OCR FM
non-profit community radio station
OCR FM is a non-profit community radio station based in Colac, Victoria, Australia. OCR is a volunteer organisation with no employed staff, broadcasting 24 hours a day and seven days a week, with locally produced programming supplemented by locally produced announcements and music.
History and previous identities
3OCR was previously known as Otway FM, however with the change-over to a full licence from a previously allocated Temporary Community Broadcasting Licence (TCBL) the organisation's name was changed to reflect its call sign. The name itself OCR represents "Otways Community Radio"
Colac Community Radio Group Inc. (later changed to 'Colac Public Radio Group Inc.') was established in 1991 by Group president Anthony Prytz, after an advertisement in 'The Colac Herald' was placed calling for a public expressions of interest meeting by Prytz to start a new radio station in Colac.
Approximately 25 people attended that meeting, held at the old Adult Education Center in Murray Street (Now home to an Asian restaurant).
The stations first (temporary) studios were set up above an architect office in Murray Street (for approximately 2 months at no charge to the group) so members could become familiar with borrowed equipment in readiness for the group's first test broadcast that year. Then the station moved to 168b Murray Street Colac, above a local sports store, for a "peppercorn" rent negotiated with the sports store owner at the time Don Nicholson.
First test broadcast
1991 – 99.1Mhz FM – duration 1 week (6 am – 12 am, transmitter was shut down every night of the test transmission at midnight)
The first test broadcast was to gather interest from the listening public, and was quite successful, with public donations given throughout the broadcast in exchange for "Bribes To Subscribe" – (CD's, Books, Store Vouchers etc. that the station members and a few businesses had donated).
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “OCR FM” is non-profit community radio station. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through non-profit, community and radio, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “non-profit community radio station” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Feb 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q4636384. Authority coordinates are -38.340, 143.588. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1991.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “OCR FM”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow OCR FM primary sources, OCR FM archive and non-profit research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “OCR FM”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “OCR FM” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.