The John Curtin Hotel, better known as The Curtin, is a pub, bar, and live music venue located in

Carlton Carlton may refer to: People * Carlton (name), a list of those with the given name or surname * Carlton (singer), English soul singer Carlton McCarthy * Carlton, a pen name used by Joseph Caldwell (1773–1835), American educator, Presbyterian ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. Founded c1860, the pub was first named The Lygon Hotel and was renamed The John Curtin Hotel in 1971 after Australia's 14th prime minister,

John Curtin John Curtin (8 January 1885 – 5 July 1945) was an Australian politician who served as the 14th prime minister of Australia from 1941 until his death in 1945. He led the country for the majority of World War II, including all but the last few ...

. It is known as a meeting place for the Labor party, and remained popular among members of the labour movement due to the

Victorian Trades Hall Victorian Trades Hall is the headquarters of the Victorian Trades Hall Council. It is located on the corner of Lygon Street and Victoria Street, just north of the Melbourne central business district, in the suburb of Carlton, Melbourne, Victor ...

building being across the road. In 1975 the Australian Council of Trades Unions announced plans to buy the building for approximately $500,000 and redevelop it. The venue was nominated in the

Music Victoria Awards The Music Victoria Awards (previously known as The Age EG Awards and The Age Music Victoria Awards) are an annual awards night celebrating music from the Australian state of Victoria. They commenced in 2006 and are awarded in Melbourne Music W ...

category for Best Venue (Under 500 Capacity) in

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and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

. The building features an upstairs 300 person capacity bandroom, and is currently home to Sonny's Fried Chicken and Burgers, serving American-style food. In 2020, the pub's owner Ben Russell was forced to close the bandroom and cancel all upcoming gigs due to government restrictions around the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. They continued to serve food and drinks, but he said business had suffered. In February 2022 the pub's managers announced their lease would expire in November after the owner had decided to sell the building. ''

Beat Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery (c ...

'' noted The Curtin's closure and uncertain future was part of an ongoing trend in Melbourne, with many live music venues forced to close. Following the pub's announcement, unions once again discussed purchasing the building. The sale is being managed by commercial real estate agency CBRE. The building is protected by the City of Melbourne’s

heritage overlay A Heritage Overlay or HO is one of a number of planning scheme overlays contained in the Victorian Planning Provisions, for use in planning schemes in Victoria, Australia. The heritage overlay schedule of each local government planning scheme ...

so that it can't be demolished completely. But it can be partially demolished, leaving the original

façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a Loanword, loan word from the French language, French (), which means 'frontage' or 'face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often t ...

and allowing new apartments to be built.

References

External links

Official Website

The John Curtin Hotel on Discogs

Photograph of bar c2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:John Curtin Hotel, The Organisations based in Melbourne Music venues in Melbourne Pubs in Melbourne Buildings and structures in the City of Melbourne (LGA) 1860s establishments in Australia