Edillilie silo VK-EDE5

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After leaving Wanilla I headed north on the Tod Highway towards Cummins where I planned to have some lunch. Along the way I came across the little town of Edillilie and a silo, so I stopped briefly to activate the Edillilie silo VK-EDE5 for the Silos On The Air (SiOTA) program.

Above:- Map showing the location of Edilillie

Edilillie is located about 20 km south of the town of Cummins on the Eyre Peninsula. It was proclaimed on the 18th day of June 1908. The origin of the name of the town has a number of versions. (Pt Lincoln Times 1956)

Above:- The proclamation of Edilillie in the SA Govt Gazette, Thu 18 Jun 1908.

Records from the Surveyor-General’s office indicate that the town was named by his Excellency the Governor Sir George Ruthven LeHunte after Edillilie Creek. The records also show Edillilie being an aboriginal name for ‘two springs close together.’ (Pt Lincoln Times 1956)

Above:- George LeHunte. Image c/o Wikipedia.

The meaning of the word Edilillie has been accepted as ‘two springs close together’. It is believed to be a combination of the aboriginal word ‘Ithi’ or ‘Idi’ meaning spring, water, or drinking place and that the correct spelling would have been ”Ithilili’. (Pt Lincoln Times 1956)

An 1876 E.S. Wigg & Son atlas shows a spring, southwest of Kopio Head Station, but it is unnamed. An 1890 map also shows this spring and again it is unnamed. A Lands Office plan from February 1890 with various manuscript alterations, records Edilillie Springs, Edilillie Creek, and Edilillie Flat. It appears these were placed on the plan in 1902/1903 when this area was surveyed. Note the slight difference in the spelling of the town. (Pt Lincoln Times 1956)

In 1905 the Hundred of Koppio was surveyed and one of the plans shows Edillilie Creek. It is not known why the difference in the spelling. In 1905 plans for the proposed Port Lincoln Railway were released. The Hundred of Mortlock showed Edillilie Creek, whilst the Hundred of Koppio had Edilillie Spring and Edilillie Creek. (Pt Lincoln Times 1956)

Just one week after the proclamation of the town, the resident Engineer and Superintendent of Railways Port Lincoln recommended that the station name be altered from Mortlock to Edilillie. It is believed this was to conform with the proclaimed name of the township. This was approved by the Railways Commissioner Mr Alan G. Pendleton and the name change came into effect in c. November 1908. (Pt Lincoln Times 1956)

Above:- Alan Pendleton. Image c/o Wikipedia.

Geoffrey Manning’s publication ‘The Place Names of Our Land: a South Australian Anthology’ states that when a name for the town was being selected, the aboriginal names of ‘Warunda’ and ‘Carratucka’ were submitted. (Place Names 2012)

It is also reputed that Mr. Archibald Henry Peake (b. 1859. d. 1920) who was deputising for the South Australia Premier chose Edilillie, a combination of the Christian names of two of his nieces, Edith and Lillian Dickins. (Place Names 2012)

Above:- Archibald Peake. Image c/o Wikipedia.

In 1915, Alfred N. Day released a publication entitled ‘Names of South Australian Railway Stations with the Meanings and Derivations’. He claimed that Edilillie meant ‘two springs together’. However an anthropologist from the South Australian Museum stated that he found no such connection in the aboriginal Parnkalla language. (Place Names 2012)

The Edilillie School was opened in 1909 and closed in 1942. The Edilillie Post Office was opened prior to October 1910 as ‘Mortlock’. (Place Names 2012)

The Edillilie silos are located on the eastern side of Tod Highway opposite Main Street.

I set up directly alongside the silos. I ran the Icom IC-7000, 100 watts, and the Codan 9350 antenna with the 1/5 metre stainless steel whip.

Above:- Map showing the activation zone at the silo. Image c/o SiOTA website.

The best contact I made during this activation was with Tim VK3IFR who was aeronautical mobile near Tamworth, New South Wales. Below is a short video I took of one of his overs on my iPhone.

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

  1. VK5HS
  2. VK5TUX
  3. VK5MAZ
  4. VK3PF
  5. VK3APJ
  6. VK5AYL

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

  1. VK7XX
  2. VK2IO
  3. VK3PF
  4. VK6DS
  5. VK2VAR
  6. VK2GOM
  7. VK3IFR/am
  8. UT5PI
  9. VK3DL
  10. VK7RG
  11. VK1AO
  12. VK2MET
  13. VK4KLA
  14. VK4ALE
  15. VK4HNS

References.

  1. ‌published.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au. (n.d.). A Compendium of the Place Names of South Australia. [online] Available at: https://published.collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/placenamesofsouthaustralia/. [Accessed 2 Aug. 2024]‌
  2. Wikipedia. (2023). James Dugald Somerville. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Dugald_Somerville [Accessed 2 Aug. 2024].‌

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