Part of Cooktown's relaxed charm is the fact that most places of interest can be seen with a leisurely stroll around town.
Walking west from the Post Office, and alongside, are the Cook Shire Council Offices. Originally built in 1876-1877, as a Post and Telegraph Office, it was taken over by the Council in 1893 after fire destroyed their original building.
Across the street is the Sovereign Resort Hotel. The original Sovereign Hotel was built in 1874 and was one of the first double storey buildings in Cooktown. partially destroyed during the cyclone of 1949 it attracted the nickname "The Half Sovereign". It has since been demolished to make way for a new building in the Queensland theme.
Further on, Mrs. Watson's Monument is dedicated to Mrs. Watson, who survived an aboriginal attack on Lizard Island, to die later on Number 5 Island of the Howick Group. The wife of a beche-de-mer fisherman, Captain R.F. Watson, she remained on their fishing station with her infant son and two Chinese servants while he was away fishing. In September 1881 they were attacked by Aboriginals. One of the servants was speared, but Mrs. Watson and her infant son and remaining Chinese servant escaped in a boiling down tank to Number 5 Island. Due to dehydration, as there was no fresh water, they finally perished. Their remains, together with her diary, were found in 1882.
Across the street are the Ferrari Estates, built in 1886 for the Bank of North Queensland, and Seagren's Inn, erected in 1880 by a former mayor P.E. Seagren, lead to the magnificent Bank building. Ferrari Estates was sold to the Bank of New South Wales in 1935 for 250 pounds. It still retains the original red cedar counters and its original set of scales used during the Palmer Gold Rush.
Further along on the corner of Furneaux Street, is the Family Resource Building. This old Queenslander has been both Bank and Post Office staff quarters.
Just a block up Furneaux Street on the corner of Helen Street lies the James Cook Historical Museum. Constructed in 1889 by the Catholic Church for the Sisters of Mercy, St. Mary's Convent was a major centre for the education of women in North Queensland until World War II. During the war the sisters were evacuated and the building was used by a naval unit. Though returned to the Sisters it was never again used as a convent. The Catholic Church donated the building to the National Trust of Queensland. In 1969 the Trust, the Queensland government, and private individuals saved the convent from demolition. It has served as the museum since then, with additional development supported by the Commonwealth government, through the Federation and Cultural Heritage Projects Program, currently near completion.
Continuing on down Charlotte Street on the left is the West Coast Hotel, another survivor of the Gold Rush days.
To your right is the old Cooktown Railway Station, currently headquarters for the Cooktown Creative Art Society. This fine old building was originally the nerve centre of the Cooktown-Laura Railway. Originally built in Adelaide Street in 1885, it served as a ticket and booking office, waiting room, and station master's residence. The 67 mile line operated from 1885 to 1961. It was moved to the present site in 1965.
Across the street on the corner of Walker Street is the Cooktown Hotel. Formerly the Commercial Hotel, it was built in 1875. Little has changed over the years. It was renamed the Cooktown Hotel in 1982 and is known locally as the "Top Pub".
