OLD BRISBANE - KANGAROO POINT

It was while going through some old files that contained bits and pieces gathered from visits to the Shetland Islands (UK) that the postcards were re-discovered. They had been forgotten. On seeing them once more, their first finding came alive again. It all started with an old cupboard in a dilapidated shed. This cabinet, that looked like a school press, had not been opened for many years, evidenced by the trash that had gathered around it. It took much shovelling to remove the deep sheep and silage muck that had settled solidly at the base of this old piece of furniture. When it was opened, the shelves were surprisingly all dry. A bundle of old toys and sundry items were scattered over a few books and what looked like a photograph album. It turned out to be a scrapbook in which a variety of items had been pasted. These postcards were amongst this little collection of decorative and found items - bits of memorabilia.

Lerwick - a postcard sent to the youngest son by his mother

"I got the parcel. I'll be back on Friday."

The family history was confirmed. The story was that my grandmother's brother had left his homeland and settled in Brisbane, Australia with his German wife. My father left later as a teenager. These postcards are the little remembrances, now memories with the scrawled messages, that were sent to Unst, Shetland, from Brisbane, Queensland: one from my father's uncle to his sister; the other from father to his mother. The uncle lived in New Farm, on the other side of the river from Kangaroo Point. Father lived with his uncle for a short period before moving out into the country.

Lerwick, circa 1930's - a postcard sent to grandmother by her sister

The old Lerwick images, circa 1930's, are iconic, and show the bones of the place known today. There have been changes, but the heritage laws keep doing their job. The postcards record the town as it was when the postcards arrived from Australia. The sepia-toned image was sent from grandmother's sister, to her, from Lerwick. The aged black and white image shows Lerwick from the town hall tower that dominates the harbour settlement. It was sent from Lerwick by grandmother to her youngest son, father's brother who stayed home on the croft. The old Brisbane photographs, also circa mid 1930's, show Brisbane's Kangaroo Point, a strip of land shaped distinctively by the sharp bend in the river defined by the high tuff cliffs. The naively coloured image of one postcard gives the photograph a strange 'colonial' appearance more indicative of earlier times. The camera looks along the route of what was to become the Story Bridge. The postcard is from my father to his mother. The cryptic message on the back says: "This is where I started work." It seemed that this young man was telling his mother that he was doing well in this strange, new country.

Kangaroo Point, Brisbane, circa mid-1930.

The once black-and-white photograph, now with a sepia tinge, takes a sideways look at the same vista, with Kangaroo Point on the extreme right. A dotted line has been drawn on the print to indicate the bridge that was to be built across the river, to link Kangaroo Point to the Fortitude Valley and City areas. It is from the brother to his sister, and seems more technical than personal. What was his message? Might it have been that Brisbane was a booming town and that she should not worry about her son? The hand-written, ink text on the postcard explains that the line is where "they are building the new bridge which will take about 2 years." The confident scribble continues with more detail: "resting on two concrete stands" . . . "They will build it from each end high up in the sky and lower it into position and it will fit to an inch." Indeed, the Story Bridge is a double cantilever bridge that supports a central, trussed span to complete the connection.

The location of the proposed Story Bridge, Brisbane, circa mid-1930

It must have been a significant project for its era. One wonders what today's equivalent of the postcard might be. What from our era could lie around in a cupboard to be discovered in 3000AD, complete with a related message to tell of our time?

Here are some photographs showing the bridge under construction, and the bridge and the city today. Some dotted line!

The central truss span appears to have been built in situ rather than being 'lowered in'

The cantilevers

The completed bridge showing the central horizontal truss

'High up in the sky'

The 'point' seems to be begging for a bridge

The Story Bridge linking Kangaroo Point to the city