Hotel:George Hotel

Suburb:

Collingwood

Hotel Address:

31 Johnston Street
Collingwood 3066
Australia
Map It

Hotel ID No

32

Most Recent Name:

George Hotel (1906 - 1914)

Previous Name(s):

Court House Hotel (1865 - 1895), Federation (1899 - 1906)

When Built/Licenced:

1865

When Delicensed:

1914

Status of Building:

Demolished

Rebuilt/Altered:

1939/1954

Heritage Victoria Register:

N/A

National Trust Register:

N/A

Collingwood Conservation Study 1989 & 1995:

N/A

City of Yarra Heritage Review 1998:

N/A

City of Yarra Review of Heritage Overlay Areas, 2007 & Heritage Database:

Contributory to HO 324; Appendix 7, pp. 321-323

Maps:

Kearney 1855: N ; Hodgkinson 1858: N ; MMBW: Detail Plan 1196, 1900

Comments:

The hotel was sited next door to the original East Collingwood Court House which gave the proprietor an obvious choice of name, and no doubt contributed to the custom. By the end of the century the court function had moved to the new Town Hall in Hoddle Street and the old court room was occupied by the Collingwood Working Men's Club, so the impending federation of states provided another choice of name.

The hotel was closed by the Licenses Reduction Board in 1914, along with seven other hotels in the Barkly and Darling Wards.

For decades, most people walking past this building would have assumed the Victorian era pub was completely gone, seeing the frontage composed of shops and office in a distinctive Moderne design (with later alterations). However, a closer look revealed original chimneys and roof behind this facade, and peeking through the gate on the old carriageway on the west side gave the curious researcher a few more glimpses of the former hotel. The former hotel had been incorporated in a larger complex of neighbouring buildings housing Gregory Steel Products until the1960s. This changed when the Gurner Group received planning permission in 2020 for a large development, now housing Atelier Residences and a five-star hotel, one of the Veriu chain of boutique hotels.

During demolition, passers-by had a brief opportunity to get a glimpse (and take photographs) of the interior corner. An old fireplace from the pub was to be restored and included at the project. 'We will keep the bricks and put them back up during construction' said Gurner boss Tim Gurner. The project also involved the restoration of the Gregory Steel Products facade.