Home \ Gwydir History \ Hotels and other Accommodation \ Hotels and Accommodation

Hotels and Accommodation

Written by Graham Wilson

Australian Theme- working.

NSW Theme- labour.

Local Themes- activities associated with work practises and organised and unorganised labour.

Staff change rooms, servants quarters, shearing shed, nurses station, hotel with an occupational patronage.


Australian Themes- developing Australia’s cultural life.

NSW Theme- domestic life.

Local Themes- domestic artefacts, kitchen furnishings, garden tools, home office and road camp.


Australian Theme- building settlements, towns and cities.

NSW Theme- accommodation.

Local Themes- Semi-detached house, bungalow, mansion, shack, house boat, caravan, humpy, homestead, cottage and house site.


Hotels provided important services to all country towns.  Apart from refreshments and meals, hotels provided accommodation for travellers who arrived by train and then travelled out to surrounding villages.  Accommodation was also provided on a short or long term basis to local residents.  Travelling salesmen or visiting professionals including dentists or doctors also used rooms within the hotels to provide services to the public or shopkeepers.  Further accommodation was provided by boarding houses.


Michael Doyle, a constable and later a mining warden with Gold Commissioner Bligh, built a two-storey ‘Gwydir Hotel’ and a store at Bingera (sic) in 1879.  The ‘Gwydir Hotel’ was later taken over by Henry Miller with a name change to the ‘Imperial Hotel’.


In June 1886, a number of town and district hotels obtained their licences at the Bingera court: Mrs E.A. Doyle, ‘Gwydir Hotel’, Bingera; Jas. Smith, ‘Commercial Hotel’, Bingera; Walter Murray, ‘Post Office Hotel’, Bingera; E.J. Smith, ‘Square Hotel’, Cobbedah; H. King, ‘Myall Creek Hotel’, Myall Creek and John Gainen, ‘My Venture Hotel’, Upper Horton River. At the same time, proprietor Donald Wall conducted the ‘Cedar Tree Hotel’ eleven miles from Bingera on the Inverell Road.


In July 1899 the Bingara Licensing Court renewed licenses for: William Sinden, ‘Royal Hotel’; H.H. Miller, ‘Imperial Hotel’; W.C. Wilkinson, ‘Commercial Hotel’; H.J. Page, ‘Riverview Hotel’ and George Wilkinson, ‘Square Hotel’, Cobbedah (Cobbadah).