 James English who with his wife Catherine had entertained many visitors to the district, saw the need for a hotel for travellers once the Tablelands railway line arrived from Yungaburra in 1910.He applied for a licence and built the Malanda Hotel, this is still in the English family.In the early 1900s there were no church buildings in Malanda and any services or religious ceremonies were held in the hall next to the hotel.