07/09/2026
This is Point Cartwright, looking towards Maroochydore, sometime in the 1930s.
No lighthouse. No roads. Just scrub, sand and the mouth of the Mooloolah River, decades before any of it existed.
The lighthouse we know today wasn't switched on until 10 September 1979, opened by the then Federal Transport Minister. This week marks 47 years since that happened, on a headland that had looked almost exactly like this photo for most of its history.
It has guided boats into the Mooloolah River every night since, and it's still one of the most recognisable landmarks on the Sunshine Coast.
Photo: Picture Sunshine Coast
