The claim
Sydney's self-declared oldest pub stands on George Street in The Rocks, on a site licensed since about 1830. Tooth & Co. rebuilt it in 1921, and the hamper bar, high ceilings and dark timber survive from that era. A 2025 expansion added a bistro and boutique rooms upstairs, but the front bar keeps the old pub feel that once drew locals, sailors and soldiers.
What the records show
The State Heritage Register has the emancipist Samuel Terry building a terrace of three on this site, completed in the mid to late 1820s and constructed as a public house known as the Fortune of War; its footprint appears in Robert Russell's survey of 1834, and the register places that terrace at today's 139-143 George Street. The first recorded licensee was John Boreham in 1830, for the sale of wines, malt and liquor — a former miller transported on the Marquis of Wellington in 1815 and recorded as a dealer in the census of 1828. Walter Nottingham Palmer kept it from 1833 to 1839, and Robert White Moore held the licence from 1842, with a midnight licence and leases renewed in 1844 and 1851. The allotment was formally granted to Terry's executors in January 1841. The present building is Tooth & Co.'s rebuilding of 1921-22, so the claim of 1828 rests on the licence and the site and not on the fabric. The land is owned by Place Management NSW, the state body for The Rocks.
| Year | What | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1828 | Claimed founding | The pub |
| c.1921 | Present building | Building fabric |
| 1830 | First record of a drinking house here | NSW State Heritage Register |
What to look for inside
- Founded by emancipated convict Samuel Terry
- 1921 Tooth & Co. interior with original hamper bar
- Bistro 1828 and Russell Boutique Hotel added in 2025
Visiting
Fortune of War Hotel is in Sydney, Australia, at 137 George Street, The Rocks NSW. We do not list opening times, because they change; the pub’s own site is the place to check before you set out.
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortune_of_War_Hotel
- www.fortuneofwar.com.au/about
- manofmany.com/culture/food/fortune-of-war-hotel-bistro-now-open
- pubtic.com.au/the-matter-of-australias-oldest-pub/
- apps.environment.nsw.gov.au/dpcheritageapp/ViewHeritageItemDetails.aspx?ID=5053163
- rocksdiscoverymuseum.com/place/fortune-of-war
Know something we don’t?Suggest a correctionLast checked Sept 2026
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