Port Elizabeth

We have now lost not one, but two buildings along our Donkin heritage trail in Port Elizabeth. A sad week for tourism in PE. These documents of the past are gone, especially when seen in relation to number 7 Castle Hill museum, a provincial heritage site.

Until last month, Castle Hill contained a core of original buildings dating from 1831 to the 1850’s; the parsonage of Rev Francis McCleland (No. 7 Castle Hill - 1831), Sterley Cottages (No’s 10 and 12) and Jarvis House (Malbador). “Malbador”, as it is now known, was built for Alfred Jarvis, a well-known businessman, around 1848/49. He came from Northampton, England, and was in Port Elizabeth by 1833 and in 1838 he married Sarah Smith in St. Mary’s Church and there were 5 children. He was in partnership with Benjamin Norden and a founder of the PE Bank.

Sketch of Jarvis House circa 1880

Jarvis purchased two pieces of land from Rev. Francis McCleland and transferred to him in July of 1847 one on which he built his house (no 9) and the other piece of land being the corner of the former Garrison Company’s garden in Bird Street, next to the vlei. Jarvis left the city in 1859 and died in 1869.

The house was very prominent at the top of Castle Hill. In that period it was...

Does anyone remember Pyott Biscuits? They were the makers of Salticrax, Romany Creams, Iced Zoo and many other SA favourites. Today they’re all branded under the Bakers label and the Pyott name has largely been forgotten.

John Pyott arrived in Port Elizabeth from Scotland in 1882 and opened up a grocery store and bakery in Princess Street, which at the time was a continuation of Main Street. He then moved his business to Elizabeth Street and married Annie Mahaffey in 1884. The main image is the earliest known photograph of his humble beginnings.

In his book “John Pyott: 1862 – 1947”, JS Bennie says that soon after Pyott married, the country was gripped by “gold fever” and he decided to go to the Witwatersrand to “see if there was any future for him there.” He travelled to Durban by boat and bought a horse to take him to the gold fields, and on the way he came across another traveller on a “Cape Cart” with a lame horse. He offered the Dutch gentleman the use of his horse in return for a ride in the cart, and “with alacrity this was accepted. John Pyott’s companion turned out to be none other than Paul Kruger!” But when Pyott saw how rough life was on the gold fields in Barberton and Johannesburg, he decided that it was no place for his wife and their small baby and he returned to Port Elizabeth.

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In a recent article published by the author (click here to view), reference was made to a modern photographic phenomenon, namely “found photographs”. In short: “Found photographs” are discarded vintage photographs typically found at charity stores, car boot sales, flea markets or antique fairs. As a single image, any “found” or the converse thereof, “lost” photograph, has sadly lost its original context when viewed by a total stranger who would have no context to the photograph. A different context can however be provided again when “lost” images are clustered together into a theme, such as the one presented in this article.

This article focuses solely on the pavement photographs taken on South African streets prior to the 1970s. At a recent antique fair, the author obtained a discarded photo album, containing several pavement photographs.

Two elegant ladies walking down a street in Durban. They can clearly be seen “courting” the camera.

Two young ladies walking down a street in Johannesburg. They both seem somewhat...

Below is Part 3 of Mel Baker's extraordinary account of being a Prisoner of War during World War II. Click here to read Part 2 and here to download the full account including detailed footnotes. The photo above shows the main gate of Stalag XVIII A (Prisoner of War Camp in Southern Austria).

Leaving Wernersdorf

Two weeks before Christmas 1944 we were informed that we were leaving Wernersdorf the next day. No indication as to where we were going. We were not at all happy about the fact of leaving and also the timing, as we had sorted out all our meals and drinks for Christmas. Lex had made beautiful menus for each of us with items like plum pudding a la (name of a farm). He had drawn army and naval crests at the top of the menu (although the naval one had a crown instead of ships). We even had a bottle of schnapps - that we drank the day of leaving.

The evening before leaving, I visited my girlfriend Paula for the last time to say goodbye.

On the day we were leaving I went to the Windischbauer and got him to let us use the horses and the wagon to take our kit to Wies. While making this arrangement, he gave me a farewell sample of schnapps.

We left with very mixed feelings. After three years in Wernersdorf, we had got ourselves very well organised and were probably in the best situation that a prisoner of...

Below is an absorbing and practical article looking at lettering on buildings. It was compiled by Dennis Radford for the October 1988 edition of Restorica, the journal of the Simon van der Stel Foundation (today the Heritage Association of South Africa). Thank you to the University of Pretoria (copyright holders) for giving us permission to publish.

Most Victorian signage in this country has been obliterated as, even if the building is still standing in a more or less intact condition, its owners have changed, products and services provided change and, most importantly, fashions change. All these have led directly to the destruction of historical signage. In restoration work even if the original signage is not to be restored some form of signage will usually be necessary and it follows then that it should be as authentic in its nature as possible. Beyond this it is also arguable that new signage on infill buildings in a conservation area should conform to a traditional layout and character. Most of what follows applies primarily to commercial and public buildings as signage on private houses was usually limited to numbers.

Historical Background

In the early 19th Century the Eastern Province was settled primarily by settlers of British stock. The initial 4 000 arriving in 1820 and 5 000 more coming between then and 1851. These people settled mostly in the towns and villages as artisans and merchants and it is they who would have required the services of a signwriter most to advertise their services and wares...

One of the most striking buildings in Port Elizabeth is the famous Campanile. In the article below, Tennyson Smith Bodill reveals the history behind the creation of this remarkable structure. The piece was originally published in the April 1989 edition of Restorica, the journal of the Simon van der Stel Foundation (today the Heritage Association of South Africa). Thank you to the University of Pretoria (copyright holders) for giving us permission to publish.

South Africa boasts an impressive number of great buildings from most periods of the country's history. It also has many lesser known, but rewarding, examples of regional and vernacular architecture. Situated in Port Elizabeth, the Campanile, which is an adaptation of Florentine architecture, is a worthy contribution to our nation's architectural heritage.

Campanile (The Heritage Portal)

Observing the structure in its original concept and siting, one is struck by its dramatic form - dominating the entrance to the city when approached from the sea. When newly completed, the concept related well to the city which has a mixture of various forms of civic and commercial architecture, interspersed with warehouses.

The first proposal for a memorial tower to commemorate the landing of the British Settlers of 1820, was made in 1904 by the Reverend Alfred E Hall, minister of the Queen Street Baptist Church. At...

In 1996 the Christian Science Church in Port Elizabeth was illegally demolished. City Councillor Rory Riorden was furious and penned an article for Restorica which we have republished below. Restorica was the journal of the Simon van der Stel Foundation (today the Heritage Association of South Africa). Thank you to the University of Pretoria (copyright holders) for giving us permission to publish.

The demolisher of the [Christian Science Church] in Port Elizabeth will face charges under the National Monuments Act in May this year, for failing to obtain a demolition permit.

Demolition of the building designed by the late Herbert MacWilliams took place while a NMC meeting was in progress to declare it a national monument. The developer was well aware of the architectural importance of the building - it was the only church building in the country designed in the so-called Californian style - but ignored requests to preserve the facade in any new development. 

Demolition in progress (Carlie Norval)

The destruction of the facade of the [Christian Science Church] in Park Drive, Port Elizabeth, was an act of utter barbarism. One can explain it away in a hundred ways: The church had gone unsold for years, and nobody could make a development work while maintaining the complex and difficulty sited facade; the land was now worth much...

The following article on the history of the Port Elizabeth Railway Station was originally published in the October 1986 edition of Restorica, the journal of the Simon van der Stel Foundation (today the Heritage Association of South Africa). It formed part of a larger piece titled "The coming of the Railway to the Cape". Thank you to the University of Pretoria (copyright holders) for giving us permission to publish.

The aesthetic appearance and the functional lay-out of passenger stations in the longer established cities in Europe became a new challenge to architects and civil engineers alike in the last century. Passenger termini are composed essentially of two elements, firstly the platforms and railtracks in the arrival and departure hall and secondly the station entrance building, in which the booking hall, waiting rooms, baggage room, buffet, restaurant and shops are normally all situated at ground level. This is a convenient arrangement for passengers and staff, providing quick and easy movement between the platforms and the facilities in the entrance building.

The first major railway terminal in South Africa was completed in Cape Town in 1878, fifteen years after the railway to Wellington had been opened. It was designed by Mr A.W. Ackerman, architect and civil engineer, who had arrived at the Cape from England in 1875. He had left the Government Service in 1878 to start his own practice in Cape Town. The station, designed in the Victorian style of the period, served the public for more than eighty years, only being replaced...

A few years ago we were involved in a battle to save historic Nedbank documents that were being thrown away by the company. For a while the future of the documents looked bleak but thankfully the story had a happy ending when top Nedbank executives got involved. The documents were moved to the Sandton head office and the execs committed to hire an archivist to go through the collection.

During the early stages of the saga we found an old booklet compiled to celebrate Nedbank's 50th birthday (1938). The publication contained photographs of a number of Nedbank branches which we have reproduced below.

Benoni Branch

Bloemfontein Branch

Durban Branch

East London Branch (main image as well)

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It is hard to imagine that the magnificent Port Elizabeth City Hall was almost demolished. The article below, first published in the Evening Post in January 1973, describes a meeting organised by the Port Elizabeth Historical Society where arguments on both sides of the preservation versus development debate were presented. We stumbled across the article in Bulletin, the old journal of the Simon van der Stel Foundation (today the Heritage Association of South Africa).

The director of the Simon van der Stel Foundation, Dr. W. Punt warned recently that if the historic 110-year old City Hall was demolished the importance of the city’s central area would decline.

Addressing a meeting called by the Port Elizabeth Historical Society and attended by about 120 people, Dr Punt, pleading for the preservation of the building, said the City Hall was part of our heritage, not only of Port Elizabeth but of South Africa.

The meeting decided, in spite of several speakers opposing the retention of the building, to ask the National Monuments Commission to investigate declaring the City Hall a national monument.

This was decided by a show of hands and without a count. But it was obvious the majority favoured preservation.

Port Elizabeth City Hall (The Heritage Portal)

Respect for the past

“Tradition speaks to all of us. It is tradition...