Former "The Young Princess Hotel" Including Interior

Item details


Name of item:	Former "The Young Princess Hotel" Including Interior
Other name/s:	Young Princess Hotel; The Whalers Arms
Type of item:	Built
Group/Collection:	Commercial
Category:	Hotel
Location:	Lat: -33.85900133435 Long: 151.204900604736
Primary address:	79 Lower Fort Street, Dawes Point, NSW 2000
Local govt. area:	Sydney

All addresses

Street Address	Suburb/town	LGA	Parish	County	Type
79 Lower Fort Street	Dawes Point	Sydney			Primary Address
79 Lower Fort Street	Millers Point	Sydney			Alternate Address

Statement of significance:


	Of social significance as a local hotel establishment, associated with the lifestyle of the residential and maritime communities. Of environmental significance for its contribution to an architecturally diverse and historically important residential streetscape.
	Date significance updated: 06 Jan 06
	Note: The State Heritage Inventory provides information about heritage items listed by local and State government agencies. The State Heritage Inventory is continually being updated by local and State agencies as new information becomes available. Read the Department of Premier and Cabinet copyright and disclaimer.

Description


Construction years:	1840-1840
Physical description:	Located within the Millers Point historic district. Located on an important corner site. Category:Individual Building. Style:Old Colonial Georgian. Storeys:2. General Details:Refer to Archaeological Zoning Plan.
Modifications and dates:	1840
Further information:	Was a heritage item in 1989, and remains so since that time. Heritage Inventory sheets are often not comprehensive, and should be regarded as a general guide only. Inventory sheets are based on information available, and often do not include the social history of sites and buildings. Inventory sheets are constantly updated by the City as further information becomes available. An inventory sheet with little information may simply indicate that there has been no building work done to the item recently: it does not mean that items are not significant. Further research is always recommended as part of preparation of development proposals for heritage items, and is necessary in preparation of Heritage Impact Assessments and Conservation Management Plans, so that the significance of heritage items can be fully assessed prior to submitting development applications.


Current use:	Retail, Residential
Former use:	Hotel

History

Historical notes:

The "Eora people" was the name given to the coastal Aborigines around Sydney. Central Sydney is therefore often referred to as "Eora Country". Within the City of Sydney local government area, the traditional owners are the Cadigal and Wangal bands of the Eora.

With the invasion of the Sydney region, the Cadigal and Wangal people were decimated but there are descendants still living in Sydney today.

The building was constructed by an unknown builder as the ‘Young Princess’ inn circa 1840 and by 1847 was known as ‘The Whalers Arms’. The first licensee was Joseph Farris. The ‘Young Princess’ was a handsome and commodious structure, as Rae’s painting of 1842 made clear. But its rival on the opposite corner, the ‘Hero of Waterloo’ was larger and better equipped. Two more inns existed just along from it, on the south side of Windmill Street, and other inns (including the two other ‘Whalers Arms’) proliferated all over the Millers point area. The rivalry was intense. It is unclear how long the ‘Whalers Arms’ continued to trade as a public house as there were gaps in the licensing magistrates’ records. The 1855 City assessment returns show the property, as a shop run by Mrs Isabella Brown. With a growing residential population in the now-crowded ‘Rocks’ area, the retail trade needed as many outlets as the liquor and accommodation trades. The following fifteen years found the No. 79 building alternating between these two characteristic occupations. In 1855 and 1858 it was a grocer’s shop. With a renewed licence, the building became the ‘Whalers Arms’ once more in 1861, retaining its public house character until 1868. At times, the publicans seem to have been related to the occupants of the ‘Hero of Waterloo’. This became evident in 1867 when the ‘Whalers Arms’ bore the title ‘Brown’s Family Hotel’. In this capacity, it apparently acted as a residential annexe to the ‘Hero of Waterloo’. This restrained aspect of the hostelry business did not long endure and from 1870 it was once more given over to groceries. No. 79 remained a grocer’s shop for the remainder of its long commercial life. Its large ground-floor room was no less useful as a repository for the large bags and boxes of stock of the traditional grocer than it had been as a tavern bar and the shop was strategically placed. Lower Fort Street was largely residential and so there was need for an all-purpose grocer. The upstairs rooms provided accommodation for the grocer’s family, or a tenant. Initially, the corner shop was the only building on the west side of Lower fort Street between Ferry Lane and the lane leading to Downshire Street. The adjacent site (Nos. 75-77) remained vacant until 1928, holding a few sheds, acting as stores and stables. The original concept of No. 79, as the commercial end of a residential terrace was never realised. When housing development did take place, it worked south from the Downshire Street lane. From 1890 there was quite a rapid turnover of shopkeepers but then the occupancies grew longer: The Plague scare, the advent of the Harbour Trust in 1901, and the reconstruction of the Walsh Bay wharves brought massive changes to the area. No. 79 now had a new proprietor, the Trust, but otherwise it continued as before. Much of Windmill Street was altered and new housing appeared on the east side of Lower Fort Street. The building of the Harbour Bridge approach from 1925 created a great barrier. Socially, the local population changed substantially, from the family unit to the occupiers of the numerous boarding houses in the area. Demand for groceries was steady but not large, especially with a large array of shops in Kent Street and Circular Quay West.
Following the decision to retain the Rocks and Millers Point for its cultural significance the building passed into the ownership of the State Government and eventually to the NSW Land and Housing Corporation. In the last decade of the 20 th century the building ceased to be occupied and was subject to vandalism and the ravages of a severe white ant infestation. A 99 year lease was purchased in 2005.

Historic themes

Australian theme (abbrev)	New South Wales theme	Local theme
3. Economy-Developing local, regional and national economies	Commerce-Activities relating to buying, selling and exchanging goods and services	(none)-
4. Settlement-Building settlements, towns and cities	Accommodation-Activities associated with the provision of accommodation, and particular types of accommodation – does not include architectural styles – use the theme of Creative Endeavour for such activities.	(none)-

Recommended management:

The building should be retained and conserved. A Heritage Assessment and Heritage Impact Statement, or a Conservation Management Plan, should be prepared for the building prior to any major works being undertaken. There shall be no vertical additions to the building and no alterations to the façade of the building other than to reinstate original features. The principal room layout and planning configuration as well as significant internal original features including ceilings, cornices, joinery, flooring and fireplaces should be retained and conserved. Any additions and alterations should be confined to the rear in areas of less significance, should not be visibly prominent and shall be in accordance with the relevant planning controls.

Listings

Heritage Listing	Listing Title	Listing Number	Gazette Date	Gazette Number	Gazette Page
Local Environmental Plan	Sydney Local Environmental Plan 2012	I565	14 Dec 12
Heritage study

References, internet links & images

Type	Author	Year	Title
Written	Anita Heiss		Aboriginal People and Place, Barani: Indigenous History of Sydney City
Written	Christina Amiet, Graham Brooks and Associates Pty Ltd	2002	75-77 & 79 Lower Fort Street, Millers Point : heritage impact assessment
Written	Schwager Brooks	1985	Traditional Hotels Study

Note: internet links may be to web pages, documents or images.

(Click on thumbnail for full size image and image details)

Data source


The information for this entry comes from the following source:
Name:	Local Government
Database number:	2423635

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