Goulburn’s Great Southern Railway Hotel opened in 1872 to accommodate travellers on the new railway line from Sydney. Photo: Goulburn Pub Group.
Overlooking Goulburn’s train station and with a contemporary black and white paint job that defies time itself, sits the Great Southern Railway Hotel. Like many of Australia’s country pubs, it was born in another era, built for needs we no longer have and has evolved to fit the needs of each generation that passes through its doors.
She’s a beautiful building, practicality meets elegance in the form of a late 19th-century facade we see the country over. Her decorative filigree work speaks to the refined aesthetic of colonial Australia, and the deep verandahs tell tales of our harsh Australian climate.
When the doors opened in 1872, the colony of NSW was entering a new era brought about by the ever-growing rail network connecting people and places.
If you’ve caught a regional train in NSW recently, you’ll be well aware that it isn’t the fastest form of transport. Spacious, yes. The ability to move around, yes. A touch romantic if you’re that way inclined, yes. Fast, no.
Speed, though, is relative. In 1869, when the last links of the railway were completed, connecting Goulburn to Sydney, an express train took you up to nine hours, and when you look at it that way, it makes today’s two-and-a-half hour journey seem quite reasonable.
Goulburn’s Victorian Italianate train station pictured here new in 1869. Photo: History Goulburn.
Before the train, of course, speed was measured in a whole different way, with a journey by Cobb & Co. coach, on horseback or by private carriage taking anywhere from 18 hours to multiple days. It was a journey fraught by the dangers of highwaymen and bushrangers.
As rail rolled out all round the colony, people were suddenly moving in greater numbers and at greater speed, and our burgeoning nation, not quite on the precipice of federation, was opening up, becoming safer and more accessible.
In a town like Goulburn, a pastoral boom town that was a major administrative and commercial hub for the colony, the arrival of the train called for new infrastructure to meet the needs of a new and exciting time.
All along Sloane Street, just a stone’s throw from the sparkling new Victorian Italianate train station, popped up pubs and hotels making it a hub for travellers, businessmen and the women who reared the nation.
Known then as Clifford’s Hotel, the ornate building has lived many lives under many names including the Railway Hotel and The Coolavin, and inside its doors, you’ll still find a thriving pub scene where largely locals have replaced the travellers, and on a busy night, the bar is lined with drinkers enjoying a cold beer and a long yarn.
The renovations at the Great Southern Railway Hotel are charming and sympathetic. Photo: Goulburn Pub Group.
I found myself there on a recent Thursday night, and in a wonderful coincidence, I was waiting for a train to Melbourne, but that’s not what drew me in. Despite having grown up in Goulburn and having not left until after my prime pub-going days, it was oddly a pub that I had never stepped through the door of.
I was curious as to what I might find inside; when a pub looks as sharp as this on the outside, my spidey senses tingle, suspecting a soulless renovation job on the inside. One with modernity and practicality in mind, but one that will have gutted the heart of what a country pub should be.
The front bar is lined with stools, a feature often lost in modern pub renovations. Photo: Goulburn Pub Group.
Turns out, I was wrong. While the pub has been heavily renovated, it still retains loads of charm. What was once likely a narrow front bar is now a large corner bar, and while I do miss the old-school front bars at country pubs that were once the domain of the locals, the corner bar here is very convivial, and it’s not that often that you still see seating lining the bar itself. In this case, the bar seating comes with the ciggie trough still intact, and if we measure time by the age of the pub, it wasn’t that long ago that having a smoke at the bar was still the done thing.
Considerable money has been spent to make this pub what it is today, but it’s charming and sympathetic. The entrance hall retains a stunning stained glass feature window, the staircase rises grandly to the rooms above, and on my way to the bistro for one of their hearty pub meals, I had a giggle at the signage that speaks to the Goulburn sense of humour; ‘Beware pickpockets and loose women’.
The Great Southern Railway Hotel offers hearty pub meals. Photo: Goulburn Pub Group.
As a ripping Guns and Roses number came on, I thought to myself that we’re a far cry from the 1870s but since my time, it seems like things haven’t changed all that much.
It’s worth taking a look at the pub if you can; after selling in 2023 for the first time in 34 years, the pub is on the market again and changes may be on the horizon for this historic drinking hole, so it’s best to catch it while you can.
The Great Southern Railway Hotel is located at 188 Sloane Street, Goulburn. Opening hours vary to online listings, so best to check locally. You can also keep up with them via their website, Facebook page and Instagram.
