Williamstown Prince Albert Hotel Dusk

The Williamstown Prince Albert Hotel Dusk celebrates the iconic pub on the corner of Douglas Parade and Albert Street Williamstown. I love sitting in this pub. The vibe is always friendly and the staff are lovely.

Victorian State Library records show the Prince Albert Hotel as one of the 27 hotels operating in and around Williamstown during the early 20^th Century. What a time for a pub crawl. I recall visiting the pub around 20 years ago and proudly watching my toddler holding his first pool cue.

A century or so earlier in a great fire in 1914, the building was razed and the original weatherboard was rebuilt by the Carlton and United Breweries in what is considered a significant architectural design by Sydney Smith and Ogg.

Today the Prince Albert carries forward Williamstown’s community spirit becoming once again a centre for locals and passers by to enjoy.

Prince Albert Hotel Nerd information

Prince Albert Hotel, designed by Sydney Smith and Ogg for the Carlton & United Brewery Company was built in 1915-16 to replace an earlier timber structure. The hotel, in the Federation Free Style, is a two-storeyed red brick and stucco building with a slate roof. At the corner, two oriel windows with conical roofs flank an unusual circular-shaped covered balcony. The facades are decorated with tall-arched motifs, stylised cement plant motifs in the pilaster capitals, label moulds to the window arches and heavy banding of the chimney cornices.

How and Why is it significant?

Prince Albert Hotel has architectural and historical significance to the state of Victoria. Prince Albert Hotel is architecturally significant as a highly original and distinctive example of a late Federation Free Style hotel. The picturesque, sweeping corner with its pair of oriel windows topped by conical roofs flanking a covered balcony is unusual and gives the building a medieval flavour. This treatment is a variant on the Sydney Smith & Ogg corner tower motif found in many of their hotels including the Bendigo Hotel, Collingwood and the Kilkenny Inn, Melbourne. The exterior is a largely intact example of a Federation hotel.

Prince Albert Hotel Architectural and Historical Significance 

The Prince Albert Hotel has architectural and historical significance for its associations with the architects Sydney Smith and Ogg who were one of the most significant architectural practices in Melbourne, particularly with the many hotels they designed for the Carlton & United Brewery Company. The hotel also has associations with notable architect and educator Robert Haddon, who worked as design consultant to Sydney Smith and Ogg. It is similar to a country hotel illustrated in Haddon’s Australian Architecture called ‘A hotel upon a corner site’ which has a corner bar entry surmounted by an oriel tower.

The Prince Albert Hotel, built by a major brewery to replace an earlier structure, has historical significance as a reminder of the far reaching influence of the Licenses Reduction Board set up in 1906. Many hotels were closed or substantially altered or extended during this period so as to meet the requirements of the Licenses Reduction Board. Many publicans were financially unable to improve their facilities and this led to an increasing hotel ownership by major breweries.

The Williamstown Prince Albert Hotel Dusk comes in A4, A3, A2, A1 and the massive A0 and would make the perfect gift for lovers of vintage posters, travel posters, pubs, architecture, Williamstown, and Melbourne.

Visit the Prince Albert Hotel Williamstown

For more information about this cosy, friendly pub:

Upscale grub and craft beer in a venerable hotel, built in 1915, with a cosy vibe, open fire and outdoor seating.

Address: 149 Douglas Parade, Williamstown VIC 3016

Phone: (03) 9397 5117

Menu: princealbert.com.au