Identify Location Of This Postcard

[mrtf]

Hi,

Can anyone advise if this is a tasmanian Postcard? If it is where was photo taken?

Help would be most appreciated.

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[Ross Ewington]

I think the only thing definite is that the photo is of somewhere in Australia (Kodak Austral postcard paper used)
and that the photo is much older than the print and 1945 date of use (the 'stamp box' on the back of the card dates from the late 20s/30s period)
but the clothes worn by the gentlemen in the foreground suggest a slightly earlier era.

It is also interesting to note that judging by the clothing worn, the two men in the photo don't appear to have tramped for miles
through the harsh Tasmanian bush to get to the lake (I assume it's not a bay as there appears to be dead trees partially submerged
on the other side).

So here's my first guess (if indeed the card is of Tasmanian origin) ...... c.1920 or earlier clothing / easy access to site / lake created by dam
..............................how about Lake Fenton near Mount Field ?

Question: is there a reason that you think the card depicts a Tasmanian scene rather than somewhere in the Australian Alps or similar?

P.S. For the sake of good order, I will move these posts to the "WHEREIZIT" topic if some more replies are received [Ross as Moderator]

[mrtf]

Thanks Ross.

I received this card as a Freebie when I purchased another Tassie postcard from an oversea's seller. The seller thought it was a Tassie card and thought I might like it.

Thats as much as I know, so in answer to your question, I don't know for sure if its a Tasmanian card and was hoping some one on this forum might know.

[admin]

This is a real mystery. While the scene looks very much like the Tasmanian central plateau with the dollerite cliffs and scree, and the vegetation fits well, I am not aware of any Tasmanian Lake ever having had such a substantial jetty as the one in the background. Having said that, the largest Tas Lakes have changed significantly over the last 100 years, due to much HEC dam building in the 30s - 50s. New Lakes have appeared and places like Great Lake and Arthurs have substantially changed since the photo was most likely taken
It would have to be a large Lake to require such a jetty. The Greal Lake never had anything like this based on the earlier cards I've seen and I have never seen the remains of such a jetty in 30 years of trout fishing ( anywhere in the highlands).
It looks a little like part of Woods Lake (NW corner where the river enters) or perhaps the SE corner of St Claire, but the jetty just doesnt fit. There would have been no roads to the jetty in any case on those Lakes.
Also, I wonder which Tas Lake would have ever required a large jetty ? Doesn't make sense. i dont believ we ever had any ferrys on our lakes, just small boats
I dont think its Lake Fenton.
I note the card talks about the writer taking a train somewhere.
Based on the above, I dont think it is in the Tas highlands. Could it be in NSW/Vic Alps somewhere ?

[mrtf]

I have just came across the attached postcard folder on Ebay. If you look at picture 3 it shows Coles Beach Jetty and Hazards. The picture is taken from the other side compared to my postcard but do you think it could be the location of my postcard?

Note large jetty and hilltops. Looks similiar, guess its a possibility!

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[Ross Ewington]

The view "the other way" from the jetty is a modest hill, now covered by the township of Coles Bay.

I am fairly certain that the water is an inland lake ...... I'm still looking for a view of Lake Fenton as there is definitely a hill
in the "spot" depicted in your photo postcard.

[Jeffharris]

I have just had another look at this interesting postcard and I am wondering if this lake is actually a river and that the jetty is a bridge. The Scamander River on the east coast is a possibility, as some of the early photos and postcards indicate that the river used to be up to 80 metres wide in places. There are only three bridges that now cross this river, two of them are the ones located in the town, whilst the other is at Upper Scamander. However, the current bridge [at Upper Scamander] is not as long as the one that is shown on the postcard. One side of the river is bordered by hills similar to those shown and the other side has banks which in most places are no more than three metres high, as this side is a flood plain. During heavy floods the width of the river [in some places] can exceed 1km.

If you look at the Stephen Spurling III series of photographs from the N.L.A. collection, #171 and #431 give you some idea how wide the river was in those days. There are also Spurling postcards that show excellent views of the river. Scamander was always a popular tourist location back then, due to the huge numbers of black bream that could be caught in the river. Catches of 50 or 60 dozen in a weekend were quite common.