Cobb and Co coach leaving The Australian Hotel Queen Street Brisbane for Gympie, Queensland in 1869

Situated on the corner of Queen and Albert Street, Brisbane. The Australian Hotel was where the inaugral meeting was held to form Tattersall's Club on 05 November 1883. Constructed in 1869 on the corner of Queen Street and Albert Street, Brisbane, the Australian Hotel replaced an earlier building that was destroyed by fire in 1868. Extensively remodelled in 1906 the hotel continued in operation until 20 July 1963 (State Library of Qld description) The Australian Hotel was situated on the corner of Queen and Alberts Streets and was built by Thomas Hayes in 1869. The photo includes John Hayes, Thomas’ son and George Thorn, Queensland’s 6th premier. Thomas Hayes and his wife Ellen (nee Finn) sailed from Liverpool, England aboard the ‘Livingstone’ on the 28 June 1841. They arrived in Sydney on 21 October 1841 and a week later they left for Moreton Bay in the small steamer ‘Little Edward’, reaching their destination 22 days later. An article connected with Thomas states that in 1841, the population of Queensland was just 200 souls, of those only sixty-seven were free. The Hayes’ then travelled overland to the Darling Downs before returning to Moreton Bay in late 1842 after it was declared open for free settlement. During the 1850’s Tom Hayes ran a dairy in the vicinity of Queen and Albert streets. In August 1869, the Brisbane Courier advised that Thomas Hayes had applied for a license for a new house recently erected by him at the corner of Queen and Albert streets which was to be called the Australian Hotel. The licence was granted conditionally upon a report being made of the house being made fit for occupation. Thomas and Ellen went on to have nine children and ran various hotels in Brisbane. Thomas died on the 25 July 1879 at the age of 69 and is buried in the Toowong cemetery