Waterman's Arms

Robert Collins's hotel, on Lot 41 in Mouat Street, was known by his name when he began trading at the beginning of 1830, but by June he had changed its name to the Commercial Hotel. It was later changed again to the Waterman's Arms – as it was just above the river's high-water mark. William Heard took the hotel over from Collins in 1831.

Tuckfield:
Robert Collins received a licence for what he called Collins' Hotel, but after the first year it was heard of no more, at least under that name. ... Meanwhile, in Fremantle [by 1834?], of the four original 1830 licences, Robert Collins' hotel had disappeared in name ... Tuckfield: 67, 77.
(Tuckfield has the Waterman's Arms on lot 56, where Lodge's Castle Hotel later was—but he (Tuckfield) didn't know where Collins' Hotel was, and it was in fact in Mouat Street.)

The Waterman's Arms building drawn on an 1844 Snell/Chauncey map by heritage architect Robin McKellar Campbell (1934-2017), clearly showing it to have been on Lot 41, where the Adelaide Steamship Company's building now stands.

Tuckfield: :
In September 1835 another advertisement stated 'For sale or let, the Waterman's Arms—apply W. H. Edwards (William Hugh) who is about to leave the country.' I don't know how he got into the act because he was listed as the Government boat-builder who, about this time, was applying to be repatriated to England because of ill-health. The sale apparently didn't eventuate because, in 1842, it was announced that a supper and ball was to be held at the Waterman's Arms (W. Heard). And in 1844 it was announced: 'For sale, Waterman's Arms—tap room, bar room, parlour, bed-rooms, good stabling, outhouses, kitchen, well with pump attached—Wm. Heard on the premises.'
I have never proved who owned this place but it was on lot 56 and William Heard had been granted crown lots 55 and 56 earlier so it seems as if the hotel belonged to Heard. Lot 55 was on the corner of Phillimore and Henry Streets, while 56 (next door) was in Henry Street. Tuckfield: 99-100.

References and Links

Tuckfield, Trevor 1971, 'Early colonial inns and taverns', Part 1, Early Days: Journal and proceedings of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, 7, 3: 65-82; Part 2, Early Days, 7, 7: 98-106.

Freotopia

This page incorporates material from Garry Gillard's Freotopia website, that he started in 2014 and the contents of which he donated to Wikimedia Australia in 2024. The content was originally created on 5 February, 2019 and hosted at freotopia.org/hotels/watermans.html (it was last updated on 30 November, 2023), and has been edited since it was imported here (see page history). The donated data is also preserved in the Internet Archive's collection.