My next activation for Wednesday 24th April 2024 was the Tumby Bay silo VK-TMY5. Tumby Bay is located on the eastern side of the Eyre Peninsula, about 604 km (by road) from Adelaide.

Above:- Map showing the location of Tumby Bay. Map c/o Google Maps.

Tumby Bay was named in 1802 by explorer and navigator Captain Matthew Flinders, in honour of a Lincolnshire village close to the Parish of Revesby. ‘Tumby’ is an Old English word meaning ‘fenced village’.

Above:- Map showing the location of Tumby, England. Map c/o Google Maps.

It was named ‘Harvey’s Bay’ by Governor Gawler in 1840. Fourteen years later in 1854, Joseph Provis took up land in the district and built a home near the current day rifle range. By 1856 a small farming community had developed with some of the early settlers being Joseph Provis, John Harvey, Charles Johns and Charles Thorpe. By 1874 a jetty had been constructed. By the late 1890s, the settlement had a blacksmith, a coach-building business, and a general store. (Place Names 2012) (Pt Lincoln Times 1982)

The town was surveyed, and the first 16 allotments were offered at auction in 1900. Only 2 of these were sold. Mr. W.T. Mortlock purchased the blocks and paired 10 pounds five shillings for allotment 1 and five pounds five shillings for allotment 9. (Pt Lincoln Times 1982)

Governor Tennyson renamed the area Tumby Bay during his term of office from 1899-1902. The town of Tumby was proclaimed on the 15th day of November 1900.

Above:- The proclamation of the town of Tumby in the SA Govt Gazette, Thu Nov 15, 1900.

In 1901, 14 allotments were offered for sale, with 11 of those being sold. In 1902 a bakery commenced and in 1904 a builder and carpenters business was established. A butcher shop was also opened in 1904 along with the Tumby Bay Hotel. In 1905 the Bank of Adelaide commenced business. In 1906 a flour mill commenced operation. On the 14th day of June 1984, it officially became known as Tumby Bay. (Place Names 2012) (Pt Lincoln Times 1982)

Above:- The Tumby Bay Hotel, c. 1912. Image c/o State Library SA.

Today, Tumby Bay is the centre of an agricultural district for cereal crops and sheep. It is a popular holiday destination during the summer months. It is a very popular fishing location with King George Whiting and Snapper being some fish species caught. (Wikipedia 2024)

The short video below gives you a good feel about this beautiful little town.

On a building on the foreshore, you can find a magnificent mural to honour servicemen and servicewomen. It is the work of artist Simon White and depicts the red poppies of Flanders Fields battlegrounds in the First World War. (ABC 2024)

On Tumby Terrace you can find a monument that commemorates the pioneers of the Tumby Bay district.

A Brass Band was formed at Tumby Bay in 1908 by Edward Gregurke. By 1910 a band rotunda had been built by the Tumby Bay Hotel publican. In 1983 it was turned into an art gallery. In 2004 a mural was painted on the outside walls. (Aussie Towns 2024)

Another mural to be found is that of the Leafy Sea-dragon. It was painted by Masher Designs in 2023. (ABC 2024)

On Tumby Terrace you can find a monument with a miniature plough. The monument is to honour Robert Bratton, Overseer of Works at Tumby Bay. Bratton used this version of the plough which had been invented by a local tractor driver called Ferguson. It was used to build roads through the harsh mallee of the Eyre Peninsula. It became known as the Brattonising system of road making. (Aussie Towns 2024)

Along the Tumby Bay foreshore, there is also a dolphin sculpture.

On Lipson Road, you can find a monument located at the cemetery that commemorates the pioneers of Tumby Bay.

The Tumby Bay silos are part of the Australian SIlo Art Trail. They were their third silos to be painted in South Australia and were completed on the 13th day of April 1908. The silo art depicts two boys jumping off the Tumby Bay jetty. The silo art is the work of Argentinian-born artist Martin Ron and his assistant Matt Gorrick whose inspiration came from seeing people dive off the jetty into the ocean. (Australian Silo Art 2024) (YouTube 2024)

The video below is a timelapse of the Tumby Bay silo.

I parked in the silo car park off Bratten Roaad and operated from the 4WD. I ran the Icom IC7000, 100 watts, and the Codan 9350 antenna with the 1.5-metre stainless steel whip.

Above:- The activation zone at the Tumby Bay silo. Map c/o SiOTA website.

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK5MAZ
2. VK5GY
3. VK3PF
4. VK3KAI
5. VK5QA/p

I worked the following stations on 20m SSB:-

1. VK7XX
2. VK3APJ
3. VK3TX
4. VK1AO
5. VK2MET
6. VK2IO
7. VK3CEO
8. VK4EMP
9. VK4TI
10. VK2VW
11. VK2HFI
12. VK2COS
13. VK2XD

References.

1. Aussie Towns. (n.d.). Tumby Bay, SA. [online] Available at: https://www.aussietowns.com.au/town/tumby-bay-sa. [Accessed 2 Aug. 2024]‌
2. ‌Australiansiloarttrail.com. (2024). Tumby Bay. [online] Available at: https://www.australiansiloarttrail.com/tumby-bay [Accessed 12 Aug. 2024].
3. ‌Colour Tumby art festival sees Flanders Fields, leafy seadragon murals added to Tumby Bay walls – ABC News. (2023). ABC News. [online] 13 Mar. Available at: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-13/colour-tumby-2023-flanders-fields-leafy-seadragon-murals/102088546 [Accessed 12 Aug. 2024].
4. ‌On Eyre Media (2018). Tumby Bay Silo Timelapse – Ron Muralist. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bm8Ik2W0nQM [Accessed 12 Aug. 2024].
5. ‌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]‌
6. Trove. (2014). Tumby Bay: 180 years since Capt. Flinders – Port Lincoln Times (SA : 1927 – 1988; 1992 – 2002) – 5 Mar 1982. [online] Available at: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/276039438 [Accessed 13 Aug. 2024].‌
7. Wikipedia Contributors (2024). Tumby Bay, South Australia. [online] Wikipedia. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tumby_Bay [Accessed 13 Aug. 2024].‌