The Wobbly Boot Hotel is an

Australian pub An Australian pub or hotel is a public house in Australia, an establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. They may also provide other services, such as entertainment, meals and basic accommodation. H ...

located in the town of

Boggabilla Boggabilla is a small town in the far north of inland New South Wales, Australia in Moree Plains Shire. At the , the town had a population of 529, of which 43.5% identified as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. The name Boggabilla ...

near the state border of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

and

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

. The current concrete building was constructed in 1935 to replace a 12-room wooden hotel on the same site that was destroyed by fire in 1934, leaving the railhead town without visitor accommodation. The new hotel was designed with modern amenities (including electric lighting throughout, large balconies and a

septic tank A septic tank is an underground chamber made of concrete, fiberglass, or plastic through which domestic wastewater (sewage) flows for basic sewage treatment. Settling and anaerobic digestion processes reduce solids and organics, but the treatment ...

system) to help take advantage of the business opportunities brought by the recently opened

Boggabilla railway line Boggabilla is a small town in the far north of inland New South Wales, Australia in Moree Plains Shire. At the , the town had a population of 529, of which 43.5% identified as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. The name Boggabilla ...

. Originally known as the Boggabilla Hotel, the name was changed to the Wobbly Boot, an Australian slang term used to describe the sensation of being

drunk Alcohol intoxication, commonly described in higher doses as drunkenness or inebriation, and known in overdose as alcohol poisoning, is the behavior and physical effects caused by recent consumption of alcohol. The technical term ''intoxication ...

and unable to walk straight, during the tenure of publican Glen Bryan in the early 1980s. In 1989, the Wobbly Boot Hotel was damaged after a fight outside the pub sparked a

riot A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...

amid racial tensions related to the living conditions of

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

at nearby Toomelah Station. Additional police were called from the towns of Moree and

Goondiwindi Goondiwindi () is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Goondiwindi Region, Queensland, Australia. It is on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. In the , the locality of Goondiwindi had a population of 6, ...

and 11 people were charged. The Wobbly Boot has featured regularly in Australian media and travel blogs on lists of strange and iconic Australian pubs owing to its unusual name and notoriety as the inspiration for the

Stan Coster Stan Coster (27 May 193025 March 1997) was an Australian country music singer-songwriter. His songs were regularly performed by Slim Dusty and other singers. He is the father of country music singer Tracy Coster. Early life Stan Coster was bo ...

song ''The Wobbly Boot Hotel''.

In popular culture

*Country music artist

wrote the 1982 song ''The Wobbly Boot Hotel'' about the pub while sitting at the bar at the request of publican Glen Bryan, who reportedly paid him $1000. The song has since been performed and re-released by artists including

Slim Dusty Slim Dusty, AO MBE (born David Gordon Kirkpatrick; 13 June 1927 – 19 September 2003) was an Australian country music singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. He was an Australian cultural icon, referred to universally as Australia's Ki ...

and John Williamson. *Walker Models produce 1/160 (

N scale N scale is a popular model railway scale. Depending upon the manufacturer (or country), the scale ranges from 1:148 to 1:160. Effectively the scale is 1:159, 9 mm to , which is the width of standard gauge railway. However the scale may ...

) and 1/87 (

HO scale HO or H0 is a rail transport modelling scale using a 1:87 scale (3.5 mm to 1 foot). It is the most popular scale of model railway in the world. The rails are spaced apart for modelling standard gauge tracks and trains in HO. The ...

) model kits of the Wobbly Boot Hotel for use with

model railways Railway modelling (UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland) or model railroading (US and Canada) is a hobby in which rail transport systems are Model building, modelled at a reduced Scale (ratio), scale. The scale models include locomotives ...

References

{{reflist Hotels in New South Wales Hotel buildings completed in 1935 1935 establishments in Australia Commercial buildings in New South Wales Pubs in New South Wales Moree Plains Shire