WheremEye

Lake Alexandrina at Narrung, SA.

Roderick.

Roderick, I somehow suspect we must have been on the same roads and maybe had a wave

The Point Malcolm Lighthouse was built in 1878 on the eastern side of the narrows between Lake Alexandria and Lake Albert, opposite Narrung, a small Aboriginal community.

The importance of the Murray River trade and the expected increase in the exporting of riverine-delivered produce via Port Victor (now Victor Harbour) led to the decision to build the lighthouse at Point Malcolm. The lighthouse was built to assist ships that were passing through Lake Alexandria on their way to Lake Albert or the ports on the Murray River.

The lighthouse was built by Richard Trenouth, a well-known builder from Strathalbyn, at a cost of ì°´3 for both the tower and keeper's cottage. The light was first exhibited on 1 February 1878.

The lighthouse was turned off in September 1931, due a decline in river traffic. The switching off was stated in Notice to Mariners No. 3 of 1931, issued by the South Australian Harbours Board.

The keepers' cottage and adjacent buildings are boarded up and derelict, but basically intact. The keepers were self-sufficient and sold extra produce to locals. They stored it in a small cave near the riverbank, which was cool and damp, while they waited for a boat to transport it to town for sale. A hole in the ground near the lighthouse dropped immediately to the cave below.

An automatic "light on a pole" has been installed next to the old tower, to guide recreational and commercial traffic using the river and lake system.

The concrete tower appears to be in relatively good condition, but the accompanying keepers' cottages are deserted and dilapidated.
The Point Malcolm Lighthouse is about 18 kilometres along a dirt road leading from the Princes Highway, heading north from Meningie. Just after Ashville, turn left down the Narrung/Poltalloch Road. The lighthouse is located on private land belonging to the nearby Polltalloch Station, a nineteenth century homestead which owned much of the surrounding land - it is advisable to seek permission from the owners. The lighthouse is easily accessible from the road.

Narrung, a small Aboriginal community on the other side of the narrows, is accessible by a small cable car ferry which crosses the waterway from near the lighthouse.

I felt a bit mean grabbing it before a few other entries had appeared. I had to miss the Meningie celebrations. I have taken my boat across Lake Alexandrina (Wellington - Goolwa), but never into Milang or through the Narrows to Meningie: usually too rough. I have also taken my car across the Narrung punt.
I'll try to have the next one up on Tuesday, but this time I may have to scan one specially.
Roderick

SA’s inland lighthouse to shine again after 85 years.
The only inland freshwater lighthouse in the Southern Hemisphere – South Australia’s Point Malcolm Lighthouse – will be lit for the first time in 85 years next month.
Andrew Spence / The Lead.
Photo: Debbie Dawes.
The lighthouse guided paddle steamers through the lower lakes of the River Murray from 1878 to 1931.
Situated at “The Narrows” – a channel linking Lake Alexandrina and Lake Albert – the lighthouse was particularly important for boats travelling between the townships of Meningie and Milang.
Point Malcolm is on the opposite side of The Narrows from the small community of Narrung, which will hold an old fashioned dance in the town’s hall on the night to kick off a weekend of celebrations.
A lighthouse globe is being brought across from Sydney for the historic lighting on Friday, October 28, as part of Meningie’s 150th anniversary celebrations.
Meningie Progress Association member Andrew Dawes said the ports of Meningie and Milang played important roles in the movement of wool, livestock and dairy products.
Photo: Emma Simmons.
“The lighthouse also would have guided paddle steamers down the Murray from Wellington and across from Point Sturt – people were coming at it from three ways so it was a handy thing to have,” he said.
“One of the most important roles the lighthouse played was to guide the Royal Mail from Milang to Meningie en route to Melbourne.
“Most of us have probably ignored the Point Malcolm lighthouse for long enough. We’ve now realised it’s a valuable asset and are starting to take care of it.”
The Royal Mail travelled by stage coach from Adelaide to Milang, by paddle steamer for the 53km voyage to Meningie before being returned to a stage coach for the long haul to Melbourne via Kingston, Naracoorte and Mount Gambier.
By the early 20th century, the paddle steamers Judith, Milang and Murray were carrying passengers, goods and mail up to three times a week between Milang, Narrung and Meningie.
The lighthouse sits on top of a steep bank 25 metres above the water level and has a range of 10km. It is under the care of the National Trust and is believed to the only inland lighthouse in the Southern Hemisphere.
The white light atop the 7m-high concrete building initially revolved with a flash every 10 seconds but was altered to a fixed white light in November 1887.
The lighthouse can be accessed from a road near the Narrung Ferry. The keepers’ cottages are being restored for private use.
The opening of a bridge for trains and cars across the Murray River at Edward’s Crossing – now Murray Bridge – in 1924 and the establishment of a Narrung Ferry service in 1928 led to a reduction in paddle steamer traffic. The Point Malcolm Lighthouse ceased operation in 1931.
An automatic light on a pole has been installed next to the lighthouse, to guide recreational and commercial traffic using the river and lake system.
Dawes said he expected there to be a fair bit of interest from lighthouse enthusiasts but wasn’t sure if many would make the trip to Point Malcolm, which is about a two-hour drive from Adelaide, the capital of South Australia.
He said the Coorong District Council and a team of volunteers were playing a crucial role in cleaning up the lighthouse inside and out ahead of the event.
“The Oscar W (paddle steamer) is going to come over from Goolwa and that will be tied up to the Narrung jetty the night the lighthouse is lit and the dance is on so there’ll be a fair bit happening,” he said.
“But we haven’t got a clue how many people are going to turn up.”
Meningie’s 150th anniversary celebrations will also include a sailing regatta, concert, fishing competition, vintage car display, kite festival and a mail re-enactment.
Although the original light was fuelled by kerosene, non-profit organisation Lighthouses of Australia has sourced a suitable battery-operated Pharos Marine FA-250 Marine Lantern for the occasion.
The lighthouse is expected to be lit from dusk till midnight on October 28.
The Lighthouse will be open to the public on the Friday afternoon and Saturday morning (October 29), and while the Oscar W and other boats in the Milang to Meningie Regatta travel through the Narrung Narrows toward Meningie.
It will be re-lit at dusk on Saturday for about two hours.
Lighthouses of Australia archives officer Graeme Davis said the globe would be powered by a car battery on the night because there is no electricity at Point Malcolm.
He said there were many inland lighthouses in the northern hemisphere, mainly around the Great Lakes in North America, but the Point Malcolm beacon was unique in the Southern Hemisphere.
“It’s one of those things that will attract a lot of attention and bring up a lot of inquiries from right around the world,” Davis said.
< indaily.com.au/news/2016/09/07/sas-inlan...again-after-85-years >

In the old days, paddle steamers carried mail both to and from Meningie.
PS Oscar W is participating in a Mail Run Re-Enactment to help commemorate Meningie’s 150th. Anniversary.
Friday October 28th. –
• Delivery of school mail to Oscar at Goolwa wharf.
• Depart Goolwa 10am. Arrive Narrung approx. 2pm.
• Moor at Narrung jetty.
• Mail delivered from Raukkan School to Oscar W.
• 6pm. BBQ tea available (organised by Narrung Progress Association).
• Point Malcolm Light House will be automatically relit at dusk
• Dance in the Narrung Hall commencing 19.30 ( A shuttle bus will ferry people from the wharf to the dance and back).
Saturday October 29th.
• Depart Narrung 9.00.
• Cruise through The Narrows and across Lake Albert.
• Arrive Meningie wharf approximately 12.00 and will berth at the jetty near Meningie Sailing Club
• Oscar will be open to the public to walk on board and enjoy. No public cruises due to closed water restrictions by AMSA.
Sunday October 30th.
• Mail re-enactment Breakfast at the Meningie Sailing Club.
• 9.00. Mail delivered to wharf by Mayor and School Principal, for delivery to Milang. School mail from Goolwa and Milang delivered to Mayor and Principal.
• 9.30 Oscar departs for Milang
• 12.30 Oscar delivers mail to Narrung for Raukkan school.
• 15.00 Oscar arrives at Milang and delivers mail. The mail will be received by members of the Milang Historical Society. The mail will be carried by a 1925 Studebaker Buckboard and delivered to Steam Ranger at Strathalbyn for delivery to Mt Barker. A 1929 Graham Paige Sedan, similar to the 1930s Mail contractor Sheridans, will then carry the mail on to the Adelaide GPO on Mon. 31.10, via the old Princes Highway (it is planned to arrive at Adelaide GPO at 12.30, where students from Milang and Meningie Schools shall witness the arrival.
• There will also be a stamp depicting the relighting of the light house for the first time since 1931.
• Oscar returns to Goolwa – arrival time around 20.30.

I looked through my existing scans last night. I have a few generic roadhouses which I thought were too hard; I have lots of highway pubs. Here is one scanned specially. It is at the high end of difficulty, but I do have clues available if needed.
Roderick

Wouldn't be the Crookwell to Oberon back road in NSW, back of the Abercrombie River area going up to the Abercrombie caves??
See whatever other answers come up, we may need a few hints.
Be interesting to see what date or era we are talking about.
Dave

How about heading south out of Darwin to Adelaide River ?

Only a minor clue this early in the quiz. After three rapid-fire SA photos, it isn't SA. The vegetation is the main clue.

Roderick.

just to add to the info, they look like ironbarks from central Queensland where I had the pleasure of living for a while. The soil and the ranges popping up from the plains look right too so.... Blackwater to Rolleston

Well picked: not Blackwater - Rolleston, but certainly Queensland. I set out to drive via this road. It was so corrugated and rough that I chickened out, U-turned, and used a more-circuitous surfaced route (which is what trucks would have done; only local trucks would use the rough one).

Roderick.

Just a WAG but is it the Fitzroy Developmental Rd between Taroom and connecting with the Dawson H/way near Bauhinia Downs?