A friendly clash has been simmering for some time between two Tasmanian pubs, who each lay claim to being Australia’s oldest continually licensed venue.
Hobart’s Hope and Anchor and New Norfolk’s Bush Inn have been around since the start of the 1800s, with each firmly sticking by their stance of being Australia’s oldest, and both proudly advertising the claim.
Hope and Anchor first served workers from the local fishery in 1807.
While it did close during the 1980s, manager Tom Bawle told 9News that the licensee was worried about losing his licence, so he continued to pay for it throughout the closure.
Some evidence for the Hope and Anchor’s history lies in a 1975 newspaper clipping from the Tasmanian Hotel Review.
“By far the oldest not only in Tasmania but Australia, and there is little doubt about the continuity of the licence, which has run for 168 years,” the clipping stated.
However, just 35 kilometres away in New Norfolk, the Bush Inn hotly contests the claim.
While the Bush Inn opened eight years later, in 1815, and was not officially licensed until 1825, licensee Belinda Smith believes the Bush Inn technically wins as it has never closed.
Manager Will told 9News the Hope and Anchor did once have an expired licence and pointed out that it has also changed both its name and its location, and their rival applied for a new licence in 2015.
Despite the claims from both parties, each heritage-listed pub is over 200 years old, and both are adored by locals and visitors alike.
While Bush Inn is known for its steaks and local beverages, Hope and Anchor is known for its two ghosts, which could be sticking around for either the hot buttered rum or the seafood chowder, a popular menu item for the last four decades.
Nevertheless, both venues enjoy the rivalry.
“They are both beautiful old pubs, perhaps people should just visit both so they can be rest assured they’ve had a beer in the oldest pub in the country,” said Smith.
