SAVE PILGRIM'S REST

The tourist town of Pilgrim's Rest in Mpumalanga is facing sure closure after 17 businesses were ordered to close their doors by month end. The businesses were issued with eviction notices last Friday by the province's Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport. The town is owned and run by the Department of Public Works, and business owners lease the properties. The historic gold mining town dates back to the 1800s. The conservation of Pilgrim's Rest as a cultural and historic asset began in 1974 when the provincial government purchased the town from mining company Barlow Rand. In 1986 the village of Pilgrim's Rest and the farm Ponieskrantz, on which the village is situated, were declared National Monuments. Tourism is the backbone of the small town's economy.

Sharon PATERSON, owner of Ponieskrantz Arts and Craft as well as the Pilgrim's Pantry shop, said her staff are very worried, and locals are devastated by the news. She will have to issue notices of termination of employment to her 50 employees, after running the two shops for the past 20 years. Her employees manufacture stained glass doors, lamps, chandeliers and hot-glass jewellery.

The Department's spokesman, Dumisa MALAMULE, said the department advertised the leasing of the buildings on tender bulletin in October and the closing date was in November. The leases of all business which were on tender had expired, according to him. The tender process was finalised in June 2012. Resident Isabel JACOBS said that not one business owner’ was informed beforehand that their business was up for grabs. They saw the advertisement in the Government Gazette in November. All the business owners attended the tender meeting, and submitted their tender documents. Sharon also tendered for the leases in November, but since then they have not heard anything from the Department, until they received eviction notices. Pilgrim's Rest Golf Club manager, Henry VAN NIEKERK, was shocked when three "aggressive" Public Works officials gave him a four-sentence letter to vacate the the golf course. He refused to sign for the letter. Royal Hotel manager, Chris AUTY, said they have not been affected as the hotel is run on behalf of the government. Pilgrim's Rest Tourism officer, Sherry GOODWIN, who also serves on the local Chamber of Commerce, believes that the motivation behind the closure of these businesses was to transform the economy by giving tenders to previously disadvantaged business people.

The Department awarded 21 building leases to 14 successful bidders, of which only five are existing business owners elsewhere. The awarding of multiple leases to five bidders has raised suspicion over the tender process. Many of these bidders are alleged not to have start-up capital or the relevant business licences. The list of awarded tenders includes Matletle Construction and Projects cc, awarded five leases to run Mrs Mac's Shop, Pilgrim's Pantry, the Pilgrim's Rest Golf Course, The Daisy, and the Pilgrim's Rest Caravan Park. This close corporation only has one member, Suzan Patricia KHOZA. Timbhulu Construction and Projects cc has been awarded leases for Mona Cottage, The Vine, and Chaitow's Restaurant. This close corporation also only has one member, Rachel Tsakane KHOZA. Urizima 83 cc was awarded Pilgrim's Place and the Leather Shop. Mangwanyane Trading was awarded the leases for the petrol station, Highwayman's Garage, and Scott's Cafe.

The Chairman of the Pilgrim's Rest Chamber of Business, Marius BRUMMER, who lost the bid for the Highwayman's Garage, said Mangwanyane did not have the necessary capital or licences to run the petrol station. He said directors of the firm had asked him to help them run the business "because they definitely do not have the capital". You also need to have a site licence and a retail licence, which they do not have that. The existing licences are in Marius' name. The law states that to purchase and retail fuel, you need a licence from the Department of Energy. The new occupier will need R1.5 million to fill the tanks and pay security to BP. The town's only ATM is part of the petrol station. Marius will have to give notice to his 11 staff members, after 10 years of operating the business.

Johnny REINDERS has operated The Vine and Johhny’s Pub for 18 years. He is well-known for his knowledge of the village and its history. His business was awarded to Timbhulu Construction and Projects. He said he consulted his lawyer in January and was prepared to go to court to fight for his business. His lease is valid until December 2015.

From 01 August, 18 businesses will have new occupiers, of which 16 are new to Pilgrim’s Rest and have never operated a business there. The new occupiers will be moving into empty shells, as they were only awarded leases for the business premises, not the furniture or other goods, which remains the property of the current business owners. According to the new lease agreements, tenants must also pay three months rent up front.

Belvedere Metal Crafts – JM Chaplin
Clewer General Store – Highwayman’s Garage (was Marius Brummer)
Mrs Mac’s Shop – Matletle Construction and Projects
Highwayman’s Garage – Mangwanyane Trading
Old Print Shop – Kensington BEE (PTY) LTD
Pilgrim’s Pantry – Matletle Construction and Projects
Pilgrim’s Place – Urizima 83 CC
Ponieskrantz Arts and Crafts – Silver Ruby Trading 1037 CC
Old Stables – Lorraine Swanepoel
Mona Cottage – Timbhulu Construction and Projects
Scott’s Café – Mangwanyane Trading
Golf Course – Matletle Construction and Projects
The Daisy – Matletle Construction and Projects
The Iron Store – Shan Paton
The Leather Shop – Urizima 84 CC
The Vine – Timbhulu Construction and Projects
The Royal Liqour Store – Ligcabho Le’Africa Trading
Africa Silk – Nosibusiso Kock
Central Garage – NNA Gape Trading and Project
Caravan Park – Matletle Construction and Projects
Chaitows – Timbhulu Construction and Projects CC

The new occupiers are not obliged to employ former staff members. By the end of the month, these local employees will be out of jobs, with no prospects in sight. Hendry NONYANE was born in Pilgrim’s Rest. The 66-year-old man has been working at the Highwayman’s Garage since 1982. He is the breadwinner of his household and has two children who are still at school. He also sends money to five family members in Bushbuckridge every month.

The Democratic Alliance in the province has called on Mpumalanga's Premier to investigate the process. The Freedom Front Plus wants the Public Protector to investigate the tender process too.

Wheelbarrow Patterson

The history of Pilgrim's Rest dates back to 1873 when a miner, Alec PATTERSON, discovered alluvial gold on the farm Ponieskrantz. He had left the Mac-Mac area to search for a place that was less congested. By the end of 1873 there were close to 1000 diggers at the Mac Mac diggings. Alec PATTERSON was a loner, who pushed his possessions around the area in a wheelbarrow, earning the nickname Wheelbarrow Patterson or Wheelbarrow Alec. He came to the area from the Kimberley fields. The discovery was kept secret, until prospector William TRAFFORD also discovered gold near by. He registered his claim in September 1873 at the Mac Mac office of the Gold Commissioner, Major W. MACDONALD, an American. Soon there were over 200 gold diggers and prospectors from all over the country and the world. Pilgrim's Rest was officially proclaimed a gold field on 22 September 1873. By early January 1874, the Gold Commissioner moved his office to Pilgrim's Rest. Within a year there were 21 stores, 18 canteens and three bakeries. The collection of tents grew with brick houses, a church, a newspaper (Gold News, founded in 1874, and renamed The Gold Fields Mercury) and the Royal Hotel. Besides the diggers, there were also tradesmen, storekeepers, canteen owners, rogues, sinners and saints, barmaids, and parsons. By 1896 many of the tents had been replaced by permanent buildings.

William TRAFFORD is said to have called it Pilgrim's Rest, as that was where the diggers hoped to find their dreams and make a home. It is also claimed in the Rev. Gerald HERRING's book, The pilgrim diggers of the seventies, published in 1949, states that Alec welcomed newcomers with the words "Here comes another pilgrim to his rest." and that is where it got its name. By the end of 1873 there were about 1500 diggers working 4000 claims in and around Pilgrim's Rest. No digging was permitted between sunset and sunrise or on Sundays. The valley was rich in gold with large finds made at places like Breakneck Gully, Brown's Hill, Golden Point, Peach Tree Creek, Poverty Creek, and Starvation Gully. After the first Anglo-Boer War, won by the Boers after the battle of Majuba in 1881, the Volksraad (Transvaal Government) granted concessions to individuals and companies.

In 1881, David BENJAMIN, a London financier, obtained the mining rights to Pilgrim's Rest and the surrounding area. He set about compensating the remaining diggers for their claims. He consolidated all his claims and formed the Transvaal Gold Exploration Company. In 1895, the company amalgamated with other smaller companies, to form the Transvaal Gold Mining Estates (TGME). The alluvial deposits were eventually depleted and many left or turned to forestry. Gold mining in Pilgrim's Rest ceased in 1972.

Main Street circa 1910

During September 1901, General Ben VILJOEN established his headquarters at Pilgrim's Rest. It comprised the Lydenburg Commando of about 400 men under Commandant David SCHOEMAN, and 500 Johannesburg burghers under the General's brother, Commandant W. VILJOEN. About 40 families still lived in Pilgrim's Rest at that time. The town's women made clothes for the Boers from curtains and the linen they had at home. While spying on the British forces in the mountains, Michael Joseph COONEY, an Irish-born American, saw gold amalgam at the deserted mines. He told his Irish compatriot, Willy H. BARTER. Various members of the Johannesburg Commando had worked on the gold mines before the war. The gold ingots cast by the Boers were not acceptable to some people, they wanted real money as currency. In February 1902 the Volksraad gave permission for minting gold pounds, and the Munt te Velde (Mint in the Field) came into being. The production of Veldpond and the Veldpond Medals took place in the workshop of TGME at Pilgrim’s Rest. The team, appointed by Andries Gustav Erlank PIENAAR (from Krugersdorp), to make the coins included:

• Michael COONEY, essayer for testing the purity of the gold
• Dick GRAHAM, experienced in handling the crucible for melting the gold
• William George REID, a blacksmith who worked in Johannesburg gold mines, to adapt the machinery of the Transvaal Gold Mining Estates for the process of minting gold coins, and to soften and harden the dices
• Petrus Johannes KLOPPERS, a teacher from the Netherlands who taught in Barberton and had training in botany and drawing, for designing the coin and engraving the dices
• Others involved included General MULLER, A. MARSHALL and W.H. BARTER.

On 22 November 1899, Michael Joseph COONEY was found guilty of culpable homicide by the Circuit Court for Soutpansberg. He was sentenced to five years in prison. He had acted in self-defence, and the Pietersburg residents lodged a petition calling for his release on the grounds that "Mr Cooney is a man of good and honourable character". He also wrote a letter to the Volksraad pleading for his release. The prison warden sent the petition and the letter, with his own recommendation that prisoner 302 be given special pardon in view of the political situation in the country. Soon after peace was declared, British Intelligence Officer took Michael into custody on the following grounds:

• He disguised himself as a prospector to spy on the British military during the Anglo-Boer War,
• During the war, he took a battery from the house of the Pietersburg Gold Mine Engineer, DAMANT, to give to Carel CRAEMER (a young German who fought on the side of the Boers) to be used for the ignition of dynamite to blew up trains carrying the British,
• He made a bomb for General Ben VILJOEN to blew up the Spekboom River, to prevent the British from entering Pilgrim's Rest,
• He scraped gold amalgam from the copper plates at the gold mines in the Lydenburg area and gave it to the Boers.

The Intelligence Officer asked his Captain in Pretoria, what to do with Michael. He was told that no further action was necessary, and the man could be released.

Michael was born in Galsworth, Ireland in 1844 to Patrick and Margaret COONEY. His father died at the age of 102. Michael was one of 13 children. He immigrated to America, first settling in San Juan County, where he worked at the Black Wonder mine. At some stage  while there, his sister, Beatrice, visited him. She met and married Carroll THOMAS. Michael next worked near Lake City, Colorado. He later moved to Leadville, Colorado, where he became involved with the New Years mine, which he later sold. Next, he moved to Cassell, Montana, where he worked in silver mines. He later moved to the Whitlach Union and McIntyre gold mines in Unionville, Montana. After this, he decided to head for Europe and later went to Ireland and then found his way to South Africa. He remained in South Africa until 1904, returning to America. He moved to the Oroville district in Butte County, California, where he bought the acquired the Bank Mine Company with a partner. Michael married twice, first to Annie TAYLOR, and then to Emma ERFURTH. He died some time between 1908 and 1929.

Hendrik (Harry) Wilhelm STRUBEN and Pieter Jacobs MARAIS bought the farms Ponies Krantz and Driekop, but sold them just before the gold rush. Ponies Krantz became Pilgrim's Rest. Harry went on to be appointed the first President of the Chamber of Mines in 1887. In 1889 he retired to Cape Town, where he died at the age of 75, in 1915.

Mrs Mac's Shop

Maud Mary PURCELL was the first white child born in Pilgrim's Rest on 25 August 1874, to John PURCELL and Mary Ann. In 1872 her parents arrived in the Mac Mac area from Kimberley. They later moved to Pilgrim's Rest. In 1878 the family moved to Swaziland for a short while, but returned to Pilgrim's Rest in 1880. Maud married William Herbert LILLEY on 12 June 1898. They had three children, a son and two daughters, including Sheila Mary Marguerite. Sheila married MACFARLANE. She became the owner of Mrs Mac's Shop. In 1905 it housed the Royal Hotel's off-sales, then was rented as a chemist in 1913, but later became the general dealer. In 1978, Sheila was the oldest resident of Pilgrim's Rest when she left the town. William died in 1903, and in 1909 Maud married William Price GRIFFITHS (he died in October 1945). They had two daughters. After his death, Maud moved to her daughter, Mrs. FRASER, in Witfield, Boksburg.

The first transport service to Pilgrim's Rest was William LEATHERN's wagon, which travelled to Lydenburg every weekend. He claimed that he never left anyone at Lydenburg no matter what his condition. In the 1880s the Zeederberg Coach Service arrived, which also served as the mail service.

Robber's Grave

The Old Cemetery contains the famous Robber's Grave. This unknown man was caught and convicted of tent robbing on the diggings during 1873-1876. A was banished from the town, but a few days later he was spotted on a hill, now known as Cemetery Hill. He was shot and killed, and buried where he fell. His grave lies north-south to brand him forever a thief. All other graves lie east-west. No burial records were kept until 1911. The earliest marked grave is of a man crushed by a boulder on his claim in 1874. There are 320 known graves but only 163 have headstones or markers. Most are simply marked out with stones. The There are many nationalities of people buried in the cemetery - Englishmen, Swedes, Australians, Welshmen, Afrikaners, Indians, Italians, Germans, Canadians and Tasmanians to name but a few. Drowning, suicide, mining accidents, malaria, alcoholism, murder, snake bites, pneumonia and dysentery took its toll. The great flood of 1909 claimed the lives of at least 15 people. A large number of inhabitants succumbed to the influenza epidemic of 1918.

Miss MCNALLY was the daughter of the owner of the Pilgrim's and Sabie News. In 1910 the first issue of the Pilgrim’s and Sabie News was published, and continued until the mid 1940s. The printing office was originally a house built before 1900. A school operated from 1894 to 1917, with six teachers at one stage (including Harry COLES and Mrs. PATTERSON), and between 160 to 180 students. In 1913, Miss MCNALLY's class included:

• Allen MACKENZIE, the Post Master's son
• Donald MENZIES, the Chemist's son
• Violet CHARLTON, whose father worked at Driekop
• Christie MARKUS, later known as Oom Christie
• Frankie BERETTA
• Boris CHAITOW, the hairdresser's son
• James DOIG,
• two SHEPPARD sisters
• Susanna POTGIETER

J.H. DE BEER was a well-known pioneer. He built a number of houses in Pilgrim's Rest, including Rose Cottage. During the Anglo-Boer War he was involved in the Siege of Ladysmith. He owned a butchery and bakery.

R.W. RICHARDSON had the government contract to transport travellers from Graskop to Pilgrim's Rest, as well as mail deliveries from Zeederburg Coach Services.

Charles H. CHAITOW was the hairdresser and tobacconist, as well as the agent for Central News Agency and a book shop. Like most shop owners then, the family lived at the back of the shop. He died 05 July 1933, age 57.

The first White woman in the area was Mrs. Tom MCLACHLAN, who lived in a stone house at Mac Mac. She was already there in 1872, and helped many travellers stricken with fever. Mrs. DIETRICKS, wife of a German officer, arrived with her husband in 1873. He was the assistant to the Mining Commissioner. They had two daughters, including Elsa who married SMITHERS and wrote a book about her life in Pilgrim's Rest, March Hare.

Elizabeth Russel

Elsa recalled the story of Elizabeth RUSSEL who lived in a tent on the diggings and worked her own claim. There were two RUSSEL girls - Elizabeth (Bessie, born 29 May 1850 in London) and Annie - daughters of Mr. H.B. RUSSEL, a resident in Heidelberg and Pretoria, and a miller and merchant in the 1870s. The family came to South Africa in 1855, settling in Pietermaritzburg, where the father ran Boston Mills. The girls attended Cheltenham House School in Pinetown. After school, Elizabeth became a governess and later taught at Caversham. The family moved to Heidelburg, and Elizabeth ran a private school in Harrismith. Alfred (Tucker) was the girls' brother, whom Elizabeth followed to the diggings in defiance of her father. They pitched their tent next to the DIETRICK family, who were friends of their parents. Later, with no luck on their claims, Elizabeth set up a business making sausage rolls and ginger beer. Soon afterwards, her brother left, and she moved to another camp. Here she finally found rich pickings, and together with another brother, Harry, they did well. Elizabeth married one of her fellow diggers, the American William A.B. CAMERON. The wedding was at St Alban's Church in Pretoria on 12 December 1874 and was attended by President Thomas BURGERS, who proposed the toast to the couple. Soon afterwards, William was elected to represent the Lydenburg diggers in the Volksraad. In 1876, the couple visited America as representatives of the ZAR at an international exhibition in Philadelphia. After their return, the couple separated, and Elizabeth looked after their five children. William died in 1905. She died in May 1931 in Volksrust. Her grand-daughters included Mrs. D.W. BOSCH, and a great-grand-daughter, Mrs. Joan MARSH.

Mail Coach

In 1912 the second Zeederberg Coach robbery took place on Pilgrim's Hill. The highwayman was Tommy DENNISON. He had come to South Africa from Ireland as a Private during the Anglo-Boer War, as a bugler and dispatch rider for the Earl of Athlone. He was discharged after being wounded on active duty. Tommy moved to Pilgrim's Rest and found work as a barber but the business did not do well. Next, he employed Black women and started a laundry service, but he landed in heavy debt. On the day of the robbery, the coach was stopped by a masked rider on a grey horse that Tommy had recently bought from the Reverend Maurice PONSONBY. When Piet DU PLESSIS, the coach driver, was ordered to throw down the money boxes, one box fell and burst open scattering silver half crown and florins on the ground. Instead of gold sovereigns, like the 1899 robbery, he only found a case of silver coins in the coach. When he started to pay his debts with the stolen money, he was arrested and imprisoned for five years in Pretoria Central Prison. He returned to Pilgrim's Rest and worked as a cartage contractor for the mines. Later he opened the Highwayman's Garage.

Highwayman's Garage

North of Pilgrim's Rest, built in 1915 by Transvaal Gold Mining Estates, Alanglade was the residence of the mine manager until 1972 when the last mine was closed. The large and graceful double-storey is now a period house museum and furnished with items from the early 1900s.

Dredzen Shop Museum is a typical general dealer store of the period 1930 to 1950. The home and lifestyle of the post second World War years can be seen in the owner’s residence adjoining the shop. The Miners House Museum was built in 1913. Central Garage was built in 1926 as an agency for Chevrolet Motors. It also provided bus tours to the Kruger National Park, sold Pegasus petrol, rented vehicles and rendered a panel-beating service.

HISTORIC ROUND HOUSE IN CAMPS BAY

The Round House restaurant in The Glen, between Cape Town and Camps Bay, is the oldest surviving building in Camps Bay, possibly built in 1786. It was originally built as a small round guards house that served to protect against enemies entering Cape Town from the Camps Bay side. Since the 1840s it has been used as a lodge, tea room or restaurant. The historic double-storey building suffered fires twice - one in 1860 and one in 1923 - and was left forsaken for many years. In the centre of the building, you can still see the gun cupboards where Lord Charles SOMERSET kept his firearms when he used the building as his hunting lodge. The restaurant was used as a ballroom in the 19th century. One of the outbuildings, a flat roofed house, was converted into a dwelling about 1860, it was used as an annexe to the Round House Hotel. In 1957 this became a youth hostel called Stan’s Halt, named after Stanley SENNEY who lost his life climbing Table Mountain. His father helped restore the building in his son’s memory.

From 1814 to 1817 it was owned by Jan Carel HORAK who used it as a livestock farm. He was the grandson of Jan Andries HORAK, a magistrate in Swellendam. Lord Charles SOMERSET, Cape Governor from 1814 to 1826, used it from 1817 until 1823 as a hunting lodge to shoot lion, leopard and buck on the slopes of Lions Head. He changed the rondawel to a double-storey. In 1837 it is believed that HORAK had to sell after which the building was used as a restaurant, tearoom and hotel. It was very popular in Victorian times and had two large ballrooms. With the new road (Lady Smith’s Pass, later renamed to Kloof Road), the Round House was turned into an hotel offering skittles, quoits and pigeons for sportsmen at 1s 6d a pair. The hotel with dance hall and amusement resort was run from 1849 by Mr. M. DONALDSON. A fire in 1860 destroyed the thatched roof, leaving the walls intact. The owner of the tearoom at the time was Thomas William Langley TITMUS but the proprietor was Edmund TILLEY, who had insured it for £300, and opened an hotel in Stellenbosch instead. Thomas was in the Royal Field Artillery. Edmund married Sophia Dorothea EXTER on 14 Nov 1849 in Cape Town. By 1863 the Round House was back in business under a new owner, Mr BRAZIER. Edmund TILLEY was back again in 1895 and on 23 December had been granted the land above the Round House. By 1901 H. TILLEY was the owner of the Round House Hotel, possibly Edmund's son as Edmund died in 1901. Two years later John KELLY took over. In 1904 the Cape Town City Council bought the property and leased it out. Mr D.J. WATSON was the proprietor of the tea room. In 1923 Thomas William Langley TITMUS again leased the property. After the second fire, the building had to be rebuilt - only the original walls and gun cupboards remaining. A plan of the area known as The Glen was found in the National Archives in Cape Town and dates back to 1881. In June 2008 The Round House Restaurant re-opened and is now one of Cape Town’s most exclusive restaurants.

STORMS COLLAPSE OLD BUILDING

Recent heavy rainfall in Cape Town saw part of the 110-year-old Junction Hotel in Junction Road, Salt River collapse. The double-storey building was built in October 1899. A row of annexed houses behind the hotel, known as the Blue Buildings, collapsed. They were on the City's list of buildings to be demolished. The white-painted hotel still stands, although it is shut close and barred. The Blue Buildings were used by staff of the old hotel as accommodation.

OLD COLONIAL BUILDING BLAZE

A fire has caused extensive damaged to the 109-year-old Colonial Building at 241 Church Street, Pietermaritzburg. The Msunduzi Municipality Fire Brigade were unable to put out the fire because their equipment was below standard. Firemen battled for almost half-an-hour to get three of the four fire engines started before responding to the call - even though the Fire Brigade is only about 500 metres from the Colonial Building. Two fire engines from Umgungundlovu District Municipality were brought in to help. Msunduzi Municipality Fire Brigade took almost two hours to start fighting the fire. The brick building, with its colonnaded frontage, was completed in 1901 and housed departments of the Colonial government. The building is being renovated to house the offices of the Master of the High Court, while the adjoining Magistrate's Court is being renovated for civil, maintenance and domestic violence courts. GVK-Siya Zama Building Contractors has a two-year contract to renovate the building, which has stood empty and vandalised since 1997. It was designed by architect William Henry POWELL who entered a competition for its design in 1894, winning £100 for his design. The foundation stone was laid in 1887. William died in 1900 before the building was completed. Besides housing the Colonial government offices, over the years it has also been home of the Deeds Office, the Surveyor General’s Office, the Natal Museum, and the Small Claims Court. In 1998 the KwaZulu-Natal Heritage Council found that thieves had stolen copper sheeting from the roof, the cast aluminium staircase capping, tons of lead lining from the toilets and all the cast-iron Victorian fire hearths.

TRAMWAYS BUILDING TO BE RENOVATED

The historic Tramways Building in Valley Road, Port Elizabeth is to be refurbished and turned into an entertainment hub. The tender to redevelop the building was awarded to Pambili Developments (Pty) Ltd. The historic landmark is the first state-owned property to be released on a 40-year lease basis for private development in the inner city. The building was erected in the 1800s and over the last few years became a decaying and derelict eyesore. Since the tender was awarded, the project has been hit by various snags and work has not yet started.

RESTORING HISTORY

Port Elizabeth-born and raised Savvas KOUSHIS (48) and his wife Amanda. have restored Grahamstown‘s historic Victorian-style Frontier Country Hotel to its original splendour, a project that cost R6,6-million. The ground floor of the building houses a Nedbank branch. The top floor houses rooms overlooking Market Square, the Cathedral of St Michael and St George, the city hall and two rows of Victorian-style shops. The corner balcony is the one where, in 1947, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth of England and their daughters stood and watched horse racing around Church Square. Savvas has run hotels and restaurants all over South Africa. He collects antiques and loves history. The Frontier is not his first historical project. He also bought and opened Assegai Lodge near Grahamstown, which was built in 1717 and used as a garrison by the British in 1785.

Savvas was in the news earlier in 2008 when he appealed to a Port Elizabeth township resident who was given an old brass bed by his late father Peter, to return it. The bed was shared by Cecil John RHODES and Neville Ernach PICKERING in Kimberley. The bed is believed to be worth R30 000. Peter was a Port Elizabeth barber who owned College Gents Hairdressers in Russell Road. He bought the enamelled bed with solid brass knobs and wheels, near Kimberley in 1983, not realising the historical and monetary value of the bed. In the 1990s he gave it to some poor people from the township. Savvas found out that the home of Neville PICKERING was auctioned off in 1983, with all its contents. He died in 1886 in Kimberley. He was hired by Rhodes in 1881 as a secretary at De Beers Mining Company. In 1882 Rhodes had made a will, leaving all his estate to Pickering. After Pickering's death, he made another will in 1888.

PORT ALFRED SHANTY GOES TO COURT

An old Port Alfred wood and iron shanty is at the centre of a court case. The Grahamstown High Court recently upheld the Provincial Heritage Resources Authority’s (PHRA) refusal to allow its new owners to demolish it. The shanty was built in the late 1800s or early 1900s, and was purchased by Port Alfred guest house owner Louise CORRANS with the intention of demolishing it and expanding The Lookout guest house, which she operates from an adjoining property. The Lower Albany Historical Society and Ndlambe Tourism sent letters of support for the demolition of the corroded shanty. After more than an eight-month wait, the PHRA granted permission for a partial demolition and ordered that the original building’s north and north-west facade be retained. It said the building was in a historic part of town and its front facade was a worthy heritage component of Port Alfred. Corrans appealed the decision but the PHRA stood firm. She then wrote to the Arts and Culture MEC Noxolo ABRAHAM-NTANTISO to intervene, but received no response. Finally she appealed to the High Court to review and set aside the PHRA’s decision. Judge Daylan CHETTY ruled that individual members of a heritage resource agency were appointed for their expertise in the field of heritage management, and that the conditional demolition permit was granted in accordance with the duty imposed on the PHRA to preserve buildings of cultural significance. He dismissed the application and ordered Corrans to pay the legal costs. According to letters sent to the PHRA by Corrans and her husband, Alan, the façade was extensively altered in 1977 and the corrugated iron was badly rusted, while the supporting wooden structure was rotten from borer beetle and termites. They had undertaken to erect a structure similar in style to the original building and which would reflect the architecture of the period.

HISTORY IN FISH HOEK

One of the original Fish Hoek mountainside homes was recently put up for sale at R3.3 million. It was one of the first two homes (the other is next door) in the suburb to be declared a national monument. The Government Gazette of 16 July 1982 shows that the original portions of the two cottages dated from 1919. The two properties originally formed part of the farm owned by K.S. DE VILLIERS, a local land baron who died in 1916. The property was subdivided into lots to form the suburb now known as Fish Hoek. The home on sale (the original cottage) has Elsie's Peak as a backdrop and the front facade faces the sea and views of False Bay. The original cottage was sold to Jacob Walter Charles DE SMIDT in March 1919. The home still has many original features, including some of the wooden floors and a recessed cupboard with lead-paned doors in the dining room, thick walls in some places and gables typical of the period in which it was built. On the outside there are two wine cellars under the original veranda.

Fish Hoek or Vissers Baay or Visch Hoek appears on the earliest maps of the Cape. The first grant of Crown Land in Fish Hoek was granted to Andreas BRUINS in 1818. The land was sold several times before being bought by Hester Sophia DE KOCK in 1883, a 51 year old spinster. In 1901 she married a local farmer, Jacob Izaak DE VILLIERS, who moved in with her. She opened her home as a guest house. She also farmed wheat and vegetables. She left instructions in her will that the farm was to be surveyed and the land sold as building plots. After the deaths of Hester and Jacob, the land was sold off, the first sale taking place in 1918. Hester died on 09 Oct 1914. Jacob died in 1916. They are buried in the small graveyard next to the NG Kerk in Kommetjie Road. Initially people built holiday cottages but as the train service to Cape Town was reliable, a more permanent community soon arose. In 1940 it was declared a municipality. The farmhouse on the site of the present Homestead Naval Mess near the railway crossing became an hotel. The original building, known as The Homestead, belonged to the de Villiers family. It burned down in 1947.

The other oldest house is named Uitkyk. It was bought as a fisherman's cottage in 1918 by the MOSSOP family of Mossop Leathers, and is still in the family. There had been a building on that site since the 1690s - a Pos Huis and a whaling station office.

Fish Hoek is well-known for not having liquor stores. This was due to the clause written in the 1818 land grant giving the land to Andreas BRUINS. The clause stated that there should be no public wine house on the property. This clause was introduced when wagon deliveries to Simon’s Town were common and it served to prevent the drivers from stopping off for a drink (or two or three) and arriving in an intoxicated state in Simon’s Town. The clause was carried on through the years, with residents opposing any planned liquor stores. In 1956, after having opposed many license applications they formed an association called The Defenders of Fish Hoek. They succeeded in getting the Liquor Act amended so that no further applications would be allowed. Under South Africa's new Constitution the Act fell away and after consultation with the local Magistrate residents voted for restaurant and bar licenses only.

LARGEST MOSQUE

Durban's 127 year old Jumma Musjid mosque was founded in the early 1880s when Aboobaker Amod (Jhaveri), said to be the first Indian trader to arrive in Natal in 1874, purchased a site, Sub A of Block BB, in Durban. Lot B of Block BB was bought later, as well as Lot D of Block BB, according to the Deeds Office. Today, Jumma Musjid is the largest mosque in the southern hemisphere, accommodating 7000 worshippers. The mosque has also been declared a national heritage building.

OLD MILL TO TURN AGAIN

The old mill at Reichenau Mission, on the Polela River near Bulwer, will soon be in action again, thanks to a few engineers. The mill was built by Trappist monks in about 1896. It was driven by an axial-flow, multi-bladed turbine. In the floods of 1987, the turbinwe was partially destroyed. Over time, the mill became derelict. A Durban man, Peter FROW, a former Eskom engineer, saw the mill when his wife, Jill, ran a literacy group in the area. He contacted other retired Eskom employees Colin HEALEY and Chris BROWN, retired university technician Mike SMITH, and former Melmoth farmer Gavin CHANDLER, to help with restoring the mill. The South African Air Force airlifted the turbine from the mill, placing it on a truck to a Pinetown workshop. Several businesses contributed funds. When operational, the turbine will provide 40kw. On 15 December the Air Force will transport the turbine back to its home.

MASONIC HOTEL, BOKSBURG

The Masonic Hotel in Market Street, Boksburg, is more than 100 years old. In August 1887, businessman F.M. JACKSON, together with six Elsburg residents, bought some land on which to build a hotel in the new town of Boksburg. The town soon became known as Honeymooners' Paradise, shortly after the creation of Boksburg Lake. The Masonic Hotel was the first hotel to open in Boksburg. It was followed by Central Hotel (still in Commissioner Street), Transvaal Hotel, Angelo Hotel (on Main Reef Road) and the Grand Hotel.When coal was discovered in Boksburg in 1889, the town became an important mining town. Between 1888 and 1889, President Paul KRUGER visited the East Rand mines, and stayed at the Masonic Hotel. A return trip between Boksburg and Johannesburg cost 15 shillings, on ox-wagon. In 1906 the hotel was renovated and enlarged. It was used in a number of locally produced historical films. One of the old hitching posts can still be seen outside the hotel. The current owner, Roy DE SOUSA, hopes to maintain the hotel's historical value.

ERPM HISTORY

The ERPM Recreation Centre in Comet Road,Boksburg, is being turned into an entertainment-orientated remembrance village by the current owners, Marius and Lorraine STEYN. The old stables date back to 1890 and 1910. The interior and exterior of the buildings will be maintained to the look of 1910. The old buildings are being restored. A wedding chapel is planned as a new addition. The first phase is expected to be ready in December.

DE AKKER ON AUCTION

One of the country's oldest operating pubs, De Akker, at the corner of Dorp and Herte Streets in Stellenbosch, is being auctioned on 27 September. The popular hang-out of countless Stellenbosch University students through the years, is housed in a building that was built in 1802. The current owner, Jose JARDIM, has owned the pub for the last 19 years but said that he cannot carry on because of ill-health.

HALFWAY HOUSE PUB IN KIMBERLEY

The Halfway House is one of Kimberley's most famous pubs, situated in Du Toitspan Road, half way between Kimberley city centre and Beaconsfield. It is affectionately known as The Half. It is believed to be the only drive-in pub in the world. Legend has it that the first customer was Cecil John RHODES on his horse. Here you can enjoy a Barnato Bitter draught or a Rhodes Ale produced by Mitchells in Knysna. The pub was recently renovated by the owners, Brian DOHERTY and Peter RICKETTS. The original bar area is decorated with relics from the past. A label on a bottle of Johnnie Walker shows that Kimberley was the best seller of this whiskey in the world in 1892. The courtyard will serve as a coffee shop during the day and a beer garden at night.

The Half opened up when a burnt brick house between New Rush (Kimberley) and Du Toit’s Pan (Beaconsfield) was put up for sale. The newspaper advertisement stated that the house would make a good hotel. It opened in 1875 and was known as the Cogins Hotel, situated opposite the current location. It moved to the current spot in 1897 when Cecil John RHODES decided to build a sanatorium on the site of the old Half. The name changed to Halfway House Hotel. The first liquor licence was granted in 1880 under the proprietorship of Mrs. LAITY. In 1970 some people decided to put a stop to the pub serving drinks to people in their cars. The court ruled that it had historic value and the tradition remained. Kimberley had another drive-in pub - the Kimberlite Hotel, which closed down. The Half had a flag-staff in the front of the building and at night the proprietor, Mr. BEDDOME, would hang a lantern on it. In 1884 Kimberley experienced a labour strike. The strikers held their meetings at the Half, where they were addressed by Mr. BROWN, chairman of the Artisans Society.

TIE A RED CLOTH AROUND THE OLD OAK TREES

Stellenbosch's historic Dorp Street's 393 oak trees were looking very festive recently. Landscape artist Strijdom VAN DER MERWE covered the trunks in red cloth, all the way down Dorp Street. The trees are national heritage. It formed part of the Dorp Street Development Trust's project to raise awareness of this historic town - our oldest town after Cape Town. Stellenbosch was named in 1679 by Governor Simon VAN DER STEL. The village was founded in 1685 and the municipality declared in 1840. Dorp Street was the first public road into the interior. Along this street you can see various styles of architecture - Cape-Dutch, Cape-French, Cape-Georgian, Victorian and Art Deco.

Dorp Street is the main street in Stellenbosch, and also where the longest row of historical houses in South Africa is found, many dating back to 1710. Libertas Parva houses the Oude Meester Wine Museum and the Rembrandt Van Rijn art gallery. The gables date to 1783. General SMUTS' wife's family lived in Dorp Street. The house from which they were married in 1897 is still there. The original Lutheran Church built in 1851 is now the University Art Gallery. Oom Samie Se Winkel is a famous landmark, set up as a typical general store of days gone by. The first owner of that land was Pieter Gerhardus WIUM. The land was registered in his name in 1791, along with a concession to trade meat. The land was later sub-divided and in 1904 Samuel Johannes VOLSTEEDT bought the shop and became a general dealer. La Gratitude was built in 1798. Its gable contains an "all seeing eye", which the owner put there to scare his staff into working when he was away.

HISTORIC HOUSE ON AUCTION

A stately home at 11A Grace Road in Johannesburg, with magnificent views, is going on auction on 30 July. Originally named Beauvais, it was built in 1907 by Allen WILSON for mining magnate Percival White TRACEY. It is set on 1.1 ha of prime land and has an imposing Cape Dutch façade, a cathedral glass window, and Burmese teak panelling. The large cathedral glass window has the TRACEY family crest and motto, Honores Ambire (Surround with Honour). Percival had worked a claim at Kimberley. In 1902 he found diamonds in a stream near Johannesburg, and followed it to its source. Twenty-four miles east of Pretoria, he came to a diamond pipe. The Cornelis MINNAAR farm, Elandsfontein no. 85, was registered on 07 November 1859. Cornelis sold a portion of the farm to his brother Roelof in 1861, who in turn sold the northern part of this farm to Willem PRINSLOO for £570 on 07 December 1896. Thomas Major CULLINAN, a building contractor, tried to buy the Prinsloo farm but failed. When Willem died in 1898, his wife Maria became the new owner. After the Anglo-Boer War, Maria's brothers returned to the farm. The family were in dire need of money. When Cullinan started new negotiations with the family, they agreed to the outright sale of the farm for the sum £52,000. The company was first registered as the Premier Syndicate on 06 November 1902 but re-registered on 01 December 1902 as The Premier (Transvaal) Diamond Mining Company Ltd. with Cullinan as chairperson. Percival was part of this syndicate.

Premier Diamond Co. Ltd. became one of the largest diamond mines in the world and produced the largest diamond ever found - the Cullinan. This diamond was bought by the Transvaal government for £150,000 and presented to King Edward VII. It was cut into nine large stones and ninety-six small ones. The largest is mounted in the British Royal Sceptre and may be seen in the Tower of London with the Crown Jewels. The mine was renamed the Cullinan Diamond Mine in November 2003

During the 10 years that the family lived at Beauvais, it was the scene of glittering social functions, as well as tragedy. Three of the seven TRACEY children died within a week of one another in an epidemic. Percival also died there. After his death in 1909, his widow, Marcella Susan (maiden name DEVENISH) and two daughters lived on in the house. In 1912, Beauvais was featured in a "Stately Homes of Johannesburg" series in the South African Ladies Journal. Marcella died in 1926. In 1917, the 15-year-old Park Town School (PTS) took over the house and for the next 40 years the halls and passages echoed with the voices of red-coated school boys. Many famous South Africans attended PTS, including Sir Harry OPPENHEIMER. The house accommodated 62 boarders and 15 day boys. Economic pressures forced the closure of the school in 1957. Two years later, AECI purchased the then neglected building and most of land, and restored it to its original glory. They used it as their training centre for 40 years. It then became the premises of Dorothy Van't Riet Design & Décor Consultants, and Dorothy Van't Riet Design Academy. Now known as Mountain View, the estate has views from Johannesburg International Airport in the East to the edge of Krugersdorp in the West. The Northern view includes the Magaliesberg and Witwatersberg mountain ranges and the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria. The Iscor furnaces and the lights of Pretoria are easily seen on a clear night.

OLD CITY HALL RESTORED

Kroonstad Business and Tourism (KB&T) will be moving into the Old City Hall which will become the tourism information centre. The old stately building will be renovated. KB&T has developed a database of tourism-related events and places in and around Kroonstad. For more info contact KB&T at 082-552-5471.

SEAVIEW HOTEL GONE

The old Seaview Hotel in Port Elizabeth will be replaced by a R300-million development that includes a five-star hotel and about 100 apartments. The hotel was bought by the Kat Leisure Group for R15,4-million at an auction in June 2007. The hotel is older than 60 years, so the company has applied to SAHRA to have some parts demolished. While the hotel stands vacant, thieves have stripped it of copper pipes, windows, glass, corrugated sheets and bathtubs. The inside is smelly from human waste and stagnant rain water. Before Kat Leisure bought the hotel, the property had been on the market for two years. A Dutch national, Bob DE RONDE, bought the hotel in 2002, but ill health forced him to close in 2007. Built more than 70 years ago, the Seaview Hotel was a popular venue for lavish banquets, weddings and dinner dances. It was built for Sir Lewis RICHARDSON who died two years before its completion in 1935.

CAPE TOWN'S RENOVATION PLANS

The City of Cape Town has a number of major renovation projects on the go or in the planning stages for various city landmarks. There is a proposed R40-million plan to restore its crumbling City Hall, and turn it into a public centre for music and cultural productions. The plan was developed by the city, the Cape Town Partnership (CTP) and the Cape Town Heritage Trust (CTHT), and calls for the establishment of a section 21 non-profit company to manage the restoration of the building. The section 21 company would raise the funds from donors and bank loans.

Another project is the re-development of the Sacks Futeran buildings in Buitenkant Street. The five buildings have been bought by the District Six Museum, which intends spending about R25 million on them in the next two years. Plans include a theatre, a restaurant, a shop, and archiving the museum's collections. The Museum is seeking funding partners.

Greenmarket Square will get a multi-million-rand facelift in time for its 300th anniversary on 10 March 2010. The square has played a significant role in the city's history since the late 17th century when it was used as a trading area. Plans include making the Square pedestrian-friendly, widening of the Shortmarket Street sidewalk, upgrading of the ablution block, construction of a concert stage, reconfiguration of the informal trading areas, and moves to link it to the 2010 soccer World Cup fan mile. Heritage features such as a slave memorial and original water pump are also being considered.

Property developments in and around the Greenmarket Square precinct have boomed in recent years. Eurocape Holdings, the largest foreign investor in Cape Town's CBD with its R1 billion Mandela Rhodes Place development, and the Indian Hotels Company, Asia's largest hotel group, are investing R300 million in the development of the Taj Palace Hotel, a five-star luxury hotel on the corner of St George's Mall and Wale Street. The hotel will form part of what is to be called the Cathedral Precinct, linking the Company's Garden with St George's Mall and Greenmarket Square. Vunani Properties, another major investor, has launched a jewellery mall off Greenmarket Square.

ANOTHER HERITAGE BUILDING LOST

The old Rand Steam Laundries buildings on the corner of Barry Hertzog Avenue and Napier Road in Richmond, Johannesburg were demolished in January 2008, even though they were protected under the Provincial Heritage Resources Authority of Gauteng (PHRAG). The four-acre site was where Rand Steam started in 1902. They were the oldest remaining laundry buildings in Johannesburg, some dating back to 1896. The site consisted of a village with cottages for employees; a blacksmith and farrier who maintained the carts used to collect and deliver laundry; and a soap-making section. The last remaining cottages have been stripped of doors and inner walls. The site was bought by Imperial Group in March 2006. The buildings were protected in terms of two provisions of the National Heritage Resources Act (NHRA):

- Section 34(i) that prohibits alterations or the demolition of any structure older than 60 years without a permit to do so from the PHRAG
- Section 27 whereby the structures were provisionally declared a provincial heritage site which also requires a permit to alter or demolish structures within the proclaimed area

The NHRA provides for penalties when the protection is contravened. The penalty for demolishing a heritage site is "a fine or imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years or both such fine and imprisonment". In 2006 architect Justus VAN DER HOVEN was fined R300 000 for demolishing an Art Deco building, Dudley Court, in Parktown North. He also received a five-year suspended sentence, but the building was already lost and this type of punishment does not seem to deter others.

According to Dean MERREDEW, a property consultant with Imperial, a demolition permit was obtained and sent to PHRAG in November 2007, along with an engineer's report stating that the site was a health hazard. According to him, there was no answer from PHRAG. Hubert BRODY, chief executive of Imperial, said the company believed it acted lawfully and had obtained a demolition order from the council. He said the order was given "in the interest of public safety" and called for demolition within 15 days of issue or to appoint a structural engineer to make a recommendation. He said a firm of structural engineers was consulted. The firm "strongly" recommended demolition of the building. A statement issued by Imperial stated that "our people did not give adequate regard to the possible historic and cultural considerations regarding the property. We apologise unreservedly for this error of judgement".

Shortly after Imperial bought the site, Flo BIRD of the Parktown & Westcliff Heritage Trust (PWHT), requested that the site be provisionally protected. This was done and notice was given in the Provincial Gazette of 20 September 2006. PHRAG was planning to declare the site a permanent heritage site. According to MERREDEW the first Imperial heard of this protection was when PHRAG sent a notice to them in October 2007, asking them for comment on the change from provisional protection to permanent protection. Imperial objected, claiming that the site was barren. In October 2006, John CARSTENS, MD of Imperial, said the company was in the process of applying for rezoning of the site from residential to a motor dealership site. He indicated he was not averse to the protection the site had been given. In terms of this protection, Imperial would have to undertake a heritage impact assessment. Demolition may not take place without a heritage survey. This survey records the social history of the site, the date of construction and the architect, and the history of the buildings.

A protest was held on 7 February 2008, organised by the PWHT , the Parktown Association (PA) and other heritage pressure groups. By law, no more than 15 people at a time were allowed to hold the protest banner and demonstrate, so the 150 protestors of all ages and races took it in 15 minute turns to man the protest. John CARSTENS resigned from Imperial and will be leaving in July.

Rand Steam Laundries and Cleaning and Dyeing Works came into existence in July 1902 when Palace Steam Laundries (originally Auckland Park Steam Laundry, revived in 1898 as Palace Steam Laundry) and the Crystal Spring / American Laundry amalgamated. The American Laundry was in financial difficulty. Frank Oscar NELSON, owner of Palace Steam Laundry, was a major shareholder in American prior to the amalgamation. He was a laundry man from Chicago and is said to have opened the first steam laundry at the Robinson Mine. He built a large twin-gabled, double-storey house, designed by Bertram AVERY, on the Rand Steam Laundries site. Rand Steam Laundries became the biggest laundry operation in South Africa. The Union Castle shipping line sent its laundry to them every week by rail. By 1910, Rand Steam Laundries had 13 branches on the Reef and employed 33 delivery vans. The AMOILS family owned the property from 1946 until it closed in 1962. Since then, the property has been used by a number of light industrial companies.

Laundries back then were generally known as steam laundries. Steam entered the title when machinery began to be used for washing and ironing, and these machines were powered by a steam engine.

Sources:
Studies in the Social and Economic History of the Witwatersrand 1886-1914; by Charles van Onselen; Ravan Press, 1982
Parktown & Westcliff Heritage Trust