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James McGreavy
was proprietor of the Victoria Inn in Watt Street Newcastle in
1842. In February of that year he was awakened from
his sleep by burglars and although he pursued
them, they made their escape as a constable
could not be found. The thieves found little money
in the till - 5/-in coppers and a few shillings that
had been left for change for the morning, however
they 'consoled themselves with drinking Mr. McGreavy's choicest Jamaica rum'!
(12)
James McGreavy died in
September 1846 at 60 years of age (13) and on the occasion of Sir Charles Fitzroy's visit
to the Hunter Mr. Croft was innkeeper at the
Queen Victoria (14)
A dinner was
organised by the inhabitants of Newcastle to honour the Governor. They decided that the
'restaurateur of Newcastle', Mr. McGregor should
provide the dinner and dessert and the committee
would purchase the wines which it was expressly
understood were to be first rate. £50 was
collected towards the spread within three hours
after the meeting. There was to be no distinction of
persons - the 'clergy, professional gentlemen and
tradesmen' would all be given the opportunity of
meeting her Majesty's representative. The dinner was
to take place at the large banqueting room that had
recently been erected at Croft's Hotel. The room was
capable of receiving from eighty to ninety guests at dinner
(15)
In April 1847
Margaret McGreavy was landlady of the 'Queen Victoria Inn' when she
was robbed by a prisoner of the crown attached to the steam dredge,
Stephen Jervis. Margaret had returned to her bedroom from the bar to get
change for a note when she observed the window open. When she saw the
shadow of a man against the wall she called out. Her servant girl Sarah
Hill, a 'bouncing good tempered Irish girl' heard her mistress
'screech' and grabbed hold of Jervis as he climbed from the window and
stuck to him 'tooth and nail'. Stephen Jervis was found to have stolen a
brooch and papers and was later sentenced to 12 months in irons by
magistrates Majors Furlong and Crummer
(16)
In May 1847 a man named Arrup was brought to the Police
office in Newcastle charged with being an idle and
disorderly person. He had been showing off sleight
of hand tricks at the Victoria Inn when the attention of the Chief constable was
attracted by the 'noise occasioned by his evolutions'.
He was involved in an altercation with a lady of whom
he had borrowed 5/- and which he had forgotten to
return. The landlady of the Victoria Inn indignantly
denied that he lodged at her hotel and he was taken
into custody and later sentenced to 1month in prison
(17)
Later, the
Victoria Inn was advertised for sale:
'NOTICE: A more certain plan of making a fortune than
going to California!
Let any respectable man, who understands the
proper method of keeping an hotel, and knows how to
be civil and attentive to his customers, take that
spacious house in Watt Street, in the city of
Newcastle long known as the Victoria and latterly as Farquharsons hotel. In addition to the drawing,
sitting and bedrooms there is a magnificent ball room
in which the citizens had the honor of entertaining
his Excellency Sir Charles Fitzroy the governor of
the colony on his visit to this the first watering
place in the colony.'
(12)HRG 26
February 1842
(13)MM 23
September 1846
(14)MM 6 February 1847
(15) MM 23 January 1847
(16)MM 10 April 1847
(17) MM
1 May 1847
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