PINTS OF THE PAST

There’s something deeply Australian about an old country pub — places where the beer is cold, the floorboards creak, and stories stretch longer than the verandas. From timber-getters’ bars to Art Deco beauties, the Northern Rivers’ oldest pubs have poured through war and depression, fire and flood, serving as gathering places for generations — and the ghosts of publicans past.

Each one tells a story, so next time you’re cruising the backroads between the cane fields and the coast, do as the locals have done for over a century: stop in for a pint and a serve of history.

By Donna Rishton-Potter

TUMBULGUM TAVERN, Tumbulgum (1887)

At the meeting of the Tweed and Rous Rivers stands the grand old dame of the Northern Rivers — the Tumbulgum Tavern. Locals call her the “Tumby Pub,” and she’s been holding court since 1887, back when bullock teams rattled along dirt tracks and timber cutters filled the bar.

Originally the Metropolitan Hotel, she’s the oldest licensed pub in the Tweed Valley and once offered rooms to sugar cane farmers looking for a bed and a stiff drink. Renovations in the 1990s revealed the pub’s early craftsmanship — solid mortise and tenon joints from an age before nails were common — those original bones still strong as the day they were set.

She’s featured in beer commercials, seen movie cameras roll (Muriel’s Wedding filmed nearby), and watched floods and fortunes rise and fall along the Tweed. From the deck, there’s still that unbeatable view of Mount Warning, best enjoyed with a schooner in hand and a yarn with locals about the day Mick Fanning pulled up on a jetski.

If only her walls could talk.

THE GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL, Byron Bay (1892)

Before Byron became a bohemian surf haven, it was a rough-hewn whaling town with salt in the air and workers looking for somewhere to wet their whistles. Enter The Great Northern Hotel, opened in 1892, which quickly became a local landmark.

Fires claimed the original building in 1897, and again in 1936, yet each time, the Northern rose from the ashes, grander and more glamorous. The last rebuild gave us the curved Art Deco facade that still presides over Jonson Street.

Step inside and you can almost hear the ghosts of patrons past in the front bar, a space rich with history and thick with atmosphere. Over the decades, The Northern has become synonymous with live acts — everyone from Paul Kelly to Fat Freddy’s Drop has graced the stage. Here, past and present mingle, usually over a cold beer and a good riff.

FEDERAL HOTEL, Alstonville (1896)

If Tumbulgum is the matriarch, the Federal Hotel — affectionately The Feddy — is her well-kept cousin, perched proudly on the Alstonville Plateau. Established in 1896, the first building stood at the junction of Ballina and Wardell Roads before being rebuilt in 1901 by publican John Daley, who dreamed big: a stately two-storey timber structure with 34 rooms and a commanding presence over Main Street.

Daley’s dream outlived him. The building still stands as the only two-storey timber hotel in Ballina Shire, now heritage listed. The Feddy has survived over a century of change. Through world wars and droughts generations have gathered, and today the courtyard still hums with a welcoming atmosphere 365 days a year, because beneath the paint and polish lies the spirit of Federation hospitality. A reminder that in small towns like this, the pub has always been the real community hall.

THE BILLINUDGEL HOTEL, Billinudgel (1898 / rebuilt 1906 & 1907)

A little further north sits the Billinudgel Hotel, an enduring beauty with a chequered past. Her first incarnation, a shanty-style pub serving farmers, timber-getters, and railway crews, was built in 1898, burned down the same year, rebuilt, and burned again in 1906. Undeterred, she rose once more in 1907 beside the new railway station — sturdy, unpretentious, and ready for another round.

Many tales are told of its publicans — like Mr. Parker in 1916, who neglected to renew his liquor licence in time for Christmas, leaving the town dry over the holidays. Undoubtedly, her most famous publican was Margaret Alice “Ma” Ring, who took the reins in 1929 and ran the pub for 53 years until her death at 101 — the oldest licensee in Australia, perhaps the world. Through the Depression, she kept the doors open with grit and barter, trading meals for labour with local “swaggies.” During World War II, American officers stationed nearby were rumoured to frequent her upstairs parlour.

Today, the Billi remains proudly family-owned — a weatherboard time capsule of Australian spirit, resilience, and camaraderie.

THE ELTHAM HOTEL, Eltham (1903)

Lively, colourful, and unapologetically herself, the Eltham Hotel has been a hub of mischief and melody since 1903. Nestled beneath palms in the lush hinterland near Clunes, she’s been a public house, dance hall, community meeting place — and yes, even a brothel. Once the centre of a bustling railway village, The Eltham was a stopover for travellers between Lismore and Byron; today, she’s a destination in her own right.

Lovingly restored with care for her Federation bones, upstairs now houses five guest rooms, each named for one of the women who lived and worked here. Among them, Margaret, a station master dreaming of escape; Rhonda, the glamorous courtesan of the ’70s; and Delilah, a silver-screen star who retired to the hinterland. Their stories are brought to life in vintage elegance and feminine flair.

Downstairs, a talented kitchen team led by chef Alanna Sapwell-Stone draws crowds with an elevated native twist on pub classics (think Roo Toast), but it’s the music that really brings the place to life. A steady lineup of local and touring acts keeps the place buzzing, much like the old days when the dance hall shook to the sound of fiddles and laughter. More than a century on, the Eltham is still the place to be — as fun, free-spirited and unforgettable as ever.

MIDDLE PUB, Mullumbimby (1904)

If the Northern Rivers has a working-class hero, it’s the Middle Pub. Built in 1904 on the site of its 1891 predecessor, this enduring landmark has stood at the heart of “the biggest little town in Australia” for well over a century. Officially named the Commercial Hotel — though absolutely no one calls her that — she’s always been the town’s gathering place.

In her early days, dairy farmers, timber men, and railway workers crowded the bar. From her wrought-iron balcony, generations have looked out across a town that evolved from a hardworking agricultural hub to a centre of creativity and counterculture. Inside, she still wears her history proudly — polished timber, Art Deco flourishes, and original vintage fittings. More than a century on, she remains Mullum’s social heartbeat: locals swapping stories, visitors ducking in for a frothy, and music drifting into the humid night air. A proper country pub with heart and history to spare.

IMPERIAL HOTEL, Murwillumbah (1907 / rebuilt 1929 & 1931)

The Imperial Hotel — or “The Impy” to those in the know — is one of the Tweed’s proudest Art Deco icons. The salmon-pink beauty you see today rose from the ashes of not one but two devastating fires. The first building, a two-storey timber structure, was destroyed in the great Murwillumbah fire of 1907; its replacement succumbed to another blaze in 1929. But in 1931, Tooheys Brewery funded her rebirth, this time in head-turning, Art Deco splendour – all salmon-pink curves, copper piping and Deco detailing.

Restorations in recent years uncovered original fixtures: concrete sinks, leather booths, and a staircase that’s held generations of weary travellers. Upstairs accommodation blends 1930s charm with boutique flair. Locals also swear by a resident ghost or two, said to roam the halls long after closing time. Oh, the stories they might tell.

THE PACIFIC HOTEL, Yamba (1934)

Few pubs can claim a view like the Pacific Hotel. Perched dramatically above Main Beach, it’s been a Yamba icon since 1934, once hailed as “the most perfectly appointed place of all seaside resorts north of Sydney.”

The Pacific’s story stretches back to 1873, when Captain William Mann built the original hotel, which burned down in 1933. The new one rose immediately — relocated, redesigned in sweeping Art Deco style, and later moved again in 1955 to her current position on Pilot Hill.

She may have a complex history, but for almost a century, the grand white dame has offered one of the finest pub views in Australia — waves rolling below as seabirds wheel over the Clarence River mouth. Generations have honeymooned, performed, and toasted here. She’s changed shape and site but never lost her sense of place — or her poise.

HOTEL BRUNSWICK — Brunswick Heads (1940)

Looking positively modern compared to her ageing cousins, Hotel Brunswick has been the beating heart of Brunswick Heads since 1940. Locals know it simply as The Bruns Pub — a breezy riverside establishment where the beer garden buzzes with live music and the laughter of families.

The youngest of the bunch, Hotel Brunswick opened just before Christmas in 1940, ushering in a new era of coastal leisure. The pub’s history is tied to the town’s easy-going rhythm — once a working port for cedar and cattle, now a haven for musicians, holidaymakers, and locals fresh from the river. Beneath the shade of the giant fig trees, generations of stories — from wartime dances to festival gigs — have been told.

The Bruns may be the baby of the family, but she’s got the same spirit: a love of good company, a refreshing pint, and one of the best spots on the coast to kick off your thongs and stay awhile.