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Fitzgerald Hotel,
Fitzgerald Street,
Northbridge
Perth
Overview
The White Lady of the Fitzgerald Hotel in Northbridge is
a particularly mysterious ghost. Who she is or why she haunts the
century-old hotel is not known, but there have been numerous sightings and
sensations of the White Lady over the years.
Historical Stuff
Fitzgerald Hotel was formerly theClarendon Hotel. The
corner site, occupied by the Fitzgerald Hotel, has been continuously
occupied by a hotel since 1885. In the 1850s many hotels were built by
enterprising individuals, causing some concern to the then Governor
Kennedy. In Perth there was one hotel for every 73.6 adult males. The
growth of suburbs such as Cottesloe, Leederville and Subiaco were a direct
consequence of the railway, and many hotels were built adjacent to
stations, in the immediate years following the opening of the railways.
Typical of these were the Subiaco Hotel, the Claremont Hotel and the
Clarendon Hotel which was constructed on Fitzgerald Street in 1885, close
to the West Perth Station.
In 1885, the owner of Clarendon Hotel was Grove and
Monger, and the licensee was John Molloy. The land use was described as
"Hotel, cottage and vacant ground". T G Molloy purchased the property in
1896, and in 1897 a shop was added to the land use. In 1901, the land use
was described as "Hotel, cottage, factory and shop.".
Caroline de Mori in her book, 'Time Gentleman', a
history of the hotel industry in Western Australia, suggests that the
Clarendon Hotel was one of Perth's better hotels in the 1890s, where
patrons would receive fine food and liquor, good service, a comfortable
bed and the company of others.3 The Clarendon Hotel was one of the first
hotels to install electric lights, telephones and reticulated water. A
horse trough existed on the corner outside the hotel until the 1930s.
Farmers and market gardeners would tether their horses while en route to
the Wellington Street markets.
The Stanley Brewery bought the Clarendon Hotel in 1902,
and in 1925, submitted development plans to the City of Perth to "rebuild"
the Hotel. Ernest S Porter, of architectural firm Porter & Thomas,
designed a two storey, pressed red brick hotel building in the Free
Classical style, which replaced much of the previous hotel. The drawings
indicate the original Kitchen, Scullery, Pantry and Store Room were
retained, the new section being the main building which survives today.
In the late 1970s and 1980s, the hotel was owned by
Denis Marshall and Dallas Dempster. In 1984, the name of the Clarendon
Hotel changed to Fitzgerald Hotel. The hotel was purchased by the
Department of Planning and Urban Development for road widening purposes,
and in 1990 sold, subject to a demolition order, to the Roman Catholic
Archbishop of Perth.
In February, 1992, the City of Perth refused the new
owner consent to demolish the hotel building so as to construct a two
storey office building on the site. A subsequent appeal was made to the
Town Planning Appeal Tribunal by the owner. At this time, the Minister for
Planning asked the Department of Planning and Urban Development to amend
the Metropolitan Region Scheme, and delete the road widening requirement
on Fitzgerald Street. While the future of the Fitzgerald Hotel building is
under consideration, it is still open the the public. The place was
classified by the National Trust of Australia (WA) in 1991. The building
is noted by the City of Perth in its Planning Scheme as a building of
historic and architectural interest, and is identified in The Northbridge
Study as a landmark building.
The ghost story!
The White Lady of the Fitzgerald Hotel in Northbridge is
a particularly mysterious ghost. Who she is or why she haunts the
century-old hotel is not known, but there have been numerous sightings and
sensations of the White Lady over the years. Those who have seen her say
she has long white hair and a pale, lace dress. She is often smiling and
sometimes dancing, never emitting a sound. Some hotel guests have reported
the unexplained movement of objects and a nightly 'presence' in certain
rooms.
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