It's Christmas time once again and with this comes excitement, joy and the inevitable stress. The shops are crowded, roads are busy, and children are excited.
Many early pioneers had memories of Christmas in England and reveled in the idea of being able to have a picnic Christmas Day lunch on the bank of the river or in a shady spot on the beach front.
The Nambour Chronicle in 1937 reported on Christmas Eve, "a steady stream of traffic arrived all day and throughout the night."
Point Cartwright was as popular as ever for Christmas picnic parties with the ferries being busy all day, plying people from Mooloolaba and all the surrounding resorts.
In 1910 it was not an easy journey for Christmas holiday makers from Nambour to the popular Salvation Army camping ground at Cotton Tree. A cane train ran daily from the sugar mill to Petrie Creek, where a flotilla of motorboats was ready to convey the passengers and luggage down to Maroochydore. But alas! The rain came down in torrents and played havoc with this arrangement in 1910 – a bridge had been washed away and the train could not run, the boats went adrift and in others the engines went on strike.
Alternative plans had to be enacted with waggonettes and buggies taking the place of the train and strange boats being pressed into service, so the route was kept open. Times have certainly changed.
Christmas is the season of joy, peace and happiness and this year - relief that this long hard year is nearly over. We wish you, wherever you may be or whatever you are doing, a very happy Christmas time. Stay safe.
Thanks to Sunshine Coast Council's Heritage Library Officers for the words and Picture Sunshine Coast for the images.
