The Australian pub is one of our most enduring and prominent cultural symbols.
But the local country pub has always been much more than a place to wet your whistle – serving as the vital centre of social life for people living hundreds of kilometres away from the nearest major city.
Tanya Luckins, a historian at La Trobe University and co-author of the book The Australian Pub, said small towns on the frontier in early settlement times often had a pub before anything else.
"The country pub also doubled as the post office, the bank, as the Cobb & Co station, and sometimes the morgue," Dr Luckins said.
"Most people didn't have access to cheap or reliable refrigeration until the 1950s.
There are 1,251 licensed pubs in Queensland, with the Nindigully Pub and the Farmers Arms at Cabarlah, both in southern Queensland, claiming to be the state's oldest.
Queensland's historic pubs have stood the test of time, but like other tourist venues, they have had the challenges of lockdowns, natural disasters, and a lack of international visitors.
Pubs sold 40 million fewer pints of beer between July and September 2021 than they did during the same period in 2019, Australian Taxation Office figures show.
So, as we enjoy unrestricted travel again, regional communities hope tourists will stop in for a pint, experience their charm and hear tales from the past.
Nindigully Pub
Queensland's oldest pub remains a hotly contested debate, but the Nindigully Pub lays claim to the title.
"Nindigilly Pub is Queensland's oldest hotel located in its original condition and position," said owner Steven Burns, who bought the pub in 2002.
On the banks of the Moonie River near St George in the Balonne Shire, The Gully was granted a liquor licence in 1864.
It originally operated as shearers' accommodation for Nindigully Station and from the late 1800s served as a Cobb and Co station.
Despite the town's population of nine, the pub attracts a steady flow of tourists ordering what it claims are the biggest burgers in Australia.
Farmers Arms Tavern
The Farmers Arms Tavern at Cabarlah, north of Toowoomba, prides itself on being the longest continually licensed pub in Queensland.
Licensed in 1863, over the years the pub has been a house, a store, and even part of the local jail.
Local historian Linda Galligan said there was ambiguity about when the pub originally opened and then re-opened.
"We have no evidence of this licence or first owner, as it is really difficult to get details of the licences at that time," she said.
"There were at least 14 pubs in the area at one stage and there is some confusion about which pubs held which licence as lots of licences were bought and sold, but not the buildings."
Birdsville Hotel
There are not many places you can park your plane out front and wander in for a schooner.
William Blair built the Birdsville Hotel on the edge of the Simpson Desert in 1884 and it is arguably Queensland's most famous outback pub.
It's endured a lot in its time: fire, drought, floods, even a cyclone in 2020.
These days, Birdsville has a semi-permanent population of just over 100, but each year the town swells as people flock to the Birdsville Races and the Big Red Bash.
"The Birdsville Hotel is in the middle of nowhere," Dr Luckins said.
"But it gets thousands of visitors each year because it is such an iconic and important local pub."
If you ever make it to the pub, you'll find hundreds of hats nailed to the pub's ceiling.
Betoota Hotel
In a town with a population of zero, re-opening the Betoota Hotel was a brave move.
The hotel between Birdsville and Windorah sat empty for more than 23 years until Robert "Robbo" Haken from Brisbane bought it in 2017 after stumbling across the derelict watering hole on a road trip.
"We had to completely gut the place," Robbo remembered.
Robbo finally opened the doors in early 2020, but then COVID-19 hit and he soon had to close.
The pub is now open full time.
Lion's Den
The Lion's Den Hotel opened in Cape York in the 1880s and was named after a nearby tin mine.
The Den, as it's known to locals, is 30 kilometres south of Cooktown on the unsealed Bloomfield Track and proudly advertises that it "has no mobile or internet reception".
"I love that it's not in a town — the people that come here are genuine people that like to learn a little bit about the history and spend a few days," owner Judy Fry said.
Blue Heeler Hotel
Originally established in 1889, the Kynuna Hotel between Cloncurry and Winton in north-west Queensland was renamed the Blue Heeler Hotel in 1963.
It's a pub steeped in Australian folklore.
"It's also claimed the squatter and the swagman drank their last drinks at the bar."
There's also a brick fireplace built by RM Williams and graffiti is encouraged at the Blue Heeler — you can sign your name on the walls by donating to the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
Walkabout Creek Hotel
The Federal Hotel was built in McKinlay in outback Queensland in 1900.
After Crocodile Dundee was filmed nearby, the owners changed it to Walkabout Creek Hotel to cash in on the 1980s movie blockbuster.
Frank and Debbie Wurst bought the hotel in 2014.
"The pub was too small to film inside. They built a set around the corner and called it the Walkabout Creek Hotel," Debbie said.
