FOUNDRY HOTEL
| The story begins in 1841, when business partners John Auld and John Shand established the Adelaide Brewery Hotel. The pair had previously acquired the Torrens Brewery in 1839, located on the banks of the River Torrens near the current site of the Elder Park Rotunda. They built the hotel as a venue to serve and promote their own beer. Disaster struck in 1844 when the Torrens Brewery was destroyed in a flood, prompting Auld and Shand to build a new brewery directly behind their hotel. However, financial misfortune followed when Shand was imprisoned for insolvency in 1845. The hotel and brewery were put up for sale but attracted no buyers, and the hotel ultimately closed. In 1855, the site was purchased by William Hodges, who renamed it the Foundry Hotel, in recognition of a nearby foundry on Hindley Street. The hotel’s strategic location proved advantageous with the opening of the West End Brewery directly across the street in 1859. In 1871, the owners of the Dragon Brewery on South Terrace acquired the Foundry Hotel, likely in a bid to expand their distribution into Adelaide’s West End. This move prompted a swift reaction from the rival West End Brewery, which promptly purchased the hotel themselves to eliminate competition. Major renovations followed, and it was during this time that the building likely received its second story. Over the next three decades, the Foundry Hotel remained popular among locals and brewery workers alike. However, By the early 1900s, the hotel was showing signs of age and was in need of rejuvenation. Struggling through the next two decades, it eventually closed its doors in 1921. Since then, the building has been home to a range of businesses. A major renovation in the early 1960s gave the structure its current façade, masking much of the original architecture. However, from the side of the building, glimpses of the old hotel’s structure still remain, offering a rare look into Adelaide’s early brewing heritage.  Hotel Building in 2024 |
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| FOUNDRY HOTEL | 1855 | 1921 |
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1929
State Library [B 5165]
The hotel 8 years after closing
1958
State Library [B 14175]
| Publican Name | Start Date | Finish Date | Hotel |
| William HODGES | 1855 | 1858 | Foundry Hotel |
| William Harvey CAMPBELL | 1858 | 1860 | Foundry Hotel |
| Thomas William HORSAY | 1860 | 1861 | Foundry Hotel |
| Thomas HALL | 1861 | 1861 | Foundry Hotel |
| Jane Ann HALL | 1861 | 1864 | Foundry Hotel |
| Jane Ann BARNES | 1861 | 1864 | Foundry Hotel |
| Samuel BARNES | 1864 | 1868 | Foundry Hotel |
| Bridget BENNETT | 1868 | 1871 | Foundry Hotel |
| Frederick James BLADES | 1871 | 1871 | Foundry Hotel |
| & Charles CHAMBERS | 1871 | 1871 | Foundry Hotel |
| Joseph CARR | 1871 | 1871 | Foundry Hotel |
| Margaret CARR | 1871 | 1872 | Foundry Hotel |
| Henry Robert BATEMAN | 1872 | 1872 | Foundry Hotel |
| W K SIMMS | 1872 | 1872 | Foundry Hotel |
| & Edgar CHAPMAN | 1872 | 1872 | Foundry Hotel |
| George SORRELL | 1872 | 1881 | Foundry Hotel |
| Archibald HANCOCK | 1881 | 1885 | Foundry Hotel |
| William Hamilton FAIRLIE Snr | 1885 | 1889 | Foundry Hotel |
| Mrs Mary FERGUSON | 1889 | 1889 | Foundry Hotel |
| Oliver FERGUSON | 1889 | 1899 | Foundry Hotel |
| Mrs Sarah LOGAN | 1899 | 1902 | Foundry Hotel |
| John Jefferson CARR | 1902 | 1907 | Foundry Hotel |
| Mrs Caroline MAGGS | 1907 | 1911 | Foundry Hotel |
| Mrs Hannah JACOBS | 1911 | 1913 | Foundry Hotel |
| Walter Herbert MAY | 1913 | 1917 | Foundry Hotel |
| Mrs Ada Josepha MAY | 1917 | 1920 | Foundry Hotel |
| Lionel Sydney SCOTT | 1920 | 1921 | Foundry Hotel |