Dolavon

Dolavon is in the lower Chubut River valley, 19 km west of Gaiman and 36 km from Trelew along National Route 25. Its streets preserve its Welsh history, and it is crossed by one of the irrigation canals the Welsh built in the late 19th century. It has 3,962 residents (2022 census).

Things to do

• The waterwheels: they earned it the name “town of waterwheels”; driven by the canal current, they carried water to the orchards.
• The flour mill: working since 1927, it is now owned by the town and is one of its main attractions.
• The old station: the Central Chubut Railway station building, in use from 1915 to 1961, still stands.
• The Welsh chapels: they were also community meeting places, around Welsh tea; sixteen chapels in the region are historic heritage.
• Carnival: held every summer since 1917.

Climate

Dry, cold-temperate and less windy than other towns in the province; rain falls mostly in autumn and winter.

History

It had no formal founding: it grew from the settlers and expanded with the arrival of the railway. The first session of its town council, on 21 April 1919, is taken as its founding date. Its Welsh name means “river bend”: it was the name of the farm of teacher and poet William Henry Hughes, who donated the post office.

Distances: 36 km west of Trelew · 19 km from Gaiman