Orient Hotel
This hotel was originally constructed in 1842-4 by butcher, and Sydney Council Alderman, James Chapman. Intended as a pub, it was not granted a license until 1849 when it was known as the Marine Hotel. In 1885 it was renamed “Orient Hotel”. A photograph from 1857 shows the George Street frontage, with a large window near the corner of Argyle Street, which is also shown in a detailed view from 1898. Conservation works in 2025 revealed evidence of a large timber beam associated with this window, and a matching beam for the window on Argyle Street.
One of the earliest photographs of The Rocks shows buildings along George Street in 1857, including the Orient hotel, then known as the Marine Hotel, and still in the ownership of the Chapman family. (Detail of a panorama of Sydney Cove; Macarthur Album, State Library of NSW)
James Chapman (1810-56)
Chapman was the youngest son of William Chapman (1765-1810) and Ann Mash (1769-1823), who lived in The Rocks from the earliest days of the colony. James' father, William Chapman, had arrived in Sydney as a convict in 1792, convicted of a daring robbery of 200kg of lead sheeting from the roof of St Dunstan's church, Stepney! He operated a butcher's shop in The Rocks from at least 1804, selling pork, "mutton pies" and "new-made sausages", but also held the publican's license for the King's Head pub, near modern-day Globe Street, by 1810. James' mother, Ann Mash, was also an entrepreneur in her own right having established a ferry service between Sydney and Parramatta. James was born the same year that his father died, and Ann brought up her children alone, as well as operating her ferry in addition to her late husband's pub.
James initially worked as a shipwright with his brother in Darling Harbour, but opened a butchery in the 1830s in Princes Street. In 1842 he purchased the site of the Orient Hotel, which had previously served as the residence of the colony's Chief Surgeon. He set about constructing the building currently seen, which was completed by 1844 as his residence, with a butcher shop next door. The style of the building suggests Chapman had intended it as a pub, with a residence upstairs, however it was not granted a license until 1849 when it became known as the Marine Hotel.
In 1842 Chapman was elected to represent The Rocks as an inaugural Councilor in Sydney's first Municipal Council. He died at his home in The Rocks in 1856, survived by his wife Esther (1812-63) and their children, and was buried in Camperdown Cemetery.
… of extra strength and superior workmanship. It was erected for the late proprietor, Mr. James Chapman, by one of the best builders in the city, without regard to cost of materials or labour. The whole of the rooms are lofty, and, together with the hall and passages, tastefully papered or oil painted. The drawing-room is remarkably handsome and tastefully finished, the windows from which, as well as the other apartments, command an eastern aspect, with extensive beautiful views of the Cove, Harbour, and shipping. Water and gas laid on. At the rear of the house is a large yard, with gateway entrance from Argyle-street, and out-buildings suitable for stabling, &c. (SMH 5 Dec 1868, p9)
The Orient Hotel and the Smallpox Scare of the 1880s.
In 1884, Walter McCombie purchased the license, and changed the name to the Orient, by which it is still known. But disaster struck within weeks as the McCombies and other residents were infected by a new wave of the smallpox that had ravaged the city just three years earlier. In total six people, including two of the McCombie children and Walter himself, were evacuated to the Quarantine Station at North Head. Alarm spread, and people were advised not to approach within four metres of the building. Fortunately all the smallpox sufferers survived.
Newspapers had claimed that the hotel was unsanitary, a claim vigorously disputed by McCombie, who sued the Evening News for libel and was awarded £200 in damages, when it emerged that the disease had been spread by a Mr Mantel, a new lodger, and was not due to lack of hygiene at the hotel. However, McCombie soon divested himself of the license, and the Orient, no doubt suffering from bad press, passed through the hands of fourteen publicans between 1885 and 1910.
Detail of George Street, The Rocks, showing the Orient Hotel in 1898. (State Library of NSW)
The 20th Century and after...
In the early 1900s many of the pubs in The Rocks were leased by Tooths Brewery, which then proceeded to supply their own beer. Many of the pubs were rebuilt, however the Orient changed little. A new street awning was added by the 1920s, along with a tiled facade. The pub was extended over site of Chapman's former butcher shop to the north, built to a similar design as the old pub.
Being close to the waterfront, the Orient was a popular place for waterside workers. Across the road, the Sydney Sailors' Home offered accommodation to seamen on shore leave. It was often said that passenger ships, berthed at West Circular Quay, would give a special warning hoot for crew and passengers enjoying a final drink at the Orient, to drink up and get to the ship.
In the 1980s, the Sydney Cove Authority restored the Orient's facade to much as it would have appeared in the 19th century. Further conservation works in 2025 uncovered the large timber lintels that formerly supported the walls above the ground floor picture windows, seen in the earliest photos of the pub. These have now been conserved, providing a reminder the evolution of the Orient Hotel building, now over 180 years old.
Orient Hotel in 1930 (Noel Butlin Archives)
Orient Hotel in 1948 (Noel Butlin Archives)
Orient Hotel in 1970 (Noel Butlin Archives)
