If you love the Outback, you’ll love it even more at the famous North Gregory Hotel….

Raise a toast to our most famous bush poet Banjo Paterson, for it was here at the North Gregory Hotel where Australia’s unofficial national anthem, Waltzing Matilda, was performed in public for the very first time in 1895. History records that Banjo was just up the track staying at Dagworth Station when he penned the ode to the battler after visiting Combo Waterhole…and you can visit there too.

The song’s chorus and the swagman’s image have been skillfully etched into the North Gregory Hotel’s glass doors by renowned Australian sculptor Daphne Mayo.

The etchings tastefully surround the lounge and dining room and were commissioned in the 1940’s and feature local historical and significant scenes such as Waltzing Matilda and Qantas.

While you’re toasting Banjo (and Daphne) keep your glass raised to acknowledge Winton as the birthplace of the world’s greatest international airline, QANTAS and it is believed that the earliest meetings held by Winton locals in deciding to start their own outback airline were in the rooms of the North Gregory Hotel back in the 1920’s.

This is actually the fourth incarnation of the North Gregory Hotel. The previous three, on the same site, were all destroyed by fire.

The North Gregory Hotel was first built in 1879. The hotel was named after ‘Gregory North’ which was the name given to the district of Winton at the time. It was in this hotel that the first public rendition of Australia’s song, Waltzing Matilda was performed on 6th April 1895. Banjo Paterson wrote the words based on stories divulged to him at a picnic at Combo Waterhole whilst he was a guest of the McPherson family at Dagworth Station. Christina McPherson played the tune which she had heard in Victoria at the Warrnambool races. Hence the legend of Waltzing Matilda was born and history will forever note the significant role that the North Gregory Hotel played.

The hotel burned down in 1900 and was rebuilt as a two-storey structure soon afterwards. It burned down again in 1915 and was rebuilt for a second time in 1916.

In 1946 the North Gregory Hotel was ravaged by fire for the third time and following that the Winton locals petitioned the Winton Shire Council to rebuild the famous structure and as there was such passion for the rebuild the Queensland Government passed a special Act of Parliament allowing the Winton Council to manage and operate a licenced premises; the North Gregory Hotel.

Just like the Mitchell grass tussocks in the outback surrounds, the North Gregory Hotel keeps coming back after a fire….

The fame doesn’t end there. Lyndon B. Johnson (before he was US President) stayed overnight at the North Gregory in World War II when his Flying Fortress aircraft was forced to land with mechanical problems at nearby Carisbrooke Station in 1942.

No wonder it is known as the famous North Gregory Hotel.

The North Gregory Hotel has been serving up genuine outback hospitality for over 130 years and is the spot to share an icy beer with locals including opal miners, station owners, ringers, truck drivers, cattle buyers and shearers.

The North Gregory Hotel has always been known as an iconic watering hole but now also offers weary travelers comfortable, attractive and modern Motel rooms with ensuites, following a total refurbishment of the entire hotel.

If it happens in Winton, it happens at the famous North Gregory Hotel.