Alfred Traeger Alfred Traeger Alfred Hermann Traeger, OBE (2 August 1895 – 31 July 1980) was an Australian inventor, chiefly known for the development of the pedal radio. Traeger was born at Glenlee, near Dimboola, Victoria, and raised near Adelaide, South Australia. He was instrumental in the establishment and early success of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia. Traeger had an interest in radio for much of his life. During the 1920s, he was contacted by Rev John Flynn to assist in experiments which were to enable remote families access to medical treatment by using radio equipment. He also suggested the
Australian Inland Mission Hospital, Birdsville Due to the lack of local timber, the town's remoteness and the lack of good access by roads or rail, which created prohibitively high transportation costs, almost all the town's early buildings were built of local sandstone. The population peaked in 1895 at 220. The Presbyterian Australian Inland Mission (AIM) leased the Royal Hotel buildings (erected from ) from 1923 to 1937 as their first bush nursing home, or hostel in Queensland. At that time the AIM was headed by its founder Rev. Dr John Flynn, who was working toward establishing a flying doctor and air ambulance service for remote