James Joynton Smith
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Sir James Joynton Smith KBE |
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| 48th Lord Mayor of Sydney | |
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In office 1917–1918 |
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| Preceded by | Richard Meagher |
| Succeeded by | John English |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
4 October 1858 London, United Kingdom |
| Died | 10 October 1943 (aged 85) Coogee, New South Wales |
| Nationality | Australian, British |
Sir James John Joynton Smith KBE (October 1858 - 10 October 1943), commonly referred to simply as Joynton Smith, was an Australian hotelier, racecourse and newspaper owner, and Lord Mayor of Sydney.
Born James Smith (he added the Joynton later) in Bishopsgate, London, Smith had only the use of one eye and went to work as a cabin boy aged ten until 1874, when he settled in Wellington, New Zealand. In 1884 he organised the Seamen's and Firemen's Union of Wellington, and was first president and secretary of the Cooks' and Pantrymen's Union of New Zealand. He went on to run the Prince of Wales Hotel, then the Post Office Hotel and marrying in 1882. However, according to his memoirs, he gambled away his fortune during a brief return to London in 1886.
Around 1890 he arrived in Sydney and in 1891 re-entered the hospitality industry, starting with the Grand Central Coffee Palace, a temperance hotel. In 1896 he took over lease of the Imperial Arcade Hotel in Pitt Street, renaming it the Arcadia and transforming it into a highly profitable residential hotel. He eventually acquired a string of hotels in Sydney and the Blue Mountains, including the Log Cabin in Penrith, the Imperial in Mount Victoria and the Carrington in Katoomba. The Carrington was notable for having its own power plant - its chimney can still be seen to this day - which also supplied electricity to parts of Katoomba. Earlier he had established the Imperial Arcade Electric Light Co, which later formed the nucleus of Sydney City Council's electricity system. In October 1913, it was reported that Smith had bought the Hydro Majestic in Medlow Bath for £60,000.
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