History of Petersham Inn

One of Sydney's oldest hotels

  

Suburb of Petersham

The site of the Petersham Inn is part of the land granted to John White by Lieutenant Francis Grose in 1794. The suburb takes its name from Petersham Hill a property referred to in auction notes in 1804. Petersham was a terminus for bullock teams using the main road to Parramatta.

By 1823 the main passenger transport service was by horse drawn buses. This changed in 1880, when tramways extended to Leichardt. Petersham was incorporated as a municipality in1871.

Overview

The Petersham inn shows the development of hotel services on this site. From a stopping point on the main road in the mid 19th century it emerged as a larger establishment in the early 20th century.

The third Petersham inn made a market improvement in the level of comfort and sophistication of hotel services in the area.

Its specialised lounges with high quality décor catered to a wider range of tastes and particularly suite mixed drinking. Its success was immediate, providing hospitality with character.

The design of the Petersham in contributes two landmark towers to the townscape of Petersham. This character has been conserved in the re development of the site completed in April 2002

The first and second Petersham inn

In 1854 William Hughes built the first Petersham inn to serve the coming railway. In 1855 Petersham railway consisted of a makeshift railway platform. This was replaced in 1863 and enlarged in 1883.

The hotel was replaced in 1906 by the second Petersham inn built by Theodore Trautwein, a prominent racing and political identity.

The third Petersham inn

Mary Whelan bought the hotel in 1921 and passed it on to another member of the Whelan family, Mary Isabell Taylor and her husband, Wilfred. They rebuilt the hotel, enlarging it to suite an extended site made possible by the formation of Phillip Street.

The architects of the third pi were Rudder and Grout who had worked in tooth & co’s architectural office before forming a partnership in 1925.

Their commissions included the Petersham town hall in Crystal Street and the north Sydney Olympic swimming pool.

The hotels prominent corner tower is a local landmark on Parramatta road. The hotels proximity to the Albert palace dance hall contributed to its success. It was known for its sophistication, comfort and respectability.

The western lounge

The western lounge was built in 1940 as a major extension to the Petersham inn

Its comforts included a beer garden and roof garden together with its spacious open plan lounge. It reflected wide acceptance of mixed drinking

Designed in art deco style by the architect Leslie sodden, its dramatic tower remains a local landmark today

Adaptation for apartments in 2001 02 includes conservation of the street façade and tower

The initial popularity of the PI lead to an expansion in the form of the western lounge. This was situated to the south of the hotel and linked to it. It was built on land acquired from Petersham council after the formation of Phillip Street.

Architect Leslie Soden, who was a family friend of the Taylors, designed in the art deco style.

The exterior is characterized by curved brickwork corners which step upwards at the parapet rising to a central tower in rendered masonry. This has a curved vertical form accented by deep ribbed horizontal profiling and terminating at the peak in a curved emblem reminiscent of ‘streamlined’ motifs typical of Arts Deco and Modern styles.

This flamboyant tower remains a dramatic central feature of the conserved façade of the western lounge. It provides a local landmark within Phillip Street forming a termination to the length of hotel building and balancing the tower on the corner of Parramatta road.

The western lounge interior

The main space was an extensive lounge suited to mix drinking in a relaxed atmosphere. The décor was stylish for the period with one corner accommodating a band, two fireplaces and large steel framed windows set either side of the entry.

The centre of the space was accented with a broad duct which was connected to mechanical ventilation housed in an elaborate tower which dominated the street façade over the entry lobby.