Darren and Cathy Williams purchase Buchan Caves Hotel

A historic Gippsland pub will stay in local hands after it was sold to a family from Buchan.

The renowned Buchan Caves Hotel will stay in local hands after the Williams family snapped up the pub for a seven-figure sum.

Buchan locals Darren and Cathy Williams bought the historic pub, which first opened in 1882, adding it to their existing hospitality business, The Stockmans Camp.

Mr and Mrs Williams, who are former farmers, said they were excited to take over the pub, with an ambition to turn it into one of Gippsland’s most visited venues.

“The pub really serves two purposes. We are a tourist town and so the pub has to service

our visitors as well as remaining the heartbeat for our local community ” Mr Williams said.

“We realise how important it is to have the pub, it is the heart and soul of our small mountain town.

Buchan Caves Hotel’s new owners Darren and Cathy Williams.

“It really is the centrepiece for a lot of goings on for our community.”

The pub was sold by Greg and Marg Brick who bought the pub in 2007, before selling it to a conglomerate in 2013, while keeping a small shareholding.

When the pub was destroyed in 2014 after it was engulfed by flames caused by an electrical fire, the conglomerate decided not to reinvest and the Bricks retook full ownership.

The Bricks rebuilt the pub with the help of a crowd-funding campaign led by locals, which raised $605,146. The pub reopened in June 2016.

The rebuilt venue has an open-plan public bar with outdoor decking, a commercial kitchen and large restaurant and a two-bedroom manager’s residence on the first floor.

The pub was listed for sale by the Brick family in 2019, but the Black Summer bushfires and Covid-19 made finding a buyer challenging.

The Buchan Caves Hotel was rebuilt thanks to a local crowd-funding campaign that raised more than $600,000. Picture: Laura Ferguson

The Williams family, who have lived in East Gippsland all their lives, moving from Flaggy Creek to Buchan when they sold their farm, are now focused on growing the Buchan Caves Hotel, making it a must-visit destination.

“The natural and cultural beauty of the Buchan area is just spectacular, we want more people to come and see it,” Mr Williams said.

and immerse themselves in the beauty of this place.

“Our plan is to have the pub tell the story of the area and to make it the ‘go-to’ destination within Gippsland.”

Earlier this year one of Victoria’s oldest pubs, the Elephant Bridge Hotel at Darlington,

changed ownership after a Western District farming family snapped up the historic property.