Hadley's Hotel

Undated postcard of Hadley's Hotel (Tasmaniana Library, SLT)

Hadley's Hotel, convict-built, opened in 1834 as the Golden Anchor Inn. Later it became the Marquis of Waterford and, in the 1850s, Webb's Hotel, after its purchase by ex-convict John Webb, who installed a ballroom and ice rink. After Webb's death (1881), JC Hadley bought the hotel, renaming it Hadley's Orient.

During their 55 years as owners, the Hadleys modernised extensively, turning it into Hobart's leading hotel. Electric lights and telephones were early innovations. Numerous well-known guests included Prince Alfred (1868), Princess Melikoff, and Roald Amundsen, after returning from the South Pole (1912). Though advertised as a prize in Tattersall's lotteries in 1893, the hotel remained in the Hadleys' hands. In the late 1970s, it was modernised again, with a disco, bars and theatre restaurant added. It now belongs to Doherty Hotels.

Further reading: The Cyclopedia of Tasmania, Hobart, 1900.

Caroline Evans