Place:
Ball Court Hotel
Place No.- 141
Type: Hotel
Location: Corner Macedon and Jackson Streets, Sunbury
Critical Date(s): Constructed c. mid-1870s; additions and renovations 1973, c.2000.
Historic Theme(s): ‘Towns/Hamlets’; ‘Civic and Social Life’.
Previous Heritage Registration(s): None.
Recommended Level of Significance: Local
Statement of Significance
The Ball Court Hotel, constructed in the mid to late 1870s, is of local architectural and
historical significance:- as the only surviving nineteenth century hotel in Sunbury; as the only
surviving nineteenth century hotel still in operation in the study area; for its importance in
demonstrating the original centre of Sunbury township on Macedon Street, prior to the coming
of the railway, and as the only survivor of five hotels which were once situated in this part of
Macedon Street; for its reasonably intact exterior form, which immediately identifies it as a
characteristic nineteenth century hotel; for its association with the locally prominent Cahill and
Ford families; and for its recollection of a former nearby handball court.
The hotel is a single storey building, which retains the characteristic nineteenth century
splay of corner front door, and hipped roof form. Its original bluestone walls are now rendered,
a low decorative parapet has been added, probably in the 1930s, and the fenestration has been
modernised, perhaps as part of the major interior renovations of 1973. Further renovations in
c.2000 replaced canvass window and door awnings with a simple verandah, and introduced a
new colour scheme, but retained the art deco parapet.
History and Description:
The first owner and builder of the Ball Court Hotel was John Cahill, from Thurles in the
County of Tipperary, Ireland. He came out to Australia on a ship called the Royal Dane and
settled in Sunbury where he opened a bootmakers shop in Vaughan Street. Becoming
prosperous in a very short time, he bought the Farmers Arms hotel, which he soon replaced with
a new bluestone structure, calling it the Ball Court. This is said to have been named after his
nearby hand-ball court, at which sport he was a very skilful player.1
John and Martin Cahill (probably brothers, or perhaps father and son) first appear in the
Bulla Road Board Rate Books in 1865. The land for which they were assessed was described in
August of that year as “Refreshment house and grounds”. That same rate year John Cahill was
also described as the owner of a “House and land” in Sunbury, which was tenanted by a George
McLaughlin. In 1867 John Cahill’s property is listed as “Beer Shop etc”. By 1868 Robert
Munsie was renting property from Cahill for his blacksmith shop. In 1871 Martin Cahill is
listed as “publican” for the first time, while John Cahill is listed as a “shoemaker”. By 1874
Martin Cahill is listed as a “farmer”, but the owner of an “old hotel and house”. In the same
year John Cahill is listed (for different properties) as both a “shoemaker”, and a “publican” (the
occupier of Martin Cahill’s property). By 1878 John is listed as the “publican” occupying
Martin’s “hotel” (and with other landholdings of his own). Thereafter John is listed as both
owner of the hotel, and publican.
In c.1879 and thereafter the listing for this property changes to “hotel and house and
shop”, and this may have been the date at which the present Ball Court hotel replaced the “old”
Farmers Arms hotel.2 A contemporary directory also notes this change. However, as is typical
for directories, its record appears to be some years behind, listing the Farmer’s Arms hotel in
Sunbury as late as 1884-5. A later edition notes the “Ball Court Hotel and Store”, which fits the
ratebook description, which also noted a store as part of the hotel.3
It would seem then that the hotel was constructed in the mid to late 1870s, on the corner
of Jackson and Macedon Streets, adding to a group of Macedon Street hotels all within a short
distance of each other. These hotels included the Commercial, the Court House, across the
road, the Cross Keys saloon and the Sir John Franklin.4 They dated from the time when the
road to Mount Macedon, near its crossing place over Jacksons Creek, was the genesis of the
town of Sunbury. With the advent of the railway in 1859 the commercial centre of the town
began to move towards the station, where it remains today. The Ball Court hotel, the former
Court House, and the Catholic Church are all that remains of Sunbury’s original town centre.
John Cahill is said to have built the Ball Court himself and later, with his sons, he was
also a roadmaking contractor. He also operated several quarries in Sunbury.5 An illustration of
the hotel, as it once used to look, shows that it was constructed of bluestone, which has since
been covered with render.6 The main door is still located directly on the corner of the two
streets but the windows have been altered from the original twelve-pane to single pane
windows. A parapet wall has also been added to the main facades to conceal the roofline
behind. From the detailing it is possible that the parapet was added in the 1930s (when there
was a spate of modernising of hotels), or perhaps the late 1920s.
John was the publican of the hotel at least until the 1870s. By 1912-13 Mary Cahill,
probably his wife, was the publican. By 1914-15 the owners of the hotel were the executors of
the late Mary Cahill. In the 1920s and 30s, his son-in-law, Justin (Gus) Ford, and daughter,
Polly, took over the hotel.7 Ford was President of the Bulla Shire Council in 1917, as was a
Martin Cahill (possibly a son or nephew of John) in 1935. Ford had been a member of the
Rupertswood Battery, and involved with the Sunbury Turf Club, Football Club and the
1 Information from Ian Symonds, Bulla Bulla: An Illustrated history of the Shire of Bulla, Spectrum
Publications, Melbourne, 1985, p.98; also from 'Hotels' folder, in George Evans Museum.
2Shire of Bulla, Rate Books, 1863-79
3Wise's Victoria Post Office Directory, 1884-85, 1888-89.
4 Symonds, op cit, pp.98-99.
5 Regional News Gazette, 23 August 1973.
6 Symonds, p.98
7 Rate Books, op cit; and Regional News Gazette, 18 April 1973.
Oaklands Hunt Club.8 For 20 years, after World War Two, the hotel was conducted by Fred
Lupson and family. In 1973 publicans Mr and Mrs McPherson conducted a complete
“luxurious” rebuild of the interior, combining the public bar and lounge, adding carpets and air
conditioning, and improving amenities and refrigeration.9
In c.2000 a new verandah with simple timber posts was added along the Macedon Street
and the old part of the Jackson Street frontage of the hotel. This included a projecting gable bay
with double timber posts on Macedon Street, in front of a modern part of the hotel. There is no
evidence that the hotel ever had a verandah, so the addition may represent a notable departure
from the original building form. If so it is reversible; it is also a relatively open and simple
structure, which minimises its impact on the known form of the original exterior.
The original parapet has not been altered or extended. The roofline and roof cladding
are unaltered. A uniform paint scheme of grey with maroon trimmings has been adopted, with
the name ‘Ball Court Hotel’ in gold.
While the recent works have altered the appearance of the Ball Court Hotel, the hipped
roof, splayed corner, and c.1930s parapet that distinguish the original hotel remain intact.
Importantly, the building also remains in operation as a hotel. The alterations are reversible,
and do not impact on its historical significance. Although such alterations have superficially
changed the hotel, its original appearance remains generally intact, and it is unique in being the
only hotel to have survived from Sunbury’s earlier history.
Recommendations:
It is recommended that the Ball Court Hotel be included in the Heritage Overlay of the
Hume Planning Scheme.
8Information from Ian Symonds, Bulla Bulla: An Illustrated history of the Shire of Bulla, Spectrum
Publications, Melbourne, 1985, pp.203-4; also 'Hotels' folder, in George Evans Museum.
9Regional News Gazette, 23 August 1973.