The Station Hotel

The Station Hotel is a hotel and public house dating to 1893, with minor alterations in the late 20th century. It is constructed of finely-coursed thin rubble sandstone with ashlar dressings. The roof is covered in slate and red plain tiles, featuring coped gables with moulded kneelers, ball finials, and low-gabled dormer windows. The building has elaborate gable and ridge stacks. The plan is L-shaped, with the principal display elevations facing the railway to the south and east, and plainer elevations facing the town.

The south elevation is a long, two-storeyed range above a basement, with a centrally-positioned, gabled three-storey entrance bay. The gable displays the date 1893. It has two and three-light mullioned and transomed windows with shallow quoined surrounds, set beneath a bracketed eaves line. First-floor window openings are set beneath a continuous, stepped string course and upon a moulded cill course. The doorway to the right of the gable is set within a recess formed by an elaborate lintol supported on a red granite column. A wide storey band features strapwork ornament, above panelled double doors with an overlight. To the right of the doorway, a set-back range terminates at a faceted three-storey corner tower with a tiled roof. A wide, asymmetrical gable to the west end features an ashlar band to the apex with carved lettering reading "STATION HOTEL."

The east elevation has an elaborate, canopied doorway with massive corbels and an enriched ashlar parapet, with double-panelled doors and a two-light overlight. Flanking windows are of two and three lights. To the right of the doorway, a wide, canted oriel window is at first floor level, with a gable above. Further to the right, a shallow mansard roof links with an elaborate triple oriel to the north-east corner. This oriel has triangular outer sections flanking a wider, curved three-light window, all with foliage carving to the corbel supports. On the return to the right, a stone panel displays carved lettering reading "STATION HOTEL.”

The interior retains some original detailing, including wall panelling, door joinery, finely-detailed surrounds, ornamental plasterwork, hearths and hearth surrounds, and screens to the principal bar areas, although some alterations to the plan form have occurred.

The hotel is a substantial and consciously-detailed building, constructed at the height of the community's industrial development to impress visitors arriving by rail. Externally it remains largely unaltered, with much surviving internal detail of good quality.