From 149-year-old hotels to dilapidated milk factories and art deco pubs, Gippsland is home to many buildings with long and intricate histories that tell the story of this region.

The Monitor has written and made videos about a bunch of these sites and we’ve compiled our favourite ones here.

If you have any suggestions for buildings that we should check out, feel free to email us at [email protected]. 

Let’s dive into some local history!

After the previous hotel on the site burnt down in a fire, the current Fish Creek Hotel was erected in 1939. 

The building is a rare example of an Art Deco pub in Gippsland. It’s painted white with slick navy blue lines running around the structure, but the defining feature is the seven-metre long mullet sculpture, perched precariously on one corner of the roof.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.

The rundown old milk factory on Warragul’s Queen Street was established in 1923 and ran all the way until the 1990s. It changed hands many times over the years but today, most of the windows are smashed and the buildings show signs of severe rusting.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.

The original Poowong Hotel was built in 1880 but unfortunately burnt down three years later and had to be rebuilt. The homely weatherboard hotel features a large dining area, a pool table and multiple fireplaces.

Fiona Cox and Ben Hall have run the pub for the last 18 years, the Monitor talked to Hall about what it’s like running a regional hotel and life in Poowong.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.

As the population of the Latrobe Valley grew in the late 1800s, Traralgon needed more fitting administration facilities so in 1883, a group from the then Shire of Traralgon travelled to Melbourne to secure funds for the building of a court, post office and treasury office.

The building is no longer an operational courthouse, but the Traralgon & District Historical Society frequently has volunteers showing visitors around the old courtrooms.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.

For 60 years, the Traralgon Hotel was the town’s post office, general store, courthouse, church and community centre all at once.

The two storey pub on the corner of Kay and Franklin Streets has survived since it was built in 1914, with the rest of Traralgon popping up around it.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.

Jeetho Hall was built on the traditional lands of the Bunurong People in 1892 and functioned as the first shire offices in the area for the then Shire of Poowong and Jeetho.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.

In 1871, William and Anastasia Thornley opened the Thornley Hotel on the site during the early days of the Stockyard Creek gold rush. The pub burnt down in 1905 but was rebuilt and named the Exchange Hotel.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.

Claiming to be the oldest continually running pub in Gippsland, the Robin Hood Inn’s origins date back to 1870 when the site served as a resting stop for travellers passing east on Old Sale Coach Road.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.

Otherwise known as the Whalebone Hotel for the two enormous whale jawbones sitting in front of the pub, the Wonthaggi Hotel opened in 1915 on Melbourne Cup Day.

Take a look at a video about the building’s history below.