Adelaide on May 31 1923 – less than two months after his old gold prospecting mate and business partner.
The year 1923 was a tragic 12 months for Tom’s widow, Annie. She had lost her husband, sister and brother in law, all within 12 months of each other. Annie Humphries died five years later in 1928.
Tumbellup Tavern, Tumbellup
Next time you burn a joss stick, spare a thought for the town of Tambellup, and its closed-up pub.
The main industry in Tambellup is sheep farming, while sandalwood comes is said to come in a distant second. Much of the sandalwood is exported, and reportedly used in the manufacture of joss sticks.
When we visited the Tambellup Hotel in February 2025 it was closed for business.
In fact, the town’s only pub has been shut since November 2024. It’s currently for sale.
As the smoke from burning joss sticks is believed to carry prayers and wishes to the spiritual world, maybe it’s worth sparking one up in the hope of finding a new operator for a historic pub.
The Tambellup Hotel was established as a single-storey wayside inn by 37-year-old George McLeod in 1904. The current two-storey brick pub was built in 1911.
George McLeod was born in York, Western Australia in 1867. His father, George Senior had migrated from Scotland in the 1850s and pioneered the sandalwood industry the region. As a young man George joined his father in the sandalwood industry at Williams.
George found his way to the goldfields in 1892, where he established a carrying business between Northam and Coolgardie, later extending operations to Kalgoorlie and Boulder.
In 1899 McLeod purchased the goodwill and freehold of the Katanning Hotel, and for 12 years personally conducted the business.
Like the pub at Tambellup, the Kattinning Hotel was established as a single-storey timber wayside inn. The building had been operated by Harry Chipper as “railway refreshment rooms” with the opening of the Great Southern Railway, from Perth to Albany, in 1889.
Chipper was successful in licensing the building as a pub in 1890.
Tragedy struck Katanning when in January 1897 a fire completely destroyed the timber pub, killing an infant child of a servant.
A grand two-storey brick replacement hotel was built by Messrs. F. & C. Piesse and was opened in December 1897.
George McLeod purchased the Katanning Hotel from F & C Piesse soon after its completion. The West Australian reported on 13 June 1899:
The Katanning Hotel has been purchased by Mr. Geo. McLeod, who entered into possession on the 1st inst. The original landlord, Mr. J C. Cook, has been granted a licence for another building, and will open it on the 1st July.
McLeod married Hester Josephine Cornwall, the daughter of wealthy landowner William Cornwall, the publican and owner of the Royal Hotel at Kojonup on 10 October 1900.
In 1904, McLeod added another pub to his portfolio when he built a single-storey timber and corrugated iron wayside inn at Tambellup. The Great Southern Herald reported on 13 February 1904:
TAMBELLUP: The new hotel for Mr McLeod of Katanning, is now finished, and Mr. White, the contractor, is to be complimented upon his work. The premises contain eight rooms, vis., a dining room (15ft by 12ft); parlor, bar room, kitchen and four bed rooms; and a verandah. Suitable stabling and a back verandah will also be erected before the end of the month.
On completion, McLeod leased the inn to his brother, David, who gained a liquor license on March 7 1904. David McLeod hosted the pub until 1907 when Charles Cornish took the reins.
By 1908, George McLeod was a successful businessman and owned the freehold of both the Tambellup Hotel and Kattanning Hotel. He also served for many years on the Katanning Roads Board, holding office as chairman. All sporting and public bodies in the region found him a ready and active supporter.
Mounting pressure from authorities forced McLeod to update his single-storey corrugated iron and timber pub during 1908 after complaints that the building was unsuitable for a public house or wayside inn.
McLoud decided to build a new two-storey brick hotel next to the old pub in 1911. At the time the licensee and lease holder of the building was Harold ‘Appy’ Appleton.
Appleton, who also served as the mayor of Tambellup, was 35 when he and his wife Ethel took-over the old Tambellup wayside pub in April 1911. Appleton had plenty of experience, and was given the task of transitioning the license and business of the old wayside inn to McLeod’s large brick replacement hotel.
As a single man, Appleton hosted the Commonwealth Hotel at Cunderdin in the early 1900s before marrying Ethel Morley in 1905. The couple went on to host the Royal Standard Hotel in Perth during 1906 and the Freemasons Hotel in Fremantle in 1908.
The license removal from the Tambellup inn to the new brick building was granted on June 13, 1911. The Perth Daily News described the publican in the following story on 25 April 1913:
The Tambellup Hotel is close to the railway station, and is a neat brick, two-storeyed structure. On the ground floor are commercial, smoking, and billiard rooms, the latter fitted with an Alcock match table, public and private bars, and the usual appointments. There are a fine range of stables and loose boxes in the large yard adjoining. On the upper floor are found drawing, writing, and bedrooms. The whole are furnished in a style equal to the best metropolitan hostelries. The proprietor is Mr. Harold Appleton, who for so many years was one of the most popular of the men on the road in the State; in fact, ‘Appy’, as he was called by familiars, is known from Wyndham to Eucla, and as far inland as settlement goes. Tiring of the road, Mr, Appleton engaged in hotel life in Fremantle, but left the seaport to open the new hotel at Tambellup some two years ago. His popularity has not waned, and he is president of Football and Race Clubs, keeps the best trotting horses in the district, and, as showing his faith in the district, has now gone in for farming. As Mr. Appleton had an experience of years of hotel life as a guest, and suffered of and sore, he has a fellow-feeling for the traveller, and leaves nothing to be wanting to make his guests comfortable.
Appleton held the license of the Tambellup Hotel until 1918. At the age of 41 in 1918, Appleton made two attempts to enlist in the Great War, but failed to pass the medical examinations.
After leaving the Tambellup Hotel, Appleton hit the road again working as a travelling sales representative, this time for a wine company. The Merredin Mercury reported on 9 October 1919:
“The flight of time has failed to alter the dapper appearance of this gentleman, who looks as youthful as of 20 years ago…”
Appleton died at Fremantle in 1941 at the age of 65. His widow, Ethel died in 1964 at the age of 82.
Meantime, George McLeod, the successful businessman who built and owned the Tambellup Hotel, died a wealthy man in 1929. He was buried in Kattanning, the town where he was most admired in a largely attended funeral. His widow, Esther Josephine died in 1941 at the age of 64 and was also laid to rest in Katanning, leaving a large family.
Dumbleyung Tavern, Dumbleyung
Meals are also available.
Before continuing the journey to our next overnight destination at Walpole we made a slight detour to the wheat producing town of Dumbleyung, a service centre with a post office, school, public library, caravan park and other facilities. Our detour though was more to do with paying a visit to the magnificent Dumbleyung Tavern.
Located 265km south east of Perth, the historic Dumbleyung Hotel was established in 1911 and offers a well stocked front bar and outdoor area to enjoy a cold drink. Meals are available daily for dinner in the dining room or at the bar. The hotel also has accommodation and is the perfect stop over from Perth to Esperance.
The pub gained fame during the 1960s when it served as the base camp for Donald Campbell’s crew during his successful world water speed record attempt on nearby Lake Dumbleyung.
Over the decades, the pub has survived floods and periods of neglect, remaining a central community hub, and has been recently restored.
The Dumbleyung Hotel was built and established by gold prospector come publican Arthur J. Tunney early last century.
The history of liquor licence shows that it took three years of applications before Tunney’s persistence paid-off and he eventually became successful in 1911.
Tunney likely had some influence as he was an ex-councillor of the Municipality of Wagin, and was one of the most well-known and respected residents of the district. He entered the hotel trade at the age of 28 when he and his wife, Emma became hosts of the newly-constructed Wagin Hotel, about 30km to the west of Dumbleyung in December 1904.
Tunney had plans to build Dumbleyung’s first hotel on the south side of town, despite opposition by many people who thought the hotel would be prone to flooding and would become isolated from the rest of the town.
However, Tunney’s plans were “highly acceptable” and were approved by the courts in 1911.
The plans for the hotel, costing £4,500, included 24 bedrooms, two ‘classes’ of dining room, two sitting rooms, bathrooms and bars.
Originally the hotel had 17 stalls for horses and three loose boxes.
The Dumbleyung Hotel was officially opened on 21 December 1911.
In 1913 it was flooded just as predicted by Tunney’s opponents, however, a new drainage system along the railway line was supposed to fix the problem (though it has been flooded a number of times since).
Tunney left Dumbleyung in 1917 to take charge of the Bohemia Hotel in Perth, of which he was the licensee at the time of his death at the age of 44 in 1920.
Tunney’s widow, Emma sold the Dumbleyung Hotel in 1929. She went on to host the Bohemia Hotel in Perth for many years and died in 1947 at the age of 73.
The Dumbleyung Hotel has traditionally been used by railway workers, and also main roads workers. It is also a place where local sporting groups meet as well as farmers and travellers to the district.
Walpole Hotel Motel, Walpole
The next stop on our WA road trip was at a special country pub located in the tourist destination of Walpole. The Walpole Hotel Motel has become the heart and soul of its surrounding community.
Sitting on six acres of land, the Walpole Hotel Motel was built in 1963 and overlooks the spectacular forests of the surrounding national parks. Although architecturally she’s no stunner, the pub offers everything expected in a well-operated country pub.
With 24 comfortable motel rooms, a large restaurant, a well-equipped bar, and what can only be described as a fantastic and well-used drinking veranda, the Walpole Hotel is a must, when visiting the scenic delights of south-western region of Western Australia.
During our visit, we shared the pub with 22 fire fighters, battling bushfires in the region. The Walpole Hotel accommodated and fed the fire fighters during the ordeal, which destroyed large sways of the region’s bushland. The smell of burnings forests was a constant reminder of the bushfire threats in this beautiful part of the world.
Our hosts were Christine Winsor-Smith and Nate Lee, husband and wife publicans of the Walpole Hotel Motel.
Christine and Nate bought Walpole’s only pub in 2022, and, although partners for many years, were married under a large tree in the pub’s yard on 28 April 2024. Prior to the pub, they had been in the hospitality business for many years, chiefly operating restaurants and cafes – although they had managed a couple of pubs.
“We were looking for a new business venture, and noticed a takeaway food shop for sale in Walpole,” Nate said.
“While we were in town looking at the business, we were told the pub was for sale, so we decided to have a look.”
The pair visited the pub, had a meal and a few drinks, and was shocked to discover last drinks called at 8pm on a Saturday night.
“That’s surprising for a pub that’s the only one in town,” Nate said.
The couple accepted a lease, and eventually bought the pub and motel outright.
“We did a lot of work to bring the people back in,” Christine said.
“The first thing we did was to improve the food. We removed the pre-cooked crap, and prepared everything in-house. We re-opened the dining room, which has spectacular views, and which had been closed-up by the previous management,” Nate said.
Live music was introduced during the holiday periods, and every weekend, and the couple began to support various community groups and charities.
“Anything worthwhile in the community, we get behind. This town has always had a pub, but not a pub that the community could get behind,” Nate said.
That’s when regular customer Reggie interrupted.
“The locals have returned to the pub. I’ve met locals here that I’ve never talked to before, since Nate and Christine have been here,” he said.
“We’re getting people coming out from Denmark. It’s a great pub now.”
Nate and Christine have a remedy to finding and keeping staff – a big problem for hospitality businesses in remote areas. They’ve introduced staff quarters, to attract international employees. The idea was an immediate success.
“We have a lot of international staff,” Christine said.
“They come from all over the world to work here, including Vietnam, Taiwan, America, Italy and New Zealand.”
The couple’s determination has paid-off with the Walpole Hotel returning to its rightful position as a community hub.
“We love Walpole – this town has embraced us,” Nate said.
The couple have big plans for the hotel, with a proposal to introduce an adventure playground, a sound stage with amphitheatre, a beer garden, and the “world’s biggest” putt-putt course.
After a delicious meal, a comfortable bed, and good company at the bar of the Walpole Hotel Motel, we bid farewell to our hosts, Nate and Christine, wishing them luck in their future endevours, before hitting the road for our next destination, Pemberton Hotel.
Pemberton Hotel, Pemberton
Almost an hour and half drive from Walpole we arrive for lunch at the historic Pemberton Hotel. And what a beauty she is!
We enjoyed a hearty meal, and a few refreshments at the tastefully decorated bar, with the town’s rich history on display.
Pemberton Hotel’s history
The license of the Pemberton Hotel was originally located at the nearby village of Greenbushes and came from the Courthouse Hotel.
The application to remove the license from Greensbushes to Pemberton was granted on February 23 1926. The new hotel was re-built from materials transported from the former Courthouse Hotel site. The Blackwood Times reported on 16 April 1926:
PEMBERTON HOTEL EARLY CONSTRUCTION
A new hotel is about to be erected at Pemberton for Mr. Fred Delaport at a cost of about £9,000, and it is estimated that when the furnishing has been completed the expenditure will have reached £10,000. Mr. Delaport has had the license of his hotel at Greenbushes transferred to the new townsite of Pemberton, where high prices were paid some time ago for land. The hotel will be a two storey bridk -building with a frontage of nearly 100 feet by a depth of 87 feet. The ground floor will contain two bars, a big commercial room, offices and two dining rooms. Provision is made for 19 bed room, most of which will be on the first floor, with a large sitting room. Hot water, electric light, and septic tank systems are to be installed. The front of the hotel will have a 10 foot balcony, and there will be two smaller ones at the rear. Servants’ quarters will be constructed separately, and in the yard there will be four garages and stabling accommodation. The architect is Mr. Herbert Parry, and the contractor Mr. M. Ellyard, of South Perth, who expects to have the work completed in November.
The new hotel opened for business on Saturday 18 December 1926, just in time for Christmas celebrations. The Blackwood Times reported on Christmas Eve 1926 that “for an hour the bars were free to all comers”.
There were many who availed themselves of the opportunity to have a free pint but there was no wild rush to get in before the free beer cut out. The hotel is an attractive building erected in a fine position.
Today the Pemberton Hotel features 30 modern motel rooms adjoining the hotel. All of the rooms have balconies and most have views across to the Karri and Jarrah trees of Pemberton town park.
The pub’s open for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, excepting Good Friday and Christmas Day, and features open wood fires in the lounge and TAB bar.
Cafe Mazz and the alfresco dining area offers a modern atmosphere with added gas heaters for warmth during the colder winter months.
Leaving Pemberton we travel to our next overnight destination at the coastal resort town of Augusta.
Augusta Hotel, Augusta
The Augusta Hotel was our last stop for the night on our 1,160kms Western Australian road trip. We were a little disappointed when told that our room was not inside the original Augusta Hotel, but would be in a motel across the road.
The Leeuwin units, owned by the hotel, were built for additional accommodation in the 1960s. Our bed for the night was comfortable enough, and the room had all the mod-cons expected. However, the room was a little dated, and lacked the ambience of the historic hotel on the opposite side of the road. Never-the-less, the hotel exudes history, and is a must to visit while in Augusta.
While in Augusta we a fantastic winery in the region, as well as enjoying lunch and a few drinks at the Settlers Tavern at Margaret River.
The Settlers Arms is a newly built pub in the centre of Margaret River shopping centre, and offers meals and outdoor seating in a leafy beer garden. A pleasant pub to spend an hour or so relaxing over a beer and meal during your time in Margaret River.
Augusta Hotel history
The Augusta Hotel has a rich history. The hotel was built in 1912 by Henry Cassidy Ellis (Better known by his friends and guests as Toby), and his four sisters.
The land had been inherited from their father, William Ellis, who had been granted the land (a Town Lot of 5 acres) in April 1863. The Bussleton newspaper, South- Western News described Toby Ellis’ ambitious tourist hotel on 7 June 1912:
AUGUSTA
(By Our Special Correspondent.)
This place must be visited to be properly appreciated. From about two miles out of the old settlement occasional glimpses are caught of the Blackwood River, but the full view of Hardy’s Inlet is reserved until one attains the property belonging to the Ellis family. Mr. Ellis is about erecting a commodious building upon one of the most charming sites in Western Australia. It will be built with sandstone in bungalow style, and is intended for an hotel. Once this accommodation is provided, and the fact becomes generally known, there is little doubt as to the future popularity of this beautiful spot. At the foot of the hills lie the comparatively placid waters of the Inlet, whilst the bar and ocean, which can be seen from the same spot, have their foam crested breakers and waves stretching as far as the eye can see. The present population is not a large one, but during the summer months, in spite of the many difficulties of access, and the scarcity of accommodation, the number of visitors is far in excess of that available.
The hotel was specifically built to provide a service to travellers and tourists, but Ellis’ first application for a liquor license was opposed because the police believed that it would be detrimental to the health and safety of the men who worked on the timber mills of the region to have liquor available.
Common sense prevailed and with the help of a petition containing 40 signatures in support, the license was approved on 26 March 1913.
In the early years there was some visitation from Perth and other ‘remote’ areas, but much of the demand came from Karridale residents, as it was not uncommon for them to spend their summer holidays at Augusta.
The hotel cost £1,500 to build, and was situated ‘about 20 chains from the ocean, and within 10 chains of the Blackwood River’ with spectacular views. In 1913 it was reported that the hotel was built of stone ‘well and faithfully constructed, practically fireproof, and had a magnificent outlook’.
There was over 200ft of 9ft wide verandas, upon which up to 50 beds could be placed. Other reported features of the hotel were a bar, bar parlour, a never failing supply of spring water and, as well, rain water.
Toby Ellis, a single man, hosted the pub for many years with his sisters before retiring in 1920 to focus on his cattle-raising interests in the Nannup district. He died in Subiaco at the age of 84 in 1949.
The Ellis family sold the hotel to 39-year-old Henry Arthur Stanes for £6,600 in 1920. Stanes, a storekeeper in Kellerberrin, was a regular visitor to the holiday resort town before deciding upon purchasing the Augusta Hotel. He would own the pub for over 25 years.
Stanes decides to sell the hotel and placed the following advertisement in the West Australian on 15 November 1923 after he fell “serious ill”. However, after regaining his health, he decided against selling the landmark pub, and remained its owner until 1945. The advertisement describes how Stanes had developed to hotel since buying it from Ellis in 1920.
This hotel is situated at Augusta on the Hardy Inlet, Flinders Bay, on about six acres of land. It contains 13 bedrooms, drawing-room, parlour, dining-room, kitchen, servants’ quarters, etc. Main building of stone, outer buildings of wood and iron. Five garages and usual outbuildings; and a good water supply on the premises. The railway from Busselton to Flinders Bay is in course of construction, and is expected to be completed by next Easter, and lines from Big Brook Timber Mills and from Collie must, in the near future, be constructed. Several group settlements are in the neighbourhood, and numbers of sleeper hewers are starting work, In addition to ordinary business, which is growing rapidly, there is a large summer trade, with resident visitors and tourists, and with the opening of the railway it should become a very popular summer resort. There is no other licensed house within 50 miles, and it should be a fortune in the hands of the right people; Satisfactory reasons given for selling. Tenderers are requested to state a lump sum for the freehold, including buildings and license. Furniture to be taken at valuation, and the stock at landed cost.
Harry Stanes took over the hotel about 1925, and ran it until 1929, and then from 1933 to 1945. He died at Margaret River in 1958 at the age of 77.
In later years the hotel was extended in a number of stages, including the construction of motel accommodation in the 1960s (Leeuwin units). This is where we stayed on our last night before making our way back-up the coast to Perth.
The hospitality shown on our road trip by the hosts of the Mahogany Creek Inn, the Exchange Hotel at Pingelly and Walpole Hotel Motel was warm and welcoming. The facilities at these three pubs cannot to be faulted, and if you’re ever in the region, we recommend you stop-by to sample their hospitality, and take-in the history and stories these pubs have on offer.
© Copyright Mick Roberts 2025
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Categories: Australian Hotels, Perth Hotels, Reviews, Road Trips, Western Australia hotels
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