Our next activation for Thursday 24th October 2024, was the two silos at Charlton, Victoria, for the Silos On The Air (SiOTA) program.

As we left the town of Donald, we stopped briefly at the William Donald monument. It commemorates the establishment of the first white settlement in the district by WIlliam Donald.

We then stopped to look at the monument for the old Jeffcott North Mechanic Institute. Jeffoctt is named in honour of Sir William Jeffcott who served as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Port Phillip from 1843-1845. (Blake 1978)

The monument was unveiled in November 2016 by members of the Donald History and Natural History Group.

The Jeffcott North Mechanics’ Institute was opened on the 19th day of November 1891. A concert and ball was held to honour the occasion. The building was constructed of timber and took only one week to build. The Institute building was used regularly for dances. On the 3rd day of January 1900, a severe storm struck the area and the Institute building was totally destroyed. Materials from the Institute were salvaged and sold. The Mechanics Institute was never rebuilt.

Above:- Image c/o ‘Useful Knowledge’ magazine

Charlton is a small town located on the banks of the Avoca River. It is about 245 km northwest of Melbourne.

Above:- Map showing the location of Charlton, Victoria. Map c/o Google Maps.

Prior to European occupation of the area, the Charlton district was home to the Jaara aboriginal people. In 1848, Robert Cay and William Kaye established ‘Charlton’ station, named after Charlton, a small town (now suburb) of London. Their run was divided into East Charlton and West Charlton and was separated by the Avoca River. (Aussie Towns 2018) (Museums Victoria Collections, 2025)

A town developed on the eastern side of the river and it was known as East Charlton after the pastoral run on which it was situated. By 1863 an Inn had been built by Mr. John Flug. In 1867 a bridge was constructed across the Avoca River and this allowed the growth of settlement on either side of the river. James Patterson of Wedderburn was contracted to build the bridge. (Charlton.vic.au, 2014) (Museums Victoria Collections, 2025)

By the 1870s large holdings of land were opened up to selectors. Two flour mills were built. In 1876 the East Charlton Post Office was opened. In that same year the Tribune newspaper commenced. In 1879 The Vale of Avoca was opened. In that year another town in Victoria called Charlton changed its name to Chute. As a result, East and West Charlton ceased, and the town was known as Charlton. (Museums Victoria Collections, 2025)

Above:- High Street Charlton, c. 1898. Image c/o Museums Victoria.

Today, Charlton has a population of about 1,200 people. The Charlton distirct is a cropping area where cereal grains and legumes are grown. The district is also well known for wool production and prime lamb. (Charlton.vic.au, 2014)

Former Australian Prime Minister John Joseph Curtin was a resident of Charlton from 1894 to 1896.

The former Charlton Mechanics Institute built in 1882, is now the home of the Charlton Golden Grains Museum. It is located on High Street. (Aussie Towns 2018)

Nearby you can find Elliott Gardens. They contain the Shire of Charlton Honour Board.

In Elliott Gardens is a monument for Harold Edward ‘Pompey’ Elliott (b. 1878. d. 1931), a soldier, solicitor, senator and national hero.

Below is a video on the life of ‘Pompey’ Elliott.

In the park there is also a small oblisque to commemorate those from the district who were killed in the Second Boer War.

At the end of High Street is the very prominent War Memorial which was unveilled in 1923 to honour the men from the district who lost their lives during the First World. Subsequently the names of those who were killed durring the Second World War were added to the memorial. A total of 60 names can be found on the memorial.

The nearby rotunda was opened in 1926 and was erected to the memory of the late Benjamin Green by the citizens of Charlton and district. Green was a solicitor in Charlton and a former lawn tennis player of Australia. (UBC Web Design 2025)

In Halliday Street you can find the historic Fire Station built in 1931.

Charlton contains several murals that are all within walking distance.

Jack Fran from Adelaide painted the Permier harvester. His mural can be found at 40 High Street, Charlton. (WALLS 2021)

Adjacent to the bus station is a magnificent train mural. It was painted by Moel Kilner and depicts a composite train engine and wagons that would have been on the Charlton line in 1957, the year that the Charlton Rotary Club was chartered.

Located at 24 High Street is a mural welcoming visitors to Charlton. The mural features sheep and grain which reflects the district’s industry and is the work of Kate Pullen. (WALLS 2021)

Located at 5 High Street is a football mural, the work of Kyke Torney. (WALLS 2021)

On Armstrong Street is a mural dedicated to the women of World War Two.

Next to the town’s playground and swimming pool is a wood carving

At Travellers Rest you can find an old windmill that was donated to the Travellers Rest by Keith Lynas and their family. It is in memory of his father Lance Corporal Arthur Falkner Lynas who was awarded a Military Cross for bravery during the First World War.

There are some nice views of the Avoca River here, including a flood marker. Charlton was flooded to record levels in January 2011. (Aussie Towns 2018)

At this point across the river you can view ‘The Big Fish’, a Kenya Broadbill Swordfish which is a memento of the 2006 Commonwealth Games.

The Charlton silo VK-CHN3 is located in Kaye Street. It is operated by GrainCorp. Charlton NW silo VK-CHW3 is located on the northern side of Borung Highway in the northwest area of Charlton.

In 1876 a mill was built on the banks of the Avoca River by Mr. W.E. Foreman. (Victorian Collections, 2025)

Above:- Charlton Steam Power flour Mill. Image c/o Victorian Collections.

It was acquired by the Noske brothers in 1919. A replacement mill was construced by the Noske’s and was opened on May 1927. By the 1970s it had been taken over by the Grain Elevator Board in the 1970s. (Victorian Collections, 2025)

Above:- Article from The Australasian, Sat 2 Jul 1927. Image c/o Trove

Marija and I parked at Travellers Rest in the activation zone of both silos. We operated from the 4WD running the Icom Ic-7000, 100 watts, and the Codan 9350 antenna with the 1.5 metre stainless steel whip.

Above:- The activation zones of the two silos in Charlton. Image c/o SiOTA website.

The band conditions had not improved since our activation atDonald, and we just scraped by with three contacts each, qualifying the silos.

Marija worked the following stations on 40m SSB:-

1. VK1CHW/p (VKFF-3842)
2. VK3APJ
3. VK5NOU

I worked the following stations on 40m SSB-

1. VK1CHW/p (VKFF-3842)
2. VK3APJ
3. VK5NOU

We left Charlton and headed to Bendigo about 106 km to the southeast. Along the way we stopped briefly at the Woosang cemetery which contains a number of historical graves.

We continued along the Calder Highway and soon reached the town of Wedderburn, about 70 km northwest of Bendigo. Gold was first discovered at Wedderburn in 1852. It was one of the most northwesterly goldfields from Melbourne. It is believed that Wedderburn is named after William Wedderburn who served on the goldfields in the Mounted Police. (Victorianplaces.com.au, 2015)

Wedderburn contains the ‘Birds Eye View’ murals. There are five large murals painted throughout the town that feature different bird species native to the district.

After looking at the impressive murals, we drove up to the site of the old Wdderburn god battery. It was opened in June 1905 and was known as ‘New Hope’.

Our next stop was the Wedderburn War Memorial located in Soldier’s Memorial Park at the corner of High and Chapel Streets.

The park also features a monument to Captain Albert Jacka who was awarded the Victoria Cross. He was the first Australian in the war to earn the honour.

Below is an excellent video on Albert Jacka.

There is also a monument for Liutenant Albert Chalmers Borella, another Victoria Cross recipient.

Below is a video on the life of Albert Borella.

Marija and I then visited Nancy Stokes Cottage built during the 1930s by Nancy Stokes and 11-year-old Brce Robertson, following the death of Nancy’s husband. Nancy continued to live in the little cottage until 1979. She passed away in 1982 at age 93. (Raftis 2023)

Nancy continued to live in the little cottage until 1979. She passed away in 1982 at age 93. (Raftis 2023)

We then visited the headstone of Thomas Whyte, a miner who arrived in Melbourne in 1859. He initially was a shopkeeper in Collins Street He wrote letters to his family in Edinburgh advising that his business was suffering due to the exodus of people to the goldfields. Thomas in turn travelled to Wedderburn and died on the 21st day of July 1855.

Our final stop before reaching Bendigo was the Major Mitchell monument on the Calder Highway, about 5 km south of Wedderburn. Mitchell passed this location on the 7th day of July 1836.

We then drove into Bendigo and booked into our accomodation at the Quality Hotel Lakeside.

That evening we enjoyed a very nice meal at the hotel before heading back to the motel room for some preparation for the 2024 VKFF National Get Together.

References.

1. Aussie Towns. (2018). Charlton, VIC – Aussie Towns. [online] Available at: https://www.aussietowns.com.au/town/charlton-vic [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].
2. ‌Charlton.vic.au. (2014). About Charlton – Charlton. [online] Available at: https://www.charlton.vic.au/about-charlton/. [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].‌
3. ‌Leslie James Blake, 1978, Place Names of Victoria.
4. Mechanics Inst of Australia, 2016, ‘Useful Knowledge’, No. 39, Summer 2016
5. Museums Victoria Collections. (2025). Municipality of Charlton, Victoria. [online] Available at: https://collections.museumsvictoria.com.au/articles/2258 [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].‌
6. Raftis, R. (2023). Nancy Stokes Cottage – Wedderburn. [online] Wedderburn.vic.au. Available at: https://www.wedderburn.vic.au/things-to-do/nancy-stokes-cottage [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].
7. ‌UBC Web Design (2025). Benjamin Green | Monument Australia. [online] Monumentaustralia.org.au. Available at: https://monumentaustralia.org.au/themes/people/community/display/30767-benjamin-green [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].
8. ‌Victorian Collections. (2025). Photograph, Charlton Shire, Charlton Flour Mill, c.1987. [online] Available at: https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/5fc3205ae868d822a8867220 [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].‌
9. Victorian Collections. (2025). Photograph – Lithograph, Rider & Mercer, Views of Charlton. [online] Available at: https://victoriancollections.net.au/items/67ce1b44800e5a43598fee73 [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].
10. Victorianplaces.com.au. (2015). Wedderburn | Victorian Places. [online] Available at: https://www.victorianplaces.com.au/wedderburn [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].
11. ‌‌WALLS, T. (2021). Nacho Station. [online] Nacho Station. Available at: https://www.nacho-station.com/three-walls-charlton-art-trail [Accessed 23 Mar. 2025].‌