about

Established in the golden era of Bendigo’s mining history, the first hotel record of the site was proprietor, Joseph Bacon, Hotelkeeper in 1865. Servicing the central Victorian goldfields, the Rising Sun provided a welcome respite for many miners working long hours seeking fortunes in the mines.

Between the first hotel record in 1865 until 1953 there were 29 listed Hotelkeepers of the Rising Sun Hotel.

In 1953 the Hotel was purchased by Vincent and Irene Sheehan. In 1953 the Rising Sun Hotel consisted of a Public Bar and Ladies Parlour with family accommodation upstairs.

Vincent and Irene raised 6 children in the Hotel – Patrick, Gerard, Paul, Kevin, Mark and Anne. Patrick became the Licensee in December 1982, and remains the current Licensee.

In the 1970s the family extended the Hotel to include a Dining Room and Drive Through Bottleshop.

The focus of the Hotel in the 1980s was entertainment, the Hotel having one of Bendigo’s most popular discos!

The Bistro was renovated and extended in 1990 with the focus on excellent food and relaxed dining.

A large extension was made to the Hotel in 1995 with the addition of a Gaming Room and relocation of the Bottleshop.

Today locals affectionately refer to the Rising Sun Hotel as the ‘Riser’ and the Sheehan family continue the tradition of fine food and friendly hospitality, in one of Bendigo’s iconic and loved pubs.