There has been a hotel on this site for more than 120 years. Then, in 1906, a remarkable local woman, Annie Farmer, built the present building out of stone quarried near Silverton. The Imperial remained a hotel until about 12 years ago, when the licence was sold. A pub without a licence is only as good as the thirst of the local teetotallers or the imagination of the owners. Don't underestimate the challenge of hotel conversion.
Old hotels have little appeal to the modern traveller.
Walking down the hall to the bathroom and sleeping in a room which makes a cupboard look spacious are not great attractions. What the Marcuses did was to take the shell of the hotel, keep the glory days intact and convert the rooms into modern and comfortable accommodation. What they have achieved is a model by which all other old hotel conversions can be compared. There is still the beautifully carved old stairway leading to the bedrooms upstairs and there are still the old stables out the back. So far it is the quintessence of an old pub.