The claim
Known locally as 'The Stump', this Bank Street pub in the seaside town of Port Fairy claims a licence from 1844, which would make it among Victoria's oldest. It closed briefly in late 2023, then reopened for Christmas. Now it's back to trivia nights, bistro meals and motel rooms for Great Ocean Road travellers.
What the records show
The Victorian Heritage Register's report for the house records that the Scottish-born David McLaws entered into a lease for the block at the corner of Bank and James Streets in 1844 and is first recorded as the licensee of the Caledonian Hotel in the same year. The size of the house he held then is not known, and it was built in stages: the interior of the whole attic storey on the James Street elevation remains unfinished because the workmen reputedly abandoned the site for the goldfields. McLaws bought the acre from James Atkinson in 1850 for £200, held the licence for most of the period from 1844 to about 1860, and the hotel stayed in his estate until 1887. It became a venue for horse sales, among them those of Thomas Browne, who wrote as Rolf Boldrewood and lived in the district from 1843 to 1856, and the Western Horse Bazaar opened here in November 1872. Port Fairy calls it the oldest continuously licensed hotel in Victoria, and Portland's Gordon Hotel makes a rival claim from 1842; the house closed until further notice in September 2023 and reopened on 27 December 2023, so the word continuously needs that qualification. It trades as The Stump.
| Year | What | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1844 | Claimed founding | Its listing |
| 1844 | First record of a drinking house here | Victorian Heritage Database |
What to look for inside
- David McLaws first recorded as licensee in 1844
- Attic interior on the James Street side left unfinished when the workmen went to the goldfields
- Known locally as The Stump
- Horse sales held here, including those of the novelist Rolf Boldrewood
Visiting
Caledonian Inn is in Port Fairy, Australia, at 41-43 Bank Street, Port Fairy VIC 3284. We do not list opening times, because they change; the pub’s own site is the place to check before you set out.
Sources
- www.thestumpportfairy.com.au/
- www.standard.net.au/story/8347759/popular-watering-holes-closure-stumps-pub-regulars/
- www.gdaypubs.com.au/state-histories.html
- vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/2607/download-report
- vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/69315
Know something we don’t?Suggest a correctionLast checked Sept 2026
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