Darling Range Hotel

Darling Range Hotel was a hotel in Bellevue, Western Australia, on the end of the slope on the Great Eastern Highway at the 'bottom of' Greenmount Hill and just north of the former Bellevue railway station, and over the road from the Helena Vale Racecourse.

Darling Range Hotel west face, taken from the south west or Horace Street in front of the TAB
Hotel north side from Great Eastern Highway in October 2018

The locality known earlier as 'Helena Vale' and 'East Midland', was near the border of the council in the hills above 'Greenmount Road Board' - (now Shire of Mundaring), and the 'Midland Junction Council' (now City of Swan).

In the First World War, it was the nearest hotel to the Blackboy Hill army camp[1]

It was started as the East Midland Hotel, on the earlier name for the highway - the York Road. Despite the name the local councils called it 'The Bellevue Hotel'.[2]

The hotel was licensed in 1905, and its outward appearance changed over the years with change of owners and managers and circumstances.[3][4]

The owners, Licensees or Managers to the end of the First World War included:-

  • Thomas Wilkins 1903-1913
  • W.K. Lamzed 1914-1916
  • H. Finlayson 1916-1920

The longest connection on record was that of J.K. Robinson and S. Boyd 1950 -1960[5]

It was considered an excellent location and opportunity for owners and trainers with horses at the Helena Vale Racecourse.[6]

It was the base of a lengthy association with billiards and darts for the area.[7][8]

More historic hotels in the Midland - Bellevue area have been lost due to fire, loss of licence and neglect. The Darling Range Hotel building is one of the few remaining buildings in the area with well documented connections to the troops leaving Blackboy Hill Training Camp, and leaving Helena Vale Racecourse by railway to serve in the First World War.

The building remained, with a different configuration from the first world war era,[9] and was in potential threat of immanent demolishing to make way for a service station development, in an area that already has a significant concentration of service stations.[10][11][12]

Bellevue Hotel

The original hotel building was planned to be renovated in July 2018, according to the Facebook group Remember Midland[13]

As of 2019 the Bellevue Hotel and adjacent petrol station were operational.

Hotel with signs at front after 2020 covid crisis
Petrol station and Hotel operational in 2020

Notes
  1. "Darling Range Hotel". Truth (590). Western Australia. 24 October 1914. p. 5 (CITY EDITION). Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. "MIDLAND JUNCTION COUNCIL". Swan Express. X (17). Western Australia. 8 April 1910. p. 3. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. "DARLING RANGE HOTEL". Swan Express. XXIX (51). Western Australia. 8 February 1929. p. 4. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. "BELLEVUE BITS". Swan Express. LI (6). Western Australia. 9 February 1950. p. 4. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. Gordon, B. J. (Bernard John) (2003), Hotels of Guildford and Midland, 1832-2002, B.J. Gordon, retrieved 18 October 2016
  6. "EAST MIDLAND HOTEL". The Daily News. XXVII (10, 415). Western Australia. 17 October 1908. p. 15. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. "BILLIARDS". Swan Express. XLVII (48). Western Australia. 5 December 1946. p. 7. Retrieved 18 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. "BELLEVUE BITS". Swan Express. LI (24). Western Australia. 15 June 1950. p. 4. Retrieved 19 October 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. In 2016, the main building being known as Darling Range Lodge and a downstairs Indian restaurant in the former main bar area, with a building on the east side known as 'Ranges Inn'
  10. Ardon, Montana (17 October 2016). "Darling Range Hotel in Bellevue faces demolition threat". Kalamunda Reporter. Community Newspaper Group. Retrieved 8 December 2016.
  11. http://www.communitynews.com.au/midland-reporter/news/city-of-swan-back-flips-on-darling-range-hotel-site-now-favours-demolition-for-new-servo/ dated March 2017 accessed October 2017
  12. http://www.communitynews.com.au/midland-reporter/news/bellevue-historic-blunder-feared-over-darling-range-hotel-proposal/ date July 2017 accessed October 2017
  13. https://www.facebook.com/remembermidland/ Remember Midland

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