Baxter's Oyster Saloon (former)

John Baxter, one of the earliest landowners in Shorncliffe, established himself as a fisherman and oyster vendor on a nearby property in 1862. He purchased this site in 1875 and opened his refreshment rooms and picnic store circa 1878, selling oysters from his licensed oyster bed in Cabbage Tree Creek and along the Shorncliffe foreshore. After his death in 1897 his widow Sarah took over the saloon, changing its name to Rouse’s Oyster Saloon after her remarriage. The business grew in the early twentieth century, expanding into the shop on the corner of Allpass Parade, as well as a branch in Deagon. With the demise in popularity of oyster saloons, Baxter’s original oyster saloon became a tobacco company office in the late 1930s. It has been a residence since the 1940s.