Sydney’s pubs: vibrant, noisy, democratic, character-filled, sometimes controversial, always handy for a celebration or a quiet drink at the end of the day – the landscape of the city is unthinkable without them. More than mere commercial purveyors of alcohol, pubs define the pulse, personality and tempo of a city.

Over the years pubs have generated fierce partisan loyalties from various classes, professions and trades, temperance debates, Royal Commissions, a sly grog industry, underworld patronage, legal scrutiny, policing and regulation. The exhibition takes visitors on a rich journey through Sydney’s pubs past and present and includes historic photography, pub paraphernalia, material relating to the sly grog era, historic film and an interactive map of the city and its pubs in 1910 and today.

In partnership with the Powerhouse Museum

outdoor media sponsor	beer sponsor