Stuart Arms Hotel
The Stuart Arms Hotel, 1924
Stuart Arms Hotel is located in Northern Territory
Stuart Arms Hotel
Location within Northern Territory
General information
LocationTodd Street, Alice Springs
Coordinates23°41′56″S 133°52′59″E / 23.698800°S 133.883114°E / -23.698800; 133.883114
Opening1889
Closed1986
ManagementWilliam Benstead

The Stuart Arms Hotel was the first hotel in Alice Springs, Northern Territory (which was originally called Stuart). Located on the corner of Parsons and Todd Street, it was centre of social life for 96 years.

History

The Stuart Arms Hotel was established by pioneer pastoralist William Benstead, who received his publican's license in 1888. It was initially intended to be named the "Great Northern Hotel"; when the date and nature of the name change is not known. Benstead purchased lot 78 and 79 of the just gazetted town of Stuart on 9 April 1889.[1] The hotel was erected on lot 78, "a modest structure of stone and iron, about the size of an average house".[2]

Bob Purvis Sr of Woodgreen Station on his horse outside the Stuart Arms Hotel, 1922

Benstead left town in 1892 and leased the Stuart Arms to Thomas Gunter, initially on a five-year lease, but Gunter stayed until 1900.[3]

Charles Rutherford South then took over the pub for seven years. During this time Benstead, who still owned the establishment foreclosed in 1902, and it was sold to William Garnet South in 1903.[3]

In 1914 "The Bungalow" was built at the rear of the hotel, sharing the lot, where Topsy Smith and Mariah McDonald, cared for "halfe-caste" children in a galvanised iron shed that Robert Stott had built; 16 children were living there by November 1914.[4] Living conditions at "The Bungalow" were less than ideal and food could be limited so the children would often look for scraps at the hotel.[4] They remained in the hotel's "backyard" until 1928, when they were moved out to Jay Creek.[5]

Mona Minahan, Alice Springs' first barmaid, began work at the Stuart Arms in 1931.[3]

The pub was destroyed by fire in 1960, and later replaced by a two-storey building, also known as the Stuart Arms.[3] This building was demolished over the weekend of 11–12 January 1986,[1] so that a shopping centre, Alice Plaza, could be built on the site. A new pub of the same name was established in the shopping centre.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 Strong, B. W. (1998). The Stuart Arms Hotel : " ... the worst hotel in the world ". Alice Springs, N.T.: B.W. Strong. ISBN 0958554609. OCLC 39442608.
  2. ↑ Blackwell, Doris. (2008). Alice on the line : the overland telegraph, one family's story. Lockwood, Douglas, 1918-1980. (New ed.). Chatswood, N.S.W.: New Holland Publishers. ISBN 9781741108033. OCLC 278188157.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Roberts, Mick (4 April 2020). "A rare look inside a 1920s outback pub: Stuart Arms Hotel, Alice Springs". Time Gents. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  4. 1 2 Traynor, Stuart (2016). Alice Springs : from singing wire to iconic outback town. Mile End, South Australia. ISBN 9781743054499. OCLC 958933012.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. ↑ "The Bungalow". Find and Connect. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
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