Hotels of Devonport

Having moved to an older part of the city of Devonport, my interest is piqued as to the history of many of the lovely old buildings that surround our house.

The pub down a block from us (nice walking distance for a counter meal) I wouldn't have described as one of these. The Elimatta , or The Elly as it is always affectionately named, follows the architectural genre of "Mish Mash Butt Ugly, Nobody's Put Any Thought Into AS They Changed It Over The Years". I will have to check with my architecture student friend as to the validity of the naming if this style.

                                                                   source:  The Advocate newspaper


I was delighted to see some old pics of it on the Devonport Historic Site on Facebook.

 What a gorgeous old place it once was.

All towns that sprang up in Tassie's early settling days had a multitude of hotels and guest houses and it was from either of these that our pubs of today have evolved.

Devonport had it's fair share in the early days, The Alexander (still here) The Formby, (still here), The Mersey, The Victoria, The British, The Tamahere to name a few.

The beautiful building that was the Elly has had many additions and alterations in it's life.

Looking slightly more recognizable now, this pic I would date at circa 1960 from the cars,

The grand old girl obviously now stripped of her verandahs, is slowly being swallowed up by modern additions.

Whenever I walk past The Elly, I wonder about the old parts. Are they still there, what remains of it?

As someone with a desire to connect and fossick among remnants of a past era, I always look for it.

I recently went around the back to the bottle shop. There beneath the wheelie bins, fire escapes and add on additions, behind a door is an old staircase and a glimpse of the old brickwork and windows.

It made me kind of happy to know there is still something of the past there. 

I reminds me of our own lives as we get on a bit more in years. We try and modernize ourselves, keep up with a changing world, hide some of our memories and experiences with facades, block off doors we no longer want to go through. From the outside we can really change our opinions and what we want to present to the outside world. We might not want to seem old fuddy duddys , and we might want to hide bits of ourselves that are maybe boring and passe.

But get in behind those bits we've covered up and that same person is still there. Deep inside that lovely old staircase still winds up to all those old rooms, those memories and that person you were when you were just a kid. I'd like to think so anyway.

                                         ****************************

Sadly some have all gone completely. I think the most mourned hotel of Devonport would be The Grand Hotel.

Demolished in 1968 to make way for a Brutalist banking institute (yes, that IS a real architectural genre). It must have made an impression on me as I can actually remember this building. I was 7 then. I remember standing on the corner of Rooke and Best Streets staring at this building thinking how lovely and grand it really was.

 Palace Hotel corner Rooke and Steele Street ( maybe not quite a palace)

 Royal Hotel corner Best and Fenton Street

 Metropole Hotel on Formby Road between King and Steele being demolished
.

" A home away from home is a term

that says concisely what The Metropole actually is. At this up-to-date board-

ing establishment guests not only can obtain the comforts and privacy of

their own homes, but they have facilities for reading, writing, the use of

commercial and smoking rooms such as few houses contain."

-as reported in the local newspaper 1922

AND I read it had hot and cold water systems installed throughout the building. Gee I'd really like to stay here!

And some are still quite recognizable , The Formby, only recently reinvented with a name change a slight facelift.

And the good old Alex. She hasn't changed a bit!

The Alex in the background and the earlier Formby in the forground.

                                                                                     from Shifting Sands by Faye Gardam

unless noted these pics are all from Devonport and Surrounds- A Pictorial History, Facebook group.