Sir William Wallace Hotel

Infobox_Public_House
name=Sir William Wallace Hotel
address=31 Cameron Street, Birchgrove, NSW 2041.


established=1879
closed=
telephone=
extra=

The Sir William Wallace Hotel is an historic pub in the suburb of Balmain in the inner-west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The pub is one of a number of buildings which formed an integral part of the shipbuilding and industrial history of the local area.

History

The pub is named after Sir William Wallace, the famous 13th century knight and Scottish patriot, although the reasons for choosing the name are not known. The close proximity to Mort's Dock and later Balmain Colliery ensured early patronage. The pub is now frequented by locals to whom it is affectionately known as the "Willie Wallace" or "Willie Wallie".

A mural depicting pub life, complete with regular patrons, was painted on an internal wall in 1990. The mural contains an image of actor Mel Gibson who provided perhaps the best known account of the life of William Wallace in the 1995 film "Braveheart". A signed poster from the film also hangs on the wall in the main bar.

Architecture

The pub is a heritage-listed building of local significance built in the Victorian Filligree style. It is a two storeyed corner hotel with a panelled lace upper verandah, timber posts to street and iron lace ballustrades. It is a rare example of a hotel still in its original state.New South Wales Government Heritage Register; "Sir William Wallace Pub"; Accessed October 2006; [http://www.heritage.nsw.gov.au/07_subnav_01_2.cfm?itemid=1940071] ]

Use as a filming location

* The pub was used as the location for the 1975 Australian film "Caddie", starring Helen Morse and Jack Thompson. "Caddie" (Motion Picture DVD); "On Location - Producer's Commentary"; Roadhow Entertainment, 1976.]

* It is held by the locals and staff that some of the 2001 film "Balmain Boys" was filmed in the pub and also at number 34 across the road.

* In 2001, the hotel was used as a location for an episode of the UK series "The Bill". Rodda, R; "Panic over Bill's big bang farewell"; The Daily Telegraph; 4th April 2001.]

References

* Davidson, B; Hamey, K; Nicholls, D; "Called To The Bar - 150 Years of pubs in Balmain & Rozelle", The Balmain Association, 1991, ISBN 0-9599502-6-5.
* Nicholls, D; Baglin, D; Clarke, G; "Around Balmain", The Balmain Association, 1986, ISBN 0-9599502-5-7.

External links