The Cape Country Meander is steeped in history, although few would know it just by passing through. History and culture is so ingrained into life on the Meander that historical gems may pop up when you least expect them. From old ox wagon ruts to historical buildings and mills, and the stories of families who have lived along The Cape Country Meander for generations.
Did you know that it was the land of hunters and gatherers before Dutch settlers landed on the Cape's shores and managed to make their way "over de berg".
What is now Sir Lowry's Pass was initially a path used by eland antelope to get over the Hottentots Holland mountains. The Khoisan then claimed the path as they travelled between coast and country, and eventually in the 1600s the Dutch began to use this same route with their ox wagons.
Today, the Old Cape Wagon Route is still visible along the Meander and can be used to follow the trading route of the settlers from Lindeshof to Riviersonderend.
The Cape Country Meander boasts two noteworthy "firsts" for the country from this era:The Houw Hoek Inn is South Africa's oldest hotel - it was a stop on the Old Wagon Route monitored by a tollgate. Genadendal was home to the country's first mission station and teachers' training college in the 1800s.
Each town has its own distinct reputation
During the time of the settler's community clusters and farmlands started popping up, which, over hundreds of years, have become the towns along The Cape Country Meander. Each town has its own distinct reputation for being. Elgin was made famous for its apple and pear farms, Botrivier began its life as a staging post, Caledon was known for wheat farming and its hot springs, Riviersonderend is still known as a refuelling station to this day, Greyton was the first freehold agricultural village in South Africa where anyone was allowed to buy land and owned it in its entirety, Genadendal was the first mission station in South Africa, Villiersdorp was intended as a mission station but started as a village called De Villiersdorp, and Tesselaarsdal is a farming village that centuries forgot.
Some remarkable pioneers along the route go back hundreds of years:
- In the mid-1960s, Edmond Lombardi, the owner of Applethwaite Farm, produced the soft drink "Appletiser" - a preservative-free, sparkling apple juice that has conquered the world market.
- Pieter de Villiers bought a property in what was to become De Villierdorp in 1834. He and his family essentially founded what is now Villiersdorp.
- The Moravian missionary, George Schmidt, laid the foundation for education and industrial development that set Genadendal apart from other villages in the Cape, due to his teaching the Khoi people.
- Herbert Vigne became the most successful property developer in the Cape Colony after subdividing a portion of his farm, "Weltevreden", into plots for cultivation and selling them off to establish a town called Greyton. These erfs were available to buyers of any colour, nationality or religion at affordable prices that provided full title deeds.
Notable people in recent times include:
- Errol Tobias: South Africa's first black Springbok rugby player, 10 years before the country's first democratic elections in 1994.Tobias was born and bred in Caledon.
- Peter Clarke: One of South Africa's best-known artists is linked to Tesselaarsdal where he spent several months each year from 1956 to 1960 sketching, painting and writing.
- Samuel Baatjes: Educational officer of the Genadendal Museum, can tell you absolutely anything you would like to know about Genadendal and the surrounding area from its earliest beginnings.
- Andy Selfe: Has restored the historic mill at Beaumont (once Compagnes Drift Farm) and now operates it to make limited quantities of stoneground flour. The mill was built in the 1800s and is powered entirely by water from the Jakkals River that runs through the farm.
Discover a fascinating history and the stories of interesting people on your next holiday to The Cape Country Meander.
