Lonah Series

This is a small series of cards that depict the historic house "Lonah" near Ulverstone, Tasmania. I have seen only two cards in the series.  They are quite rare.

Althougfh these card do not carry the Ash Bester stamp on the back, they are in the same style as the A.B. series of Ash Bester cards, and are printed on the usual Kodak postcard paper. The caption on the front is in the same handwriting as most Ash Bester cards.

The photographer was probably G.R. Bester; otherwise his son J.K. Bester, or a company staff photographer. The cards were printed on standard Kodak postcard paper, probably at the Ash Bester Studio, 102 Elizabeth St., Hobart, in about 1950.

"Lonah" is a house about 4 km east of Penguin, near Ulverstone, in north-west Tasmania.  It was built in 1875-1878 by Major-General William Wynne Lodder, after his retirement as commander of the 59th Regiment in India.

"Lonah" is now on the Register of the National Estate. It is described in their documentation as

An unusual Georgian transitional house built in the period 1875-78 by Major-General W.W. Lodder, one of many retired British and Indian Army officers who settled on the north-west coast. The terraces and bay windows take full advantage of the impressive siting of the house with expansive views of the sea. The house is complemented by an old extensive garden.

One of Lodder's daughters, probably Mary, is remembered in Malacological circles by being an active shell collector. There are several Tasmanian shells named after her, such as Marginella lodderae. The location of "Lonah" on the rocky shore of north-west Tasmania  was an ideal spot for shell collecting.