the ground outside the hotel in some pain. He died a few hours later. Subsequent history Following its construction, the hotel would have benefited from its proximity to the York railway station, as the major Western Australian port at the time was Albany and all traffic passed through York. The hotel would also have been well patronised during the early gold rush years, when people rushing to the goldfields left the train at York and then travelled the rest of the way on foot. This passing trade would have reduced considerably in the mid 1890s when the railway line was continued through to Southern Cross. In 1892, the Swan Brewery Company took over Mumme's interest in the hotel and in 1901 acquired the whole title. From 1 January 1898, the hotel was leased to Laurence Philip Bowes, and after Bowes' death, the lease was transferred to Charles Tyler Pyke in August 1902. A year later, Pyke acquired title. A single-storey building adjoining the Imperial Hotel, York on the Avon Terrace frontage is shown in a photograph of the town. This is almost certainly the music hall, and offers an explanation as to why the hotel building did not utilise the full street frontage. The music hall was removed in the 1910. Since the early 20th century, ownership of the hotel has changed many times. In 1920, a single story stone kitchen was added and a larger public bar was installed in the area where the kitchen and dining room had been, with the dining room being relocated to the area of the original small bars, under which was a cellar. From 1933, the second class lodgers accommodation was used as staff quarters. The 1968 Meckering earthquake damaged the hotel and many other buildings in the district. The two-storey, bull nose verandah had to be removed and the condition of the building declined. In 1981, the place was closed as unfit for human habitation and became subject to vandalism and weather deterioration. After some renovations, in 1987, the hotel was acquired by York Motels Pty Ltd (1987-1993) including local builder David Ayoub. He rebuilt the verandahs, using wrought iron work manufactured in Sydney to match the originals, but the fretwork arches on the lower level and the bullnose verandah roof were not reproduced. In the early 2000s, a fire in the stables destroyed the timberwork of the building, including the roof