At a time when prestigious awards were much less common than they are now, Charles Fenner received three awards for his geological and geographical work. In 1918 he received the first award of the Sachse Gold Medal of the Royal Geographical Society (Victorian Branch) for his 137-page paper on the physiography of the Werribee River area. It was handed to him by the Federal Minister for Home and Territories (Hon. A. Poynton) when he visited Adelaide on 1 August, 1920. There is a detailed account of the life of Mr Sachse in Gill (1962).

In 1929, he was awarded the David Syme Research Prize of the University of Melbourne for his 64-page paper Adelaide, South Australia: a Study in Human Geography. This was the basis for his subsequent books on the geography of South Australia. He (and I) were delighted when I was awarded the Syme Prize 20 years later, in 1949.

In 1947, he was presented with the first award of the most prestigious medal of the Royal Geographical Society of South Australia, the John Lewis Gold Medal, for his literary work on geography. Subsequent recipients include Sir Douglas Mawson and Sir Edmund Hilary. At the request of the President, C. M. Hambidge, the presentation was made by Dr J. Brooke Lewis. Fenner was made a Life Member of the Society the same year.

Figure 16.4a. Sachse Gold Medal of the Royal Geographical Society (Victorian Branch), awarded 1918.

Figure 16.4b. David Syme Research Prize Medal of the University of Melbourne, awarded 1929.

Figure 16.4c. John Lewis Gold Medal of the Royal Geographical Society of South Australia, awarded 1947.