When we visited the Eastern Cape in 2013 we were very sad to see the state of Grahamstown's second oldest building - the Old Gaol (pic above). There has been talk for some time of millions being invested and SAHRA using the site as a flagship heritage training facility. We certainly hope these plans come to fruition quickly. While digging in the archives we come across this short but fascinating piece on the restoration of the Old Gaol in 1984. It appeared in Gordon, Verhoef & Krause's magazine called Finesse. We hope it won't be long before restoration work begins again...
Until vacated in 1975, the old Grahamstown Gaol was the oldest functioning prison in South Africa. After the last prisoner left, the Gaol attracted the attention of other criminals, thieves who stole the lead riding from the roof. Today the Gaol is receiving the attention of Gordon Verhoef & Krause who are undertaking the restoration of the gaol.
The Gaol, built in 1824 is of great historic interest in the architectural history of the Eastern Cape Frontier. It is the second oldest public building in the City of Grahamstown. The oldest is the small Gaol situated in High Street which is a National Monument. The small Gaol was found to be inadequate by Landrost H. Rivers in 1822 when he chose Grahamstown as the chief administrative centre for the newly formed district of Albany. The Governor of the Cape Lord Charles Somerset, agreed to the construction of a new Gaol which cost 70 000 Rix Dollars...
