Tshwane

Dikgang Moseneke's (judge and a former deputy Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court) schooling fate was preordained. At the beginning of 1961, just after he had turned thirteen, he stepped up to the plate to be the third generation of family devotees to attend school at Kilnerton Training Institution. How could it be otherwise? Going to Kilnerton had been an immutable feature of the Moseneke family's heritage. Nearly sixty years earlier, his grandfather Samuel Dikgang Moseneke was nurtured there. After him, his two sons, Sydney and Rogers qualified as teachers at Kilnerton. Dikgang's father and two of his younger sisters, Moipone and Masikwane, also matriculated at Kilnerton.

Kilnerton Training Institution was established in 1886 at the foot of a small, idyllic, rocky hill on the farm Koedoespoort, near Silverton in Tshwane. The hill lent itself to being a natural Southern boundary of the farm. At the highest point of the hill stood a chapel with stone walls. The chapel was core to the ethos of the missionary institution. Between the railway line and the western perimeter of the farm ran a clear stream on a stony riverbed. Along the eastern border was the main road between the city centre and Silverton, a white working-class neighborhood, and further eastwards along the same road lay Mamelodi township.

Old photo of Kilnerton Chapel

Kilnerton was founded by the Reverend George...

1. Introduction

During the early commercially embryonic era of photography, photographers from all over the world attempted to generate an income from this new art form. Many aspirational photographers arrived and settled in South Africa from countries such as Ireland, England, Australia, Switzerland, Holland, Latvia and Germany, to mention but a few. 

About his experience in South Africa, one unknown photographer later stated the following in the London based The Photographic News on 16 November 1877: “If I am asked how I like South Africa, and answer truly, I say it is a most miserable, barren place, destitute of all comforts, and utterly unsuitable for Englishmen to live in; on the other hand, the people are genuinely kind and friendly. Money is easier made, and for a sober man, there is no fear of starving, as there is in England” (Africana Notes & News, 1972). It is assumed that the reference to money to be made, refers to photography as a profession.

The purpose of this article is to provide a register of photographers active in Pretoria between 1855 and 1915, with brief background information on each where available. It needs to be noted though that no photographic activity has been recorded during the first 15 years of Pretoria’s existence. Photographers only started showing interest in Pretoria from the 1870s onwards.

This register of photographers is by no means complete and refinement of the register will continue. Occasionally a photograph by a previously unidentified photographer may surface in private or...

During Pretoria’s first 20 years of existence it had no public parks. The only spaces accessible to the public at the time were the Church and Market squares.

As early as 1874, the space where Burgers Park is located today, was allocated to become Pretoria’s first botanical garden.

Today a declared heritage site, the park was only officially named Burgers Park during 1894.  

The first 10 years (1874 to 1884)

During 1874, the then ZAR president Burgers followed through on Preller’s proposal from 3 years earlier for Pretoria to establish a botanical garden by presenting this proposal to his Volksraad (House of Assembly). This proposal was approved on 8 October 1874. The Volksraad in turn offered 18 stands in Pretoria for this purpose. These stands were based between Jacob Maré, van der Walt and St. Andries Street (Renamed to Jeff Masemola, Lilian Ngoyi and Thabo Sehume Streets respectively).

Picture postcard circa 1905 showing St. Andries Street, looking north, with the park on the left hand side. The fence seems to be a wooden structure and maybe the same fence erected by Bourke & co during 1896. Card published by Braune & Levy.

Other than the donation of these...

Rudolf Gottfried Steger was born in Germany on 11 March 1871. He left his country of birth aged 10 to attend school in Switzerland and then went on to complete four years of religious studies in Rome. Whilst in Switzerland, he also trained as a medical assistant at the Red Cross in Geneva – a skill that would later come in handy.

Steger arrived in South Africa during 1894 and became a naturalised burger (citizen) whilst based in Paarl during 1896. He established his first studio in Pretoria during 1898 aged 27.

During his 21-year photographic activity in Pretoria, Steger seems to have been based at five different studios, namely Schoeman, Koch, Pretorius, 201 Church and 333 Market Streets. Steger also reproduced many old photographs previously taken of Pretoria.

Nachtmaal on the Church Square at Pretoria during 1893. An example of a reproduced photograph by Steger. It is not clear who the initial photographer was – It would not have been Steger.

Steger was one of several photographers who competed to photograph President Kruger. During May 1900, Steger submitted a £3 invoice for 2 dozen cabinet format photographs he took of President Kruger. The author has not come across any of these photographs to date. From Steger’s letters...

During the restoration of the Pretoria Railway Station in the early 2000s, a swastika was found in the plasterwork above the clocktower. In the article below, originally published on the Brand South Africa website on 19 March 2002, Lucille Davie unpacks some of the theories behind the Swastika. She also takes an in depth look at the restoration process. Click here to view more of Davie's work.

Renowned British architect Herbert Baker, when designing the Pretoria Station 92 years ago, had a swastika inserted into the plasterwork above the clock in the tower, erected in the centre of the roof of the gracious building.

This building was completed in 1910, but most of us associate the swastika with Nazi Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, so what’s this all about?

There are conflicting views as to how Baker’s swastika – albeit a straight-up swastika instead of a tilted Nazi swastika - ended up above the clock in the building. One view says that Baker was fascinated by symbols, but they appeared more in his writings than in his buildings. Another says that what was originally intended for the building - a tableaux of a man, woman, elderly woman and child – didn't make it to the building, with a suggestion that money or time constraints led to the swastika replacing this symbol. Instead this tableaux ended up on Baker’s Union Buildings in Pretoria instead, completed in 1913.

Still another view says that the four arms of the swastika were chosen to represent the...

Historians, researchers and collectors often come across situations of surviving family members having thrown away or having destroyed historical family documents and photographs as they may either have no sentimental interest or simply cannot relate to their relative’s historical past. Sadly, in these instances, no thought is given to donating such documentation / items to charity organisations where researchers and collectors in turn can “scratch” out relevant material to record potential significant historical information that may be contained therein.

The author was given a box containing a variety of documentation some two years ago, the content of which all relates to a young man, Gerardus Bodde, dating from between 1911 and 1918.

This box, containing photographs, letters, certificates, newspaper and magazine cuttings, was picked up at a Johannesburg rubbish dump some 20 years ago, and retained with the intention of conducting research – a task the author gladly accepted when the find was brought to his attention. Accolades to the couple who had the intuition and foresight to comprehend the potential historical value of the content of the box.

Stories such as these are always strengthened where photographs are included. If there were no photographs included in the box, the author himself would probably not have been “attracted” to the content in any way. 

Some 85% of the information contained in this article was extracted from the content of the box whilst the remaining 15% was obtained from the South African National Archives or the author’s own photographic research collection (one picture postcard).

Gerardus Bodde, a first...

In the wonderful article below, Raymond Smith takes the reader on a journey to six iconic sites in Pretoria: the Union Buildings, Church Square, Unisa, Freedom Park, //hapo Museum and Marabastad. He describes the experience as a 'peripatetic walk contemplating diversity, dislocation, overlap and cohesion within an urban environment strained under its conflicting past, yet bravely attempting to respond to contemporary demands with varying degrees of success'.

A colleague from Durban and I had to travel to Tshwane/Pretoria for a workshop on Museums and Cultural Landscapes. The keynote address was delivered by Dr Webber Ndoro representing the African World Heritage Trust. His audience was members of ICOM and ICOMOS-SA and his paper observed the developments and challenges of museums in Africa and pointed out the successes and failures of the institution within the various cultural contexts. For me the most important remark he made (to a small audience) was that Africa is not a homogeneous entity and that those who refer to Africa as though one country sharing one value system are mistaken. I would like to take his comment further, by commenting that South Africa is not homogeneous and neither are the various communities within this land. This is an important observation, as to think otherwise could lead to assumptions about communities and create unfounded perceptions which polarizes a society.

My colleague (whom I shall refer to as Athos) and I landed at OR Tambo airport the day before the workshop started with the intention to explore the city after not having visited it...

In 2014 The Heritage Portal Team visited Irene and were taken on an emotional tour of the Concentration Camp Cemetery. Below are a few historical details of the camp courtesy of the Centurion Heritage Society.

The Irene concentration camp was opened on 2 November 1900. The population of the camp increased rapidly and refugees were housed in tents under extremely poor conditions.

Often hundreds of families would be ‘dumped’ by train at the camp, sometimes without prior arrangements to provide for their arrival. The only possessions these people had were the clothes they wore and occasionally a few valuables, which they could carry.

There were often not enough tents to accommodate everyone. In some cases up to 20 people were housed in a 6-sleeper tent. Rations were at all times insufficient. A weekly ration consisted of 7lb flour, 4oz salt, 6oz coffee and 12oz sugar. Children received half of this. Milk, fresh fruit and vegetables, soap, candles and toiletry were scarce and only provided when the camp doctor prescribed it as a ‘medical comfort’. These rations represented approximately 29% of the calorie requirements of an adult and only 15% of that for a child. Meat was not often available, and the families of fighting commando members received nothing.

The Camp Cemetery

Piles of rock indicated the original graves. Only some of these had tombstones. Over the years some of the tombstones were removed and some were lying around. As a consequence most of the graves could not be identified. The British authorities numbered...

A coalition of Tshwane organisations* has written to the Provincial Heritage Resources Authority Gauteng (PHRAG) objecting to the current reconstruction of the perimeter wall at the Pretoria Indian High Commission (Arkleton). The coalition argues that all work should be halted immediately until ‘historically accurate design documentation and specifications are provided, scrutinised and approved’.

In May and June 2016 there was a loud public outcry over the demolition of the historically and architecturally significant perimeter wall. A number of newspaper articles appeared and a series of letters was sent to the PHRAG and heritage consultant by concerned parties. Despite the uproar, demolition continued and a new wall with little resemblance to the old emerged. Local heritage groups have been left feeling angry, frustrated and disappointed that the system designed to protect our heritage has allowed this to happen.

The coalition of organisations believes that the wall was eminently suited for restoration 'using conservation principles and structural engineering solutions'. Despite promises of restoration made by the contractor, the reality has proved to be very different. The before and after photographs below reveal a very sad loss of Tshwane's built environment heritage. The photographs and notes are courtesy of the Old Pretoria East Residents' and Ratepayers' Alliance (OPERRA)

Before 

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In the article below, Graham Dominy highlights a number of heritage battles currently raging across Tshwane. The battles reveal many of the issues that continue to plague the heritage sector. Thank you to the editors of the Arcadian for giving us permission to republish.

The Old Pretoria central area of Tshwane is home to some of the most important architectural heritage in South Africa. The most visible of the buildings are the Union Buildings, set in Sir Herbert Baker’s beautifully terraced gardens. However, there are other important public buildings including the City Hall; there are churches (designed by both Baker and Gerard Moerdijk); schools, university buildings and ordinary homes. Sometimes it seems that they are all under attack, by developers, politicians, careless officials and planners who see the preservation of heritage as an obstacle to their grandiose visions. The developers mantra is that they are implementing the government’s densification policy which they like because it helps them turn a quick profit. Very little effort is made to relate this policy to the urban context in which it must be implemented unless there is public pressure.

The Old Pretoria East areas of Arcadia, Brooklyn, Clydesdale and Sunnyside East are under unremitting pressure from developers. The densification policy and the need for student accommodation at the University of Pretoria are used as excuses to destroy homes and dwellings with heritage value and to replace them with blocks and blocks of near-dormitory style dwellings for students. Even the university has woken up to the...