Share Your Snaps 3. 15/51. #LifeThisWeek. 38/2019.
Manly: New South Wales. Australia.
When we moved to live in Sydney in 1959, we were pleased, in retrospect, that Mum and Dad chose to live on the Northern Beaches where Manly was the nearest beach, shopping centre, and starting place for the Manly Ferry to take us to the city. However, this “is” meant to be a sharing the snaps post, so here are many of mine….and I hope you enjoy the selection.

The family home. Not looking like this any more
Manly lies on the land of the Guringai people, the traditional owners of the land. It was given its name by Captain Arthur Phillip in 1788 when he travelled north of Botany Bay after finding it ‘unsuitable for settlement’.
He initially named the area to the north of the harbor Manly Cove after spotting a group of Aborigines in the area, about who he stated, “their confidence and manly behaviour made me give the name of Manly Cove to this place”.
The men he encountered were from the Kay-ye-my clan – of the Guringai people. As he scouted for fresh water in the area, Phillip met members of this clan and, following a misunderstanding, he was speared in the shoulder. He ordered his men not to retaliate preventing further bloodshed.
People gradually began settling in the Manly area around 1820 and by the 1850s Henry Gilbert Smith, the founder and developer of Manly, had the vision of Manly as a seaside resort.
This information is of interest in terms of Manly’s place in the white settlement of Australia. Always remembering the Aboriginal people who own this land.

Some smaller versions of these pavilions remain at the South Steyne end of Manly Beach.

One of the ferries on its way back from Manly
There was a ditty a long time ago, “7 miles from Sydney and 100 1000 miles from Care” or words to that effect, about a ferry trip to Manly!
Manly itself is a suburb of Sydney and the beach’s long stretch is made up of South Steyne – southern end and on the walkway to Shelly Beach and Fairy Bower, North Steyne is in the middle (where I used to go as a teen) and Queenscliff is at the northern end and where a certain ex Australian prime minister appears in his budgie smugglers far too often for my liking!!
- Gentle surf at South Steyne
- Driving into Manly from the northern beaches: The Corso – pedestrians only almost from Manly Wharf & South Steyne Hotel
- Onto South Steyne beach from the promenade
- Walk from South Steyne around Fairy Bower. My Dad did this walk for years.
- Between Queenscliff and North Steyne looking south to South Steyne beach
- Pedestrians, walkers, runners, mums with strollers…this is the place to walk..as my Dad did for many years.
Recently I re-visited Manly itself after being to see my 95 year old Dad in his unit at Dee Why. When I went the next time to Dad’s I showed him the photos and he lingered over them. He told me “in retirement, any morning I was not at golf, I’d come down here. Walk in the surf and the sand from South Steyne to Queenscliff and back. Some days it would be around to Fairy Bower”. I know he would always finish with a coffee!
- Dad contemplating…I think I had a quick dip that time.
- Dad 6 years ago. He has not been back to walk for a few years now.
- From Fairy Bower walk looking back to South Steyne in early morning
I will always have a place for Manly in my heart. I now know, of course, how fortunate I was to live near here aged 10 to 20. We had access to it all as day visitors and holiday makers staying at my parents’ house as did our children. Many great memories of Manly.
- Dobroyd: the Heads in background. This was a play space in childhood. Now part of the Spit to Manly walk.
- The Harbour at Manly. Looking over to suburb where we lived.
- Manly Corso. I worked in a shop (no longer in business) where the red signage is.
- Such a lovely waterway!
- Me reliving memories of beach days!
- Sunrise in winter…and the keen surf swimmers
Have you been to Manly?
I loved sharing these snaps here this week.
Denyse.
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Next week’s optional prompt: 16/51 Easter Time Means This. 22/4/19.
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