Information

The construction of the new Brisbane-Ipswich Road through this rural area also saw the erection of a hotel near Oxley Creek in 1862. The first licensee was John McDonald, and it was initially known as McDonald’s Hotel. Soon afterwards, McDonald was also appointed the postmaster of the new post office. A horse-racing track was laid out next to the hotel, running along part of the road to a finish line in front of the hotel. The first big meeting was held on New Year’s Day 1865, followed by a supper ball at the hotel. Most of the horses were owned by local farmers. These races were popular until the early 1870s, but were held only intermittently thereafter, and despite the efforts of the new Oxley and South Brisbane Racing Club in 1888 the racecourse did not survive the 1890s. The hotel itself shifted location a few times over the decades due to the occasional damage caused by being built on a flood plain. Its name was also changed in 1875 to the Coach and Horses, which was still its name when it reopened as a new brick hotel on the flood-safe high ground at the junction of Ipswich and Oxley roads in January 1891. This hotel is still operating today.

Citations

The Courier, 3 September 1862; Brisbane Courier, 30 December 1865; Queensland Times, 3 April 1875; Ralf Fones, Oxley!: A mind of its own : a history of a suburb with attitude, 1850-1950, Brisbane: Oxley-Chelmer History Group, 2006, pp. 14,17.

Image Citations

Advertisement for Oxley Races and function at the Oxley Hotel. Brisbane Courier, 30 December 1865.

Map References

QSA. QSA Series ID 1015 Moreton District 20 Chain Maps – AG3. 20 chains to the inch. Parish of Oxley, County of Stanley. 532954