Central Business District in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia — Oceania

Princes Bridge Hotel

Photographed by Dean Barton-Ancliffe, April 14, 2026

1. Princes Bridge Hotel Marker

Inscription.
Princes Bridge Hotel

Building Erected 1853
Hotel Licensed 1861

Leased to Henry Figsby Young and Thomas Joshua Jackson 1875

Classified

Erected by National Trust of Australia Victoria.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Colonial Era. A significant historical year for this entry is 1853.

Location. 37° 49.052′ S, 144° 58.028′ E. Marker is in Melbourne, Victoria. It is in the Central Business District. It is at the intersection of Swanston Street and Flinders Street (Victoria Route 30), on the left when traveling east on Swanston Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1 Swanston Street, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia. Touch for directions.

Regionally, it is in Oceania,

Australasia,

the Pacific Ocean,

South Pacific,

the Pacific Rim,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once a British colony.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: The First Melbourne Land Auction (within shouting distance of this marker); St Pauls Cathedral Precinct (within

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shouting distance of this marker); You Should Have Seen It (about 150 meters away, measured in a direct line); Town Hall Foundation Stone (approx. 0.2 kilometers away); Melbourne Town Hall (approx. 0.2 kilometers away); The Athenaeum Building (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); The Melbourne Athenaeum (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Duke of Wellington Hotel (approx. 0.3 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Melbourne.

More about this marker. This Marker is located on the Flinders Street side of the building. There is a second identical marker located on the eastern side of the building on Swanston Street

Also see . . . Young and Jackson's Princes Bridge Hotel. Heritage Council Victoria

Young and Jackson's Princes Bridge Hotel is an amalgamation of five separate buildings of two and three storeys.

The original 1853 bluestone building was designed as a three-storey residence, with a butcher's shop on the ground floor. It opened as a hotel in July 1861 with John T Toohey as licensee. It was later extended in both directions, incorporating a shop to the north in Swanston Street and two early bluestone
Photographed by Dean Barton-Ancliffe, April 14, 2026

2. Young and Jackson's Princes Bridge Hotel
stores to the west on Flinders Street. All the buildings have been rendered and painted to match each other but the original stone corner building can be readily identified.

In 1875 Henry Figsby Young and Thomas Jackson took over the licence, extended the hotel and gave it the name by which it is now popularly known. The architect John Flannigan and the builder Henry Wright undertook the renovations, including the removal of the original timber shopfronts and the addition of the brick parapets and pediments. In 1908 Henry Young purchased the painting Chloe and displayed it in the saloon bar. Chloe is a painting of a nude female by the Frenchman Jules Lefebvre. This painting had been the subject of public outcry when it had been shipped to Melbourne for the 1880-81 International Exhibition at the Royal Exhibition Buildings. Its display at the hotel ensured great publicity for Young.

Young sold his leasehold in 1914 to the brewer Stephen Morell. During Morell's tenancy the hotel absorbed another of the former stores extending west along Flinders Street. In 1921 the freeholder united all the previous perimeter occupancies to form
Photographed by Dean Barton-Ancliffe, April 14, 2026

3. The second Princes Bridge Hotel Marker
This marker is located on the Swanston Street side
one large hotel facade. The architect of this work was the hotel specialist Richard B Whittaker. The red glaze tile dado and ornamental frieze was added to combat the grime at ground level. The streetscape of the hotel is dominated by large advertising signs fixed to the exterior, a feature of the hotel since the 1920s.

(Submitted on May 8, 2026, by Dean Barton-Ancliffe of Rowville, Victoria.)

Credits. This page was last revised on May 9, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 8, 2026, by Dean Barton-Ancliffe of Rowville, Victoria. This page has been viewed 10 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 8, 2026, by Dean Barton-Ancliffe of Rowville, Victoria. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.