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Mitre Tavern

Located at 5 Bank Place, the Mitre Tavern was first licensed as a hotel in 1868 to Henry Thompson, with extensive renovations undertaken by George Mayger in 1875. However, the Tavern's current medieval appearance dates from the 1920s. The Mitre was the early headquarters of Melbourne's horseracing and hunting fraternity. Victoria's first polo club met there in the 1870s under the presidency of Sir Redmond Barry, as did the Victorian Coursing Club, the Dog Club and the Gun Club. Temple Court lawyers were long-time patrons, as were members of Dalgety staff, who were given luncheon tickets for the Tavern by their employer. Politicians such as Sir Thomas Bent and Sir Rupert Clarke were regular patrons. Early members of the Savage Club met there, along with members of the T-Square Club. The Mitre remains a popular meeting place for members of the banking, legal and insurance professions who spill out from the small low-ceilinged rooms to crowd Bank Place on warm summer days.

Chrystopher J. Spicer