Echuca in Campaspe Shire, Victoria, Australia — Oceania

This Establishment Built About 1878 Is The Only Classified Brothel in Victoria

The Only Classified Brothel in Victoria Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, November 25, 2005

1. The Only Classified Brothel in Victoria Marker

Inscription.
The house consists of 3 small rooms on each floor, the upper rooms being reached by a staircase leading into a sheltered lane running off Little Hopwood street, making it possible for even the most respectable citizen to visit the scarlet ladies undetected.

After the nearby Murray Hotel was built in 1879, the Brothel was run in conjunction with the pub and became known for its ‘honky tonk’ dancing and immorality.

In 1897 the licencing court met to reduce by 20 the number of hotels in Echuca – then about 80. The licensee of the Murray Hotel, in defending herself against hints of immorality, said hers was a respectable establishment and gave the following details...

Her patrons were “wharf hands, Tradesmen and working men generally”; there was no “high kicking” on her premises, though she did employ pianists – 8 girls in 8 months; she had no knowledge of a girl called Flocker Liz... The licensing court was evidently not convinced and the Hotel’s licence was cancelled in November 1897.

The former Murray Hotel is the 2 storey brick building still standing on the esplanade just south of here. (It was) used as the Bank of Victoria in the TV series “All the Rivers Run.”

This area is the hub of early Echuca. Henry Hopwood, founder of the town, built his first Slab Inn nearby. His Prefabricated Iron Store, Butchery and Bakery were close to this site...

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Entertainment • Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers • Women. A significant historical month for this entry is November 1897.

Location. 36° 7.343′ S, 144° 44.831′ E. Marker is in Echuca, Victoria, in Campaspe Shire. It is on Little Hopwood Street close to Murray Esplanade. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 584 High St, Echuca VIC 3564, Australia. Touch for directions.

Regionally,

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it is in Oceania,

in Australasia,

in the Pacific Ocean,

in South Pacific,

on the Pacific Rim,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

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

Also see . . . John Weaver White Plaque. Openplaques.org entry for a different marker on the same topic at the same site. (Submitted on December 17, 2013.)

Additional keywords. bordello prostitution; sex work

The Only Classified Brothel in Victoria image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, November 25, 2005

2. The Only Classified Brothel in Victoria

The Murray Hotel image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, November 25, 2005

3. The Murray Hotel

Credits. This page was last revised on August 2, 2026. It was originally submitted on December 7, 2013, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 3,082 times since then and 148 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on December 7, 2013, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.