Iâm an Afrikaans novelist working on a book partially set in the Free State gold fields, where I grew up. One of the homes my family lived in, was the Managerâs residence of the cement factory White's Portland Cement Company. The house was aptly named âPortland Houseâ.
Situated 2km outside the town of Hennenman, our house was a grand old lady on a sprawling erf of at least two acres, complete with outbuildings and a tennis court, at the very edge of the factoryâs residential area.
At the time, oral history maintained that the dwelling was designed by Sir Herbert Baker, and of course this has been my belief my entire life. I remember vividly the many nooks and crannies of that magical old place, having lived there between the ages of 7 and 11. The grid in the fireplace had the year 1914 engraved on it. But now that I want to verify the architect of Portland House for the purposes of my novel, I canât find any proof on the internet.
Iâm attaching photos. All except the first one were taken by me on a visit to Hennenman in 2012. Iâd sincerely appreciate any information that could speed up my research.
Zelda Bezuidenhout | dougalbones@gmail.com
