JA & AE’s first 3 children were born at 3 different addresses. Josephine (1894) at 19 Gordon Lane, Paddington (1894-1895). Charles (1896) at 17 Little Palmer St, Darlinghurst (1896-1897) and Margaret (1898) at 143 Crown St, Darlinghurst (1898-1901) the first records of them running a restaurant and rooms to rent was in 1901 at 601 George St, Haymarket (1901-1906). This was the birthplace of Patrick (1903) and Joseph (1905) and also was their family home. It is named in numerous directories as “Miller Mrs J Restaurant”. When in 1901 JA’s first wife found him, in court she testified, that she had noticed a sign over the door saying “Mrs Miller”.
The first premises which was not the family home, pictured above, was at 374 Pitt St in Sydney CBD from 1905-1911 and served as a restaurant offering rooms for rent at 10/6 per week. 10/6 represented 10 shillings and 6 pence which equates to $1.20 but with inflation it works out to $96 per week in 2025. Also, you could get a blanket for 6 pence extra which was 5 cents which equates in $4.50 now. This was also in the Sands directory as “Miller Joseph Restaurant”.
All of JA’s restaurants were advertised as a “4d restaurant”(4 pence) where you can get a meal for approx. 4 cents which compares to $3 now. The meal advertised on the chalkboard was “Roast pork sucking pig” and is written as “Best meals in the city”.
In 1907 they took on 32 Regent St Chippendale
Joseph Alexander Miller 1854-1939 