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Repeater Station (Archived Chats and Forum)

Finding a route of the Overland Telegraph Line between Charlotte Waters and Alice Springs proved tedious. John Ross, the surveyor spent months trying to find a suitable route through the MacDonnell Ranges.

Although seven years earlier John McDouall Stuart had found a way through, it was unsuitable for the line's construction parties.

Months later, on March 11, 1871, a way through was forged and a dry riverbed was found with waterholes and springs, the main spring named Alice Springs, in honour of Charles Todd's wife.

Work on the first building at Alice Springs started in November 1871. It was a combined telegraph office and mens' quarters. Then as resources became available a harness room, buggy shed, police station, post and telegraphs office, kitchen and stationmaster's residence were added.

These buildings were made almost entirely from local materials. Most had stone walls cemented with mud mortar. Lime was made from burning limestone dug from the nearby hills. The roof was reed-thatch, later replaced with iron sheets brought up from the south by camel.

The barracks was designed as a fort, but the local Aboriginal people were friendly, even though the repeater station was built near an important sacred site and ceremonial ground. Many of the Aboriginals later became valued companions and employees of the tiny community.

The Alice Springs telegraph station was initially staffed by six men; the stationmaster (who served an average of seven years) an assistant telegraph operator and four linesmen who maintained 290kms of line. Much of their work in the early years involved replacing porcelain conductors which the Aboriginal people broke off to make spearheads and scraping tools.

One of the great tragedies of the Overland Telegraph Line happened in this area. In December 1871, Carl Kraegen had left Charlotte Waters with two telegraph operators to journey to Alice Springs where they would open up communications with Adelaide. They had a map showing the position of surface water but became lost and three days on without water, Kraegen was the only one with enough strength to continue alone.

Two days later when he hadn't returned, in desperation the two remaining men had shot one of the horses to drink its blood. They had been 54 hours without water in the searing, dehydrating heat of the red sandhill country, south of Alice Springs. They decided to return to camp, too weak to find Kraegen.

Kraegen's body was found later near an angle pole three miles from a well. He was buried on the spot.