Bruce Rock Hotel

Statement of Significance

The place demonstrates a way of life. It is integral within the streetscape and the character of the town of Bruce Rock. The place demonstrates associations with pioneers of the area and is representative of an era of development.

Physical Description

Two storey brick construction. The First Floor verandahs extend around the two street frontages and form a colonnade at street level. The entry is located at the truncated corner. The corrugated iron roof is hipped with a verandah under the main roof and gable features. The verandah balustrade has been replaced with metal sheeting, c1970's and wasrestored to the original in 1997. The original 12 bedrooms were added to in the 1920's, extending the hotel frontage along Johnson Street.

History

As early as 1912, Hubert Robins applied for a liquor license in Nunagin (now Bruce Rock). That application was withdrawn due to a technical ommission of exact locality and later presented to the Northam Licensing Court in 1913, by which time the Premier (Scadden) had sought approval for a state hotel at Nunagin. The Railway Line through from Quairading had opened in Bruce Rock in March 1913 and connected through to Merredin by December that year. On the 17th June 1913, the town of Bruce Rock was gazetted and on 24th June approval was granted for a State Hotel at Nunagin (Bruce Rock) and Kwolyin. By August the plans for the then Bruce Rock State Hotel had been submitted and both the Kwolyin and Bruce Rock Hotels were built simutaneously, with the Kwolyin Hotel opening a few days before the Bruce Rock Hotel which opened on 27th May 1914. The hotel opened the year of a bad drought throughout the district and the onset of the First World War. With no hall in town, Hazell's Pictures showed the first cinema in Bruce Rock in the open air behind the hotel.

From the outset, the hotel accommodation was inadequate and more rooms were added in 1921, which only relieved the situation for a short while. Many managers have been at the hotel, with AE Baxter from the 1920's and various other periods before being a popular "mine host".
The early settlers worked constantly to establish their properties and social interaction was a welcome relief from the toil. Dances were a popular event, with a dance taking place on any floor, even before a building was finished, such was the case at the hotel, with a dance taking place at the bar before the hotel building was complete.

As with most towns, with the advent of the hotel, the presence of the law was required. There was no lock-up in Bruce Rock when the hotel opened, so the drunks were chained to a log.

In 1945, a local Town Planning Committee was formed and applied to purchase the "State Hotel" from the Government to convert it to a community hotel. The application was rejected.

The hotel still operates, providing a social venue in the town and accommodation for travellers and tourists.

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity: Intact or Redeemable
Authenticity: High Degree

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.