History & Culture
Discover the stories that shaped our community — from the Worimi people's connection to country through to modern village life.
Acknowledgement of Country
We acknowledge the Worimi people as the traditional custodians of the land on which Smiths Lake Village is located. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
Historical Timeline
From recent milestones back to the earliest origins of our community
2026
Smiths Lake Village - Back When
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Historic things - concerning Smiths Lake Village development - do you have something to add here? Have a memory, photo, or family story about Smiths Lake? Click the feedback button — nothing is too small.
2026
Smiths Lake Village - Initial Skate Park Project
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Historic things - concerning Smiths Lake Village skate Park development - do you have something to add here? Have a memory, photo, or family story about who and how the skate park was proposed and built in Smiths Lake? Click the feedback button — nothing is too small.
2026
Did Smiths Lake Once Have Fruit Plantations? 1901
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Did Smiths Lake Once Have Fruit Plantations?
We're searching for a piece of our local history that hasn't yet made it into the written record.
Community memory suggests there may have been banana and/or passionfruit cultivation in the Smiths Lake area — possibly on farms run by some of our earliest settler families. But so far, we haven't been able to confirm it from historical documents or archives.
2026
Tarbuck or Bungwahl - Any Area History?
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Historic things - concerning Tarbuck Bay or Bungwahl Area. Do you have something to add here? Have a memory, photo, or family story about the Smiths Lake area? Click the feedback button — nothing is too small.
2026
Pacific Palms Area - Early Development
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Historic things - concerning the Pacific Palms area development - do you have something to add here? Have a memory, photo, or family story about Pacific Palms or Smiths Lake? Click the feedback button — nothing is too small.
2025
Lake Opening - Recent & Historical
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Smiths Lake has been mechanically opened to the ocean periodically, since 1932 to prevent inundation of low-lying properties and improve water quality. When open to the ocean, the lake is subject to ocean tides, swell and
currents. When closed to the ocean, the main source of water flowing into the lake is
from a network of small creeks including Wamwarra and Tarbuck creeks. Lake levels are monitored by Manly Hydraulics Laboratory. Current and historical records are publicly available.
2014
Fishing - A Story of Lake & Ocean
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A story of local discovery, fishing & lake management history
2011
Sea Plane Adventures - 2011 Article (1960’s)
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Smiths Lake was the destination of one of the most extraordinary real estate adventures in Australian history. In the early 1960s, enormous flying boats landed on its calm waters, carrying prospective land buyers from Sydney in a marketing campaign unlike anything seen before or since.
1991
Filming - ‘The Horses’ Music Video (1991)
Sandbar Beach, on the shores of Smiths Lake on NSW's beautiful Mid-North Coast, holds a special place in Australian music history. It was here, in January 1991, that the iconic music video for Daryl Braithwaite's "The Horses" was filmed — one of the most beloved Australian songs of its era.
1974
Pacific Palms Area - Things that Happened
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Historic things - concerning broader Pacific Palms and surrounding areas. Do you have something to add here? Have a memory, photo, or family story about the Smiths Lake area? Click the feedback button — nothing is too small.
1971
Smiths Lake Aerial Photo (1971)
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Historic things - concerning Smiths Lake Village development
1961
Where the Flying Boats Landed 1960’s
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Long before the Lakes Way was sealed, before the holiday crowds arrived, and decades before a famous music video would put Sandbar Beach on the national map, Smiths Lake was the destination of one of the most extraordinary real estate adventures in Australian history. In the early 1960s, enormous flying boats landed on its calm waters, carrying prospective land buyers from Sydney in a marketing campaign unlike anything seen before or since.
1959
Boat Shed Build (1959)
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In 1959, Degotardi built a boatshed on Smiths Lake — on the site now occupied by the renown Frothy Coffee café. We’re on the look out for old photos and stories about back then. Are you able to add information or a story to the record?
1959
Naming of Pacific Palms (1959)
The Name 'Pacific Palms' was Invented in 1959 - The Story
The name 'Pacific Palms' — now the official address for Blueys Beach, Boomerang Beach, and the broader area — is not a historical geographical name of any antiquity. It was deliberately coined by a local progress association in 1959, specifically to make the area sound more appealing to Sydney real estate buyers. The name was chosen as part of Degotardi's broader marketing campaign — a deliberate rebranding of what had simply been known as the Smiths Lake district.
1820
Early Settlement (1820s-1900)
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European settlement in the Smiths Lake area commenced with timber-getting, farming and fishing forming the backbone of community life for generations.
1000
Worimi Heritage
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The Worimi People and Smiths Lake — A Story Being Developed.
Smiths Lake sits at the heart of Worimi country. For thousands of years before European arrival, this remarkable combination of coastal lagoon, ocean access, abundant fish, and surrounding forest made it one of the most productive and significant places in the Worimi world.
This is a story we are committed to telling well — and that means telling it in Worimi voices, with Worimi guidance.
We are currently working to develop this history in partnership with the Forster Local Aboriginal Land Council, and we look forward to sharing it here as that conversation grows.
We acknowledge the Worimi people as the traditional custodians of the land on which Smiths Lake Village is located, and pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.
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Historical Documents & References
Primary sources, maps, reports and reference material
Worimi Heritage
The Worimi People and Smiths Lake — A Story Being Developed. Smiths Lake sits at the heart of Worimi country. For thousands of years before European arrival, this remarkable combination of coastal lagoon, ocean access, abundant fish, and surrounding forest made it one of the most productive and significant places in the Worimi world. This is a story we are committed to telling well — and that means telling it in Worimi voices, with Worimi guidance. We are currently working to develop this history in partnership with the Forster Local Aboriginal Land Council, and we look forward to sharing it here as that conversation grows. We acknowledge the Worimi people as the traditional custodians of the land on which Smiths Lake Village is located, and pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging.