The Pier Hotel closes: The ‘world’s toughest pub’ shuts its doors after more than 130 years
An Australian pub that held the record for the most stabbings in a single night and was once dubbed the ‘world’s strongest’ has closed.
The Pier Hotel in Port Hedland, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, about 1,627km north of Perth, closed its doors for good at the end of June.
The venue gained the reputation of ‘the world’s coolest pub’ after British journalist John Dyson wrote about his visit to the iconic landmark in London’s Sunday Telegraph newspaper in the mid-1970s.
The pub was rumoured to hold the record for the most stabbings in a single night, with 86 people, including six barmaids, injured.
The venue also drew visitors for its wild outfits of scantily clad female staff members wearing next to nothing – a trend known as skimpies.
Owner Lynne Taylor explained that she was retiring and wanted to spend more time in New Zealand with her elderly mother, after almost 20 years at the helm of the family pub.
“We will continue to trade until we run out of stock and are permanently closed before the start of the new financial year,” the Facebook post reads.
‘We have run The Pier Hotel with heart and soul for almost 20 years, and as a result we have had to put our private lives on the back burner.
The Pier Hotel in Port Hedland closed its doors at the end of June
Owner Lynne Taylor explained that she was retiring and wanted to spend more time with her family after almost 20 years at the helm of the family pub
The photo shows men sitting in fold-out beds in an unfinished extension of the Pier Hotel in December 1959.
“Over the past few months, we have experienced a number of situations as a family where we have had to re-evaluate our priorities.”
The message said that Lynne has now become a great-grandmother and is looking forward to spending time with the new addition to the family outside the pub walls.
The Pier Hotel was a cornerstone of the Port Hedland community and witnessed the transformation of the area from a quiet coastal village to a bustling industrial centre.
Port Hedland is now the state’s second largest mining town, exporting approximately 520 million tonnes of iron ore annually.
The pub’s dark past, detailed by Dyson in a 2,000-word article, ensured that the hotel’s notorious reputation extended beyond local lore.
A man at London’s Australia House told Dyson: ‘It’s considered the toughest, toughest pub in the country. They’d be 50 or 60 deep around the bar.’
“I’ll give you one piece of free advice: If someone pours beer in your pocket, please don’t hit the bastard.”
The pub was known for its legendary bar fights, tough guests and no-nonsense attitude.
“It’s the only pub I’ve ever been to where I’ve seen so many people leave in an ambulance,” said Port Hedland resident Bram Angus, The Western Australian.
“As kids, we would all get in the car on Friday nights as if we were going to the movies. We would park across the street or on the roof and wait for the action,” says Gloria Agale, a local resident.
In 2011, The Pier Hotel was also included on a police list of the 10 most violent pubs and clubs in the state.
The Pier Hotel gained the reputation of ‘the world’s roughest pub’ after journalist John Dyson wrote a 2,000-word article about his visit to the iconic landmark in London’s Sunday Telegraph in the mid-1970s.
The pub was known for its wild bar fights, tough guests, legendary festivities and no-nonsense attitude
The Pier Hotel was first built in the 1890s and was one of the first two hotels in the city.
In 1906 the ground floor corrugated iron café was renovated and a floor was added.
During World War II, the hotel was used to house soldiers and officers as the city became a strategic military base.
In the fifties and sixties, Port Hedland saw a shift to mining and the town saw an influx of workers
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Pier Hotel became the city’s unofficial landmark, hosting all sorts of unconventional competitions, including cockroach races and spaghetti eating contests.
The mining boom of the late 20th century saw further growth in the area and the pub has been refurbished several times to include modern facilities.
Since the early 2000s, the pub has enhanced its raucous atmosphere, but has also become a hub for live entertainment and local DJs from
The Pier Hotel was put up for sale earlier this year and has attracted a lot of interest from potential buyers, with negotiations expected to be completed in the coming weeks.