By: Michael J Perrett21st Mar 2025 3:40PMP,P.S. Apologies I see you already have the full image, the photo only loaded on my PC screen as a cropped size for some reason. - cheers

By: Michael J Perrett21st Mar 2025 3:35PMP.S. The wider photograph is available at SLQ
'Aerial view of the mouth of the Noosa River, ca. 1938'
https://hdl.handle.net/10462/deriv/205920 SLQ

It's a bit grainy, but gives a view to Noosa village as well.- cheers

By: Michael J Perrett21st Mar 2025 3:20PMHi Heritage Team, pretty sure this is a crop of a much wider newspaper shot.
I did a post on this in 2022 https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1FJbXtXs3d/ also pls see comment section. I will transcribe the main post below. - cheers

This 1938 Noosa river mouth photo we've seen around a few times has a sad origin unfortunately:

The Telegraph - Sat 28 May 1938

Photo title: SCENE OF NOOSA HEADS TRAGEDY
"Picture of the muddy flood waters rushing out of the Noosa River this afternoon. This, photograph was taken by a "Telegraph" photographer who accompanied the plane specially chartered to search the ocean and beaches for the missing persons."

Double Drowning At Noosa Heads Girl in Speed-Boat: Farmer in Dinghy

POIGNANT ASPECTS
Family Helplessly See Father Die
YOUNG MAN WASHED UP ALIVE ON BEACH

After an hour's battle in heavy seas near the mouth of the Noosa River this afternoon, part of the time supporting a young woman, and clinging to an upturned speed boat, William Cunningham, a 30-year-old Kedron carpenter, was washed up alive a mile away.

His companion, ANNIE BURKHARDT, 21, a maid employed at Laguna House, whose home was at Gympie Terrace, some distance away, and a would-be rescuer, WALTER BROOME, a middle-aged Nanango farmer, were drowned.

Cunningham and the girl were upset in an eight-knot rip at the Noosa Bar, about 1 o'clock, and were swept out to sea ahead of Broome, whose dinghy became swamped by flood debris. While police, launch owners, townspeople and a plane from Brisbane combined in the search, Cunningham was washed up on the north beach a mile away.

A poignant aspect of the tragedy was that Broome's wife and three young children watched from the bank his unequal battle with the flood waters and subsequently saw the capsize of his frail craft and his disappearance into the surging waters of the bar. Only a week ago, Miss Burkhardt celebrated her coming of age with a party. She had today off from work and went for a spin on the Noosa River with Cunningham who is spending a Holiday and had brought his boat from Brisbane.

Despite the protests of his wife, who realised the strength of the ebbing tide and running out flood waters, Broome raced for a moored dinghy, and casting adrift, rowed towards the couple who were clinging to their upturned boat, a light craft to which an outboard, was attached.

It is assumed that the motor proving too weak for the racing waters on the bar was unable to prevent the boat drifting to the breakers where it capsized.

Miss Burkhardt and Cunningham soon disappeared into the mountainous surf, while their would-be rescuer in his dinghy was swept along in an eight-knot current and upset when he reached the waves. He sank before the gaze of his horrified family.

It was a mere accident that Broome saw Cunningham and his companion in difficulty. He and his wife and family two young girls, whose ages about 14 and 10, and a son about 8 years old, had taken a cottage on Gympie Terrace, between Noosa and Tewantin for a term, and were sauntering in the vicinity of the bar.

Brisbane Plane Races To Aid in Search

People climbed the nearby hills on the south side of the bar in an effort to locate the bodies, while P. C. Higginson left in a plane from Archerfield and circled the locality in the hope of sighting the bodies. Other people, too, were ferried, across to the north shore and spread out in sections along this vast beach in the hope that the bodies might be washed up. (continues)
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/19913871 Trove
Farmer Drowned in Attempt To Save Boating Party
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/19913903 Trove

Articles two days later (30th) report two lives were lost, that of Miss Annie Burkhardt 21 of Tewantin and Walter Broome 48 of Nanango.
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article145609086 Trove
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article254985600 Trove
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article25477319 Trove

Doesn't stop there: Daily Mercury - Wed 1 Jun 1938

MOTOR CYCLES COLLIDE.

KINGAROY ACCIDENT.

KINGAROY, May 30.— Four men were injured when , two motor cycles collided on the Corndale — Memerambi road last night. They were: Walter H. P. Sawtell, 30, farmer, of Corndale, compound fracture of the right leg. Harry Sawtell. 23. of Dangore. brother of W. H. P. Sawtell, compound fracture and dislocation of the right leg and knee. Ronald M'Nichol, 18, of Corndale, compound fracture of the right arm, fractured right leg, lacerations on the right leg and left foot. Reginald Jones, 17, who is employed by W. H. P. Sawtell, lacerations on the right leg. W. H. P. Sawtell was riding one of the motor cycles, with his brother on the pillion.

They were on their way to Nanango to attend the funeral of Mr. Walter Broome, one of the victims of the Noosa boat tragedy. M'Nichol, with Jones on the pillion, was returning on the other motor cycle from Memerambi. The Injured men lay-helpless on the road for an hour before their calls for help were heard by Mr. R. M'Kenzie at his home, a quarter of a mile away. The Kingaroy ambulance gave first aid and took them to the Kingaroy General Hospital.
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article169984536 Trove

Some big discrepancies in the reporting of this incident, how many actually drowned and especially the reporting of the young ladys' travails, Annie Burkhardt who had only just celebrated her 21st birthday, and thirdly about the bodies and their recovery. The Northern Standard reported the same day Mr. Walter Broome was reportedly laid to rest that the two bodies still had not been recovered and the Border Morning Mail reported no trace of the others were found on the same date, the 30th May 1938.

The Noosa Library version where one body was never found:

"Another tragic event occurred in May 1938. Annie Burkhardt, a 21-year-old maid at Laguna House, who was living at Gympie Terrace, was invited on a boating trip by a guest from Brisbane, William Cunnigham. They were cruising in Laguna Bay near the mouth of the Noosa River in light speed boat when heavy seas suddenly struck and upturned their vessel and swept them out to sea. As they clung to the boat, another visitor, Walter Broome, a middle-aged farmer from Nanango, left his wife and three young children on the beach and jumped into a dinghy with a small outboard motor and attempted to rescue the young couple as they disappeared in the mountainous waves.

To their horror, the Broomes, watched as their husband and father’s small boat also capsized and he disappeared. Meanwhile, the police, locals and a plane sent from Brisbane began searching for the three missing people. Percy Hay, the River Pilot, and others attempted to search by sea but were unable to cross the bar due to the heavy seas. Cunningham was soon found conscious and walking, washed up on the north beach about a mile away. He was taken back to Laguna House for rest. Burkhardt was found four hours later with a faint pulse and rushed to hospital in a motor truck. Several attempts were made to revive her during the journey but to no avail. A doctor was similarly unable to resuscitate her and Burkhardt died that evening. Broome’s body was never found." https://bit.ly/3rJEGCu NLS

Mr. Walter Broomes' 'funeral' also reported as 'assistance':

KINGAROY. May 30.
Motor cycling along the Corndale Road about one mile from Memerambi on their way to Nanango to see if they could be of assistance to the relatives of the late Mr. Walter Broome, who was one of the victims of the Noosa boating tragedy on Saturday.
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article184127213 Trove

BROOME'S BODY FOUND - May 30, 1938

BRISBANE, Sunday : — The body of Walter Charles Broome, who was drowned at Noosa Heads in attempting to rescue W. Cunningham and Miss Burkhardt, was found today on the north beach. Cunningham stated in an interview today that when the speedboat capsized it was in water only knee deep, and he stood up. Miss Burkhardt started to swim and was quickly carried out by the current. He swam after her and they were both swept away. He stated that he clung to the girl and held her until she collapsed. Only when he was satisfied that she was dead did he release her and commence the two-mile swim to the shore.
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article195482108 Trove

The Telegraph - 28 Jun 1938
Stop Press

AT THE INQUEST, the widow of Walter Broome, who lost his life when attempting to rescue two young people from the Noosa River on May 28 after a speedboat had capsized, expressed the opinion that he was not drowned but killed when his dinghy capsized. When the body was recovered terrible injuries to the head were seen.
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article183478930 Trove

The Courier-Mail - Thu 23 Nov 1939

BRAVERY AWARDS PRESENTED

Govt. House Ceremony

MRS. W. S. C. Broome, widow of a Nanango farmer who lost his life attempting; to rescue two people from drowning at Noosa Heads on May 28, 1938, received a certificate recording her husband's bravery, at Government House yesterday.

Six other certificates of merit awarded by the Royal Humane Society for bravery were also presented by the Governor (Sir Leslie Wilson), and the Director of Native Affairs (Mr. J. W. Bleakley) received three others on behalf of natives.
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article40898845 Trove

News Paper Image : Aerial view of the mouth of the Noosa River, ca. 1938
(It was raining that day the search plane reports, and the photograph was most likely taken through window plexiglass, reducing optical quality)
https://hdl.handle.net/10462/deriv/205920 Jones Photo, SLQ

Trove search 1938 :
https://bit.ly/3L7ddm2 "ANNIE BURKHARDT"
https://bit.ly/37wVXZ0 "WALTER BROOME"