Prince of Wales Hotel

In 1869, Daniel Shine started a general store in the brick building, formerly owned by Mr. A. Scells on this site that would later be home to the Union Hotel.

In 1873, the Rose of Denmark Oddfellows lodge used the building as a social venue before relocating to the Oddfellows Hall in Goodna.

Mrs. Alex McLean of the Royal Hotel took over the Union Hotel in early 1887. Ten years later, advertisements appeared in the Queensland Times on 6 and 15 July 1897, for the sale of the License, Goodwill and Furniture of the Union Hotel in Brisbane Street with a five year lease and rental cost of 30s per week.

Anthony Niesmann sold the Union Hotel to George Sweeney in 1911 and the license for the hotel was transferred from Anthony to George Sweeney in October of the same year. The Queensland Times reported on 21 October 1911 that The Union Hotel was under new management, with George Sweeney (late of the Commercial Hotel, Boonah) taking over the hotel. It was promoted as having “Excellent accommodation for Boarders and Visitors.

The license transferred from George Sweeney to Charles Nash in August 1912 and Charles held the license until his death on 14 June 1920. Violet Callaghan’s application to be the licensee of the hotel and to the change to the name to the Prince of Wales Hotel was approved in June 1920. The hotel was renamed the Prince of Wales following the royal visit to Ipswich. There was an earlier Prince of Wales hotel in Ipswich in 1855 but it was not on this site.

 
Ipswich architect, Martin William (Will) Haenke drew up a design for alterations in 1904. Additional modernisation of the hotel was done in 1939