Tas That Was – Royal Hotel, Linda

The concrete shell of the Royal Hotel stands in the town of Linda on Tasmania’s west coast, its name faintly visible on the outer walls.

The obituary of west coast resident George Eaves says he built the hotel in 1901, but by 1910, ownership had passed to a man named Thomas Kelly. That same year, the Royal burned to the ground. According to the Zeehan and Dundas Herald:

“The largest and most destructive fire in the history of Linda Valley occurred shortly atter 1 a.m. yesterday morning, when the Royal Hotel and the spacious hall adjoining those premises, together with a small shop, were totally destroyed. […] The damages are estimated at about £3,000.”

Kelly quickly rebuilt the hotel with reinforced concrete.

Despite a fatal stabbing in the bar in 1925 and a steady decline in patrons beginning in the 1930s, the hotel continued to operate into the 1950s.

It was abandoned sometime after its last licensee submitted their final licence renewal application in 1954. What happened to the building next is unclear. One source claims it was bought and briefly turned into a business before burning down again.

A café operated out of a shed-like structure beside the hotel ruins for a while, but it too eventually closed.

Ownership of the Royal Hotel site has changed hands several times, most recently in 2020.

Feature image credit: ‘The Local’ Facebook page.

Bibliography

• ‘Big Fire at Linda’ (Zeehan and Dundas Herald, 11 January 1910)
• Obituary of George Eaves (Zeehan and Dundas Herald, 15 February 1910)
• Royal Hotel for sale in Tasmania’s mining ghost town of Linda (ABC News, 2020)
• The Royal Hotel at Linda on Tasmania’s West Coast has sold (News Corp Australia, 2021)
• Linda Valley & Royal Hotel (Tasmanian Towns, 2015)

Tas That Was is a column that includes:

• anecdotes of life in Tasmania in the past;
• historical photographs of locations in Tasmania; and/or
• documentaries about locations in Tasmania.

If you have an anecdote or photograph you’d like to share with us, please send it to submit@tasmaniantimes.com.

Callum J. Jones studied English, History, and Journalism at the University of Tasmania and lived in Western Sydney from 2022 to 2024 while working as a journalist for Professional Planner, a leading online publication for financial planners. He has written for Tasmanian Times since 2018 and has also been published in a range of other outlets, including Quadrant and the BAD Western Sydney anthologies.

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