The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.
In 1788, Major Robert Ross built the Lieutenant Governor's House, a small single storey cottage that was the colony's first substantial stone building. After Ross was recalled in 1791, the house was occupied by Major Francis Grose, who, possibly inspired by buildings he'd seen while in service in America or India, added the colony's first verandah to the building in 1793. In 1802, Peron described the house as having a fine garden behind it. At different times in the 1800s the building housed the Superintendent of Police and the Sydney Hotel and Coffee House. It stood close to the location of the modern intersection of Grosvenor and George Streets, and was demolished in 1831, replaced by Samuel Lyon's auction rooms and stores.
