Rosewood History
The Commercial Hotel – 27 John Street, Rosewood
HOTELS
Hotels played an important role in the development of regional towns. Usually there was more than one in a town, and in some cases there was a pub on every corner. Apart from selling liquor, hotels were places which provided meals and accomodation. They were also places for the community to gather for meetings and celebrations. Hotels were run by Licensed Victuallers, which is a formal name for the landlord of a public house or similar licensed establishment. They were commonly dubbed “Mine Host” just like the keepers of taverns in medieval times. Many Victuallers were women.
A potential publican needed to meet certain conditions and had to apply to the Licensing Court (held monthly) to run a public house. When transferring the license, both the existing publican and the applicant had to give notice of their intent to the Licensing Court for approval. The license had to be renewed annually, and licenses were also required for Billiards and Bagatelle when played within the house.
Publicans were generally gregarious beings who liked the company of others, a useful trait when dealing with people all of the time and making them feel welcome. It was also beneficial for the publican’s business to support local activities and have good relationships with other businesses in a town.
There have been hotels in the Rosewood township since December 1857.
The Rising Sun Hotel (No 1) est. 1857
The Rising Sun Hotel (No 2) – est. 1874 rebuilt 1884, 1909
The Rosewood Hotel – est. 1879 rebuilt 1914
The Commercial Hotel – est. 1884 rebuilt 1911
The Royal Hotel – est. 1890 rebuilt 1934 then became the Royal George Hotel
The Jockey Club Inn, Bigge’s Camp (Grandchester) – est. 1850 – demolished 1894