Located between William and Queen streets, Tavistock Place extends from Flinders Lane to Flinders Street. It was formed and named pre-1856, possibly after London's Tavistock Street. At the north-west corner of the lane is Tavistock House, built in 1850 as the Ship Inn from architect Samuel Marlow's design. Tavistock House stands as one of Victoria's earliest surviving hotel structures and is among a small group of pre-gold rush buildings in Melbourne. From the 1860s to 1890s, Tavistock Place was dominated by the offices of mining companies. In 1935, the Excell Press printers were located in the lane, as were two manufacturing agents-an outerwear clothing store and the Dura-Tex Hosiery Company.