James & Christiana Scott, 1852

James Mills Scott

Thomas Maud Scott

Steiglitz Hotel c1868

Dorothy, Eva & Harriet Scott, 1913

Hotels were the focal points of many a country town in 19th century Australia, and Steiglitz, a rough and ready gold rush town, was no different. The Steiglitz Hotel, known for most of its life as Scott’s Hotel, was certainly one of the busiest places in town during the heady days of gold mining and the quiescent periods in between. It was bought by my great-great-grandfather James Scott in 1861and finally closed by his widow Christiana at the end of 1917.

James and Christiana both came from Yorkshire. James’s father died when he was nineteen, leaving him a house and butcher’s shop, plus an additional £100. Having qualified as a butcher, and with his finances in a healthy state, he married Christiana Dean in January 1852. Later that year the couple left England aboard the ultra-modern ocean liner, the ss Great Britain, arriving in Port Phillip on 12 November.

Two months after reaching Melbourne a son, James, was born but fell victim to dysentery at ten months. The couple moved to Geelong where two more boys were born: James, my great grandfather, in 1855 and Thomas in 1856. Later that year the family shifted to Steiglitz; James continued his trade but, like most men, took out a miner’s right to try his luck.

A fourth son, Harry, was born at Steiglitz in 1859, but he also succumbed to the unhealthy conditions within a year. In March James sold all his household effects and sailed to England on the ss Great Britain with his wife and two small boys. However their visit was a short one for they returned to Melbourne on the same vessel at its next sailing, having stayed in Britain only ten weeks.

Back in Victoria, the Scotts immediately returned to Steiglitz where James bought the Steiglitz Hotel early in 1861. There were two other pubs operating at that time, all situated in the main thoroughfare, Regent Street.

In 1861 Christiana gave birth to a fifth son, Frank, who was followed a year later by their last son, Edward. James was a busy man around this time: in addition to the demands of the hotel, he also maintained his butchering business, was involved in  local  mining  ventures  and  in 1866 was  elected  an inaugural councillor for the newly proclaimed borough of Steiglitz.

The late 1860s and early 1870s were boom times for Steiglitz as gold production reached its peak. Not surprisingly, several more hotels and wine shops were opened, both in the town and also at New Chum, 1½ km to the north. However the bustling town lacked a community hall so James built one next to his hotel around 1869. It was known as the Alfred Hall and for many years was a popular venue for meetings, dances, concerts, receptions and other entertainment.

As the richer reefs were depleted and mining became unprofitable in the 1870s, the hotels closed one by one. Unfortunately James became ill and died in September 1875. Christiana carried on the business through the lean times of the 1880s until early in 1891 when she decided to sell. Then in May 1892 fire almost totally destroyed the building. Christiana bought the site back cheaply and by December had rebuilt the hotel and regained the licence. She continued to run the hotel until the compulsory forfeiture of the licence at the end of 1917.

The mid 1890s saw renewed mining activity at Steiglitz, but the boom was short-lived and by 1900 there were few mines left operating. In 1911 the Court House Hotel closed, leaving only the Steiglitz Hotel to carry on an ever quieter trade until its closure.

Christiana died aged 87 in May 1918 and is buried alongside her husband in the Steiglitz cemetery. A strong woman with a flair for business, she placed her faith in Steiglitz over a period of 57 years, and it is perhaps appropriate that Scott’s Hotel is one of the few old buildings still standing in the town. (See the Publications page for details of my new book on the history of Steiglitz' pubs.)

James Mills Scott, my great grandfather, and the first surviving son of James and Christiana, commenced teaching in 1876. For 45 years he pursued his career in small rural towns throughout Victoria. He suffered isolation, substandard conditions, low pay, and a rampant bureaucracy. He was perpetually short of money, even becoming bankrupt at one stage in 1884. He and Harriet had six children and, eventually, fourteen grandchildren. After Harriet died in 1915, James married Margaret Smith but again suffered the agony of burying his wife when she, too, passed away in 1919. His third wife, Charlotte Ord, a divorcee, outlived James when he died in 1934. James's life is the subject of my book An obedient servant, details of which are given on the Publications page.

Further genealogical details of the Scott family are shown in the Descendant chart.