Traces of 18th and early 19th century routes and settlements, and scattered farmsteads, can still be found, but since the 1960s, when the Vernacs first travelled these roads, there has been almost total loss of the more fragile buildings constructed of reeds and unbaked clay that were typical of the region. (See VASSA Journal 23 [...]
Archive | Excursions RSS feed for this section
Excursion – October 2008: Matjesfontein & Tierhoek
The first white settler to farm at Groenrivier was Nicolaas Loubser who registered the place in 17421. His son, Nicolaas Hendrik, was a wealthy farmer and a hospitable host to Carl Peter Thunberg, Francis Masson and Robert Jacob Gordon amongst others. Gordon mentions Groenrivier as being the farm of “Losper “when he travelled past on [...]
Read full story · Comments are closed
Excursion – October 2005: The Koue Bokkeveld
The area known as the Bokkeveld, (from the vast herds of Springbok that migrated through in early times) was first permanently by settled by VOC colonists around 1730. Most of the first farmers were from the ‘t land van Waveren that later became known as the Tulbach Valley. The Bokkeveld was divided into two areas [...]
Read full story · Comments are closed
Excursion – September 2003: The Sandveld & Clanwilliam
The painting on front page “A View of the Long Valley” is from Paterson’s Cape Travels, who probably passed here three times in 1779.
The viewpoint where the artist sat (to the east of the road between Sandfontein and Brandenburg) has been determined, but the building no longer exists.
Read full story · Comments are closed
