Offered for sale for this first time since 1977, Tattersalls Hotel, Barringun is surely one of the most unique properties to come onto the market anywhere in the country this decade. The remote but well known outback destination represents a very rare chance to not just purchase yourself a lifestyle but a genuine piece of outback Australian history.
The Tattersalls is the last remaining original building in Barringun, a tiny hamlet on the southern side of the NSW/QLD border, around 122km south of Cunnamulla and 137km north of the famous outback town of Bourke. In the early 1900s Barringun was a thriving outback town with 5 hotels, a racetrack and a brewery. Back then it offered a welcome relief to outback drovers, workers and bullock teams, over a century later the mode of transport may have changed but it still offers a welcome relief to travellers on long outback trips.
The hotel itself was established in 1884 and is a quintessential ‘bush pub’. Cypress pine weatherboard makes up the majority of the construction with an iron roof of course, the massive verandahs offer not just protection from the summer sun but provide a truly amazing place to sit and enjoy a drink and a yarn. Its difficult to comprehend that you are enjoying a cold drink in the exact same spot 130 odd years of patrons have done so before you. Inside the hotel the ceilings are 16 feet high and the nails used in the original building are literally hand made. Whilst the bar area itself isn’t huge its a step back in time before poker machines, pub tabs and pay tv here publicans meet and enjoy the company of their customers rather than just serve them – although the full size Alcock and Co billard table (complete with all accessories – framed rules, very rare Life Pool score board, cue racks and credenzas) is frequently called upon for entertainment. No tap beer is offered at the Tattersalls with the publicans instead preferring to serve package beer which is kept icy cold in the hotels 1930’s model timber coolroom.
The hotel sits on a 215 acre (87.25HA) holding encompassing a myriad of smaller lots that made up the old village, running all the way down to Barringun Creek from which you have a 2MG water license to pump from (maybe a tad optimistic amount considering the periodic flow of the creek). There are 2 dams both of which need repair work before they can be fully utilized. The balance of the country is cleared open flats that can easily lend itself to farming, recreation, camping or tourism pursuits. Accommodation wise the original building offers a dizzying array of rooms, both living area and bedroom friendly. The best way to describe the current arrangement of rooms is; 9 bedrooms, 2 large gauzed sleepouts, a TV/lounge room (called the Tap Room by locals which is yet another part of the history of the hotel), an enormous formal living area, an even bigger second lounge/dining room, a kitchen and two bathrooms both of which are external. In addition to all this there is also the ‘Post Office’. Some time in the early 1900's the then owners of the hotel acquired what had been a QLD Police Station which was situated in a now extinct town on the other side of the border from Barringun. It was moved to the current hotel site and established as a local Post Office and telephone exchange until the 1950’s. Since then it has been converted into a second residence on the property, offering a further 4 bedrooms, lounge, kitchen, closed in verandah and internal bathroom. This part of the hotel easily lends itself to accommodation either in full or room by room.
There is an assortment of outbuildings on the site, including a large 4 bay machinery shed with an annexed tractor/secondary shed on the back an old set of stables and stockyards, the original meat house where the butchering would have been done and of course a chook run. The fencing still remains for the tennis court, but as you will note from the photos no games have been played there for quite some time. Water to the hotel is provided via 36,000 litres worth of rainwater storage in tanks on the building as well as a constant supply from an artesian bore which feeds water through both residences and the grounds. In the past water has also been pumped from the creek and dam but this infrastructure hasn’t been used for some years.
The hotel is currently operated by Mary Crawley, who at 93 years of age is reputably Australia’s oldest publican. An outback legend in her own right, the fact that Mary was able to run this hotel single handedly until she was 92 years old is a testament to the easy and stress free lifestyle this property can offer, should you wish to keep it as is. Having said that the hotel would benefit greatly in trade from offering accommodation, meals, merchandise or fuel (currently there is no fuel between Bourke & Cunnamulla – 250km). Given her time in the hotel Mary knows this is more than a hotel, its importance to the area is far greater than that as it acts as a makeshift post office, community hall, information distributor and meeting place among other things. As a result the hotel will be left with the inclusions that were in the building when Mary took ownership as they ‘belong to the pub not me, I’ve just been looking after them’. A myriad of antique furniture (including a large Enfield Grandfather Clock which was the trophy for a horse race in the 1930's), memorabilia, historical documents and photos and even the old 240v & 52V generators will be left for the new owner.
Its simply not possible to list the historic features and stories of this hotel here as there are so many. The original ledgers of the Barringun Jockey Club are still on site and show Breaker Morant still has an outstanding balance and that Will Ogilvie worked on a local station and drank in the hotel, Russell Crowe has slept on the verandah and the survey of the NSW/QLD actually started here. In more recent times the hotel ha
