Mission Stations - T
TABA MOSEGU, Transvaal: Bn 1880
TABASE, Umtata, Cape: Mor 1873; MorG 1914
TABLE MOUNTAIN, Pietermaritzburg, Natal: ABCFM c1851
TAFELEHASHE, Cape: No data available
TAHLWATI, Natal: see ANNESDALE, Natal
TAMAKHA, also spelt TAMAKA, also known as DUSHANE'S TRIBE, Cape: WMS1843
TAMBOEKIELAND, Cape: see KIRKWOOD, Cape
TARKA, Tarkastad, Cape: UPCM
TARKASTADT, Cape: UFS 1869; PCSA 1897; DGT; UPCM. Located in Tarkastad Village.
TASWANA, Bizana, Cape: No data available
TAUNGS, also spelt TUANG, Cape: LMS 1868. Emil Holub visited it in 1873 and recorded the following:
"Without pausing in the native quarter, we proceeded to the mission-house, a stone building, with a gabled roof thatched with grass, standing in a nice little garden. On entering we found ourselves face to face with a gentleman about thirty years of age, with a long light beard. He looked at us at first with some surprise, especially at my friend F., who was carrying arms. He was the resident missionary, Mr Brown".
TEFGTE, Mount Currie, Cape: No data available
TEGATEGANAY, Lesotho: see TEYATEYANENG, Lesotho
TEKWINI, Port St Johns, Cape: No data available
TELAPI, Biggarsberg, Natal: WMS
TELEGAP, Umtata, Cape: No data available
TEMBA, Natal: Bn
TEMBA, Stutterheim, Cape: No data available
TEMBANI, Stutterheim, Cape: see NTEMBANI, Stutterheim, Cape
TEMBE, Mocambique: MSR 1898
TEMBENI, King William's Town, Cape: see THEMBENI, King William's Town, Cape
TEMBI, Stutterheim, Cape: see ITEMBI, Stutterheim, Cape
TEMBU, Cofimvaba, Cape: see WODEHOUSE FOREST, Cofimvaba, Cape
TENDE, Bizana, Cape: No data available
TEQWANI, also spelt TEGWANI and TEGWANE, Zimbabwe: WMMS
TEYATEYANENG, also spelt TEGATEGANAY, Lesotho: SPG
THABA BOSIGO, also spelt THABA BOSSIOU, Lesotho: P 1837; Rc. James Backhouse visited it in July 1839 and recorded the following:
"Thaba Bossiou signifies the Mountain of Night; the kraal of the Basutu Chief, Moshesh, and four others, are situated on the top, which is to them an impregnable fortress. The Missionary Station is elevated, but stands under the mountain. Thaba Bossiou is not only the name of the missionary station, but of the adjacent mountain, a portion of which, with the mission premises, is represented in the accompanying etching, in which the Witte Bergen, or Quathlamba Mountains are seen in the distance on the left. The mission-house was a long, plain, brick building, of five rooms, affording a moderate share of accommodation, but not at all more than was needful for health and reasonable comfort".
Casalis reported on missionary plans at Thaba Bossigo during the station's early days:
"Touching after this on the material side of our work, we said that, wishing to provide entirely for out own subsistence, we must have a site where we could build houses and cultivate the ground according to our own ideas and habits. Our buildings and plantations would also serve as a model for the Basutos, whom we regretted to see dwelling in huts, and living in a manner so precarious and so little worthy of the intelligence with which they were gifted. Thaba-Bossiou did not appear to us to offer the advantages which we desired. Wood for building was lacking in it. There were, moreover, no streams that we could turn from their course to help in various works, and especially to water certain very useful plants which we proposed to introduce into the country, and which could not, like sorgho and maize, support a long drought".
THABA CHITJA, Mount Fletcher, Cape: No data available
THABA MORENA, also spelt THABANA MORENA, Lesotho: P 1861
THABA 'NCHU, also spelt THABANCHU, OFS: SPG 1833; WMS. James Backhouse visited it in July 1839 and recorded the following:
"The Wesleyan settlement of Thaba Unchu, is situated near the foot of a mountain of that name, which signifies Mountain of Night. It is the largest assemblage of human habitations in this part of Africa: it comprises two large Barolong towns and a few smaller villages, scarcely separated from each other. The mission premises, comprising a house and chapel, are situated between the two towns.
“The chapel was built of raw brick and plastered; its form was that of a T, the top and shaft being each eighty feet long and thirty wide; it was calculated to hold about 1,000 persons. A school for adults was held daily, in a room in an unfinished house, that also accommodated printing apparatus, etc. The pupils varied from sixty to seventy.
In 1840 the Rev Willian Shaw visited Thaba 'Nchu and wrote this report, published subsequently by Samuel Broadbent:
"Thaba 'Nchu is the chief settlement of the Barolong tribe, with which Messrs Hodgosn, Broadbent, and Archbell, established our first Mission. This is now by far the largest town in British South Africa; there cannot be less than from eight to ten thousand inhabitants. The town has a very picturesque, but wild- African appearance. I was much pleased with the very extensive improvements made by the people, in the erection of stone walls around, in various parts of the town, forming excellent courtyards to their conical-shaped dwellings, most of which are kept very neat and clean".
Some years later, in 1862, the Rev William Impey also visited Thaba 'Nchu, and his report was similarly published by Samuel Broadbent:
"On Wednesday, May 7th, we reached Thaba 'Nchu, one of the most important Missions. On my last visit the population of this largest of South African towns was estimated at ten thousand; since then it has increased to probably twelve thousand. The town covers a large area; the houses are of a style much superior to that used by the frontier Kaffirs, and are all enclosed by substantial stone walls: the aggregate amount of wall is astonishing. The chapel is a large building capable of containing about fifteen hundred persons; it is out of repair, and will need a new roof".
THABA PATSOA, OFS: WMS
THAMARHA, King William's Town, Cape: No data available
THEMBENI, King William's Town, Cape: May have been the name of the mission at THAMARHA.
THEMBU, Cofimvaba, Cape: see WODEHOUSE FOREST, Cofimvaba, Cape
THEOPOLIS, Bathurst, Cape: LMS 1813. The site is today still known locally as Theopolis although the mission is recorded to have closed in 1851. John Campbell visited it in about 1819 and wrote the following:
"Another, founded by the Missionary Society, at Theopolis, near the mouth of the Cowie River, on lands granted to the Society by his Excellency, Sir John Cradock, then Governor of the Cape, from whom also it received its name.
"During the Caffre war this settlement was attacked three times by thousands of infuriated Caffres, who were repelled on each occasion; yet they nevertheless succeeded in carrying off upwards of a thousand head of cattle. In consequence of these repeated attacks, the (Khoikhoi), under the direction of the Missionary, Mr Ulbricht, (since dead,) raised with great labour a fortification, composed of strong palisades, eight or nine feet in height, and capable of containing the whole population, with their cattle. The sight of this fortification so discouraged the (Xhosa) that they did not venture to attack them any more.
"The lands of Theopolis, in the original grant, only extended down the valley to about a mile from the sea; but encouragement was given, both by Governor Cradock and Colonel Cuyler, the Landdrost of the district, to expect that afterwards this tract, lying between the former lands of Theopolis and the sea, should be added to the settlement, provided the (Khoikhoi) were industrious, and the number of their cattle so increased as to require more pasturage. While I was travelling in the interior, his Excellency Sir Rufane Shaw Donkin, acting Governor of the Cape, granted to Dr. Philip, for the Society, this land, which grant affording free access to the ocean, as well as more pasturage for the cattle, is likely to prove extremely beneficial to the settlement. It will operate as an inducement to the natives to pay more attention to fishing, for which they might find a regular market at Graham's Town, being only about eighteen miles distant from Theopolis.
"The greater part of the emigrants who lately left England for South Africa have settled in the vicinity of Theopolis, and to the north and NE parts of it. Upon the whole, that part of the colony is pleasant and well wooded and the soil rich, but it is difficult to lead water from the rivers upon the grounds for the purpose of irrigation, owing to the deepness of their channels. Without an artificial watering of the lands, the produce must be very scanty".
James Backhouse also visited it in April 1839 and recorded the following:
"At this time the population of Theopolis ranked low in comparison with the (Khoikhoi) of the other stations of the London Missionary Society, most of the more orderly and industrious families having removed to the Kat River. The (Mfengu) and (Tswana) residing here decidedly excelled the (Khoikhoi) in energy and industry. The (Khoikhoi) resided in cottages, most of which were much out of repair, and the (Mfengu) and (Tswana) in beehive-huts".
THE REST, Glen Grey, Cape: No data available
THE SPRING, Butterworth, Cape: see CROUCH'S, Butterworth, Cape. This may have been another name for the mission at MTHONJENI SPRING, located in the same area.
THEUNISSEN, OFS: DRCSAO 191O
THLOTSE HEIGHTS, also spelt THLOTSE and THLOTSI, Lesotho: SPG 1876. The Station was established by John Widdicombe in 1876. His book, published in 1895, carried various reports on his experiences there.
"A good deal of our time was spent in selecting grass nd reeds for thatching purposes. Supplies of these came in daily, but large quantities of the grass had to be rejected as either too short or too old for thatching. There was of necessity no fixed standard of price, and natives are shrewd hands at bargaining. This is especially the case with the women, and it was they who brought us most of our supplies ... our first hut was approaching completion, or rather was sufficiently advanced to be habitable, Ntoana having dragged barrel after barrel of water up from the fountain at the bottom of the hill and poured it upon the ground, saturating as far as he was able the spots where he intended to cut the sods he required.
"Towards the middle of November we took possession of our hut, though it was not yet properly beam-filled, and possessed neither door not window. The holes were there, but timber was not to be had in the neighbourhood, and we had to wait for both door and window until wood could be procured from Bethlehem, a Free State town about fifty miles to the north-west of us. But oh, the luxury of even doorless and windowless rondavel after our long sojourn in the bare and naked veldt! The wind might howl at night through the two apertures - and it did, though we hung blankets before them - we were snugly ensconced in our beds, with a roof over our heads, oblivious to rain or storm. By Christmas six of these round huts were finished, or at any rate sufficiently advanced for use. Each of them was twelve feet in diameter, and they comprised a dining-room, store-room, kitchen, and three bedrooms. We had thus a whole suite of apartments, or six detached residences, complete for little more than 60 pounds. And these poor rondavels, with certain small additions, were destined to last us nearly nine years, though certainly we had no idea of it when we built them.
"Before settling at Thlotse I had engaged a mason, a white man, from Ficksburg, the nearest Free State village, to build us a temporary chapel, school, and mission-room of raw brick. I had only £150 at my disposal to start with, and this had been most generously provided by the congregation of S Peter's, Eaton Square, London. Without their timely aid we should have been unable to build any place of worship at all. The building we erected was of necessity of the simplest kind, and the smallest possible dimensions. It was an oblong structure, plastered with mud, unceiled, and under a flat, galvanised iron roof. It was fifty-four feet long, and twelve broad, and was divided into three compartments separated from each other by a thin partition wall. It gave us a chapel twenty feet by twelve, a mission-room twelve feet by twelve, in which I could receive and converse with the numbers of heathen who still poured in daily to interview us, and a school-room the same size as the chapel. Except the cross on its gable, and possibly its small "carpenter's Gothic" windows, there was little or nothing about the exterior of such a building which marked it off as one devoted to religious worship. An accomplished ecclesiologist who came to visit us some time after-wards protested that I had "put up a ginger-beer shop", but as he did not offer to procure the funds wherewith to improve it, or still less to erect a more seemly and permanent church, his criticism did not distress me, true though it might be. Anyhow, our poor little "early Sesuto" house of worship was quite as ecclesiastical and "correct" in its style and tone as the great Capetown Cathedral (built, of course, long before the advent of Bishop Gray), which cost so much money that it was said of it that its bricks, like those of the castle, "were cemented together with silver instead of mortar". By the way, speaking of this cathedral, a good story used to be current years ago as to the uniqueness of its architecture. Two tourists from England, on landing at the Cape, intent on seeing all that was to be seen, naturally made their way to the chief church of the place. They paused in astonishment before its portico, and looked up at its tower. In bewilderment one said to the other, "What kind of architecture do you consider this to be?" "Day and Martin" replied his friend. "Day and Martin! What can you mean?" "Why, do you not see," rejoined the first, "that the tower is exactly like two of Day and Martin's blacking bottles - a shilling one, with a sixpenny one standing on the top of it?" On entering the sacred edifice they gazed about in greater astonishment than ever. They had never seen such a remarkable church before. Suddenly the gentleman with the knowledge of architecture seemed relieved. He had solved the problem. The church had been built, and rightly so, with a view to the prevention of idolatry. Accosting the verger, he asked him, "whether any idolatry was ever practised there?" "Certainly not, Sir", replied the astonished guardian of the sacred fane, "certainly not. But what make you ask such an extraordinary question?" "I thought not", exclaimed the young Englishman triumphantly. "I thought not. It would be impossible - quite impossible. For" - with a sweep of the eye round the building - "this place is like nothing 'in the heaven above, or in the earth beneath, or in the water under the earth'".
"The interior of S.George's is now very different, but the "two blacking bottles" still remain.
"'Beggars must not be choosers', so I had to do the best I could with my £150, which, with a little more added to it by kind friends in the diocese, provided us with a chapel, school, mission-room, and six huts.
"The spot on which we settled is one of the most beautiful in Basutoland. It is situated on the heights above the confluence of the Caledon and the Thlotse. Right in front, to the east, stand the Malutis; their bold, lofty, serrated peaks stretching away northwards to the Mont Aux Sources, and southwards to Matatiele. There was but one village on the heights when we took possession of our ground. This was the village of Mapatsueng, the headman of which was an one-eyed old man named Modibetsana. But though there were few people actually on the heights, there were over a thousand in the small clusters of villages which encircled this mountain ridge, and all these people were heathen. Besides these there were many villages, some large, some small, scattered about in all directions at no great distance from our settlement, and within easy reach of each other, ...
"On the Feast of the Conversion of S Paul, 1877 – a fitting day for such a work - the Bishop blessed the mission buildings, and dedicated the little chapel to the service of Almighty God, by a simple, yet solemn, Service of Benediction. It was a happy day, and one full of hopefulness for the future. A crowd of heathen testified their interest in this Mokete (feast) of the Church, and all the Europeans of the neighbourhood, as well as many from a distance, were present on the occasion. The building thus dedicated was mean and poor, its flat, unceiled iron roof, and its bare, clay- plastered walls, bearing witness to the poverty of the mission; ..."
During the War of 1880 between the British and the BaSotho the Mission buildings were turned into military fortifications. John Widdicombe reported as follows:
"By the end of September Thlotse had a defensive force of forty-seven whites and 110 natives, these latter including Tukunya and his men, and the men of the mounted police. This was a very small body with which to defend a long, straggling township, in addition to the Residency and the buildings of the Mission. With as much haste as possible the place was put into something approaching to a state of defence. Walls, among them those of our Mission garden and cemetery, were thrown down and levelled to the earth, in order to prevent the enemy using them as cover. The gaol, with its enclosed courtyard, was turned into a fort, the sod walls round the police camp were loopholed, and two large loopholes were made in the east wall of the mission chapel. Anxious to preserve the chapel as far as possible from profanation or injury, I had urged the authorities to throw up an earthwork outside it where it was most exposed to attack, and to use it and the school as a hospital for the sick and wounded as soon as the campaign should really begin. This might easily have been done at the time, but my wishes were overruled, and the poor little chapel was soon afterwards pierced in every direction with loopholes and used as a barrack".
As a result of damage suffered during the conflict the Mission's buildings had to undergo extensive restoration during the following year. John Widdicombe gave the following account:
"The Mission chapel was restored to us at the end of July, when the garrison vacated it, and we turned our first thoughts towards its cleansing and repair. It was indeed in a sorry condition. Its walls were full of holes, its windows without a single pane of glass in them, and its roof still riddled with shot-holes. Every time it rained the water streamed down from these holes as from a shower bath; and besides this the earthen floor was furrowed all over, the walls besmeared and defiled with grease and filth, and the whole place alive with vermin. By the aid of friends in England, who had heard of our evil plight and who prayed daily for our deliverance, we were enabled to restore the building to some degree of decency and order. The walls were scraped and re-plastered both inside and out, new corrugated iron roofing was put up, the floor was relaid and re-smeared, new windows replaced the old, the furniture that remained was repaired, thoroughly washed and cleaned, and in a few weeks we had the privilege and the joy of again being able to worship the lord in His own House, and before His own Altar. The restoration of the school-room was, of course, accomplished at the same time, and, from a mission point of view, was only second to that of the chapel.
"We re-patched and re-thatched our rondavels and re-enclosed the garden, planting many young fruit-trees, chiefly peaches and apples, ...
"When the chapel was first taken possession of and loop-holed, and the garden walls thrown down, we were assured by the authorities that full compensation would be given to us by the Government for the damage done, or for any losses that the Mission, or we ourselves, might incur through the war. Forms of claim for damages were sent to us from Capetown, and these were carefully filled up, and the amounts of the claims attested and approved by the Basutoland executive.
"A considerable part of the amount claimed was in compensation for the loss of the Training College building. This had been levelled to the ground by the troops, and even its site could hardly now be recognized. Its garden had of course gone also. Nor was this all. Some of the native refugees, who were still coming in small parties, had taken possession of the ground, and built their huts upon it. It was therefore impossible for us to think of rebuilding the institution on its old site; and, indeed, in view of the still unsettled state of the country, we considered it highly impolitic to attempt the establishment of a training school at all, until the advent of more propitious times. We therefore gave up the idea, and, with the consent of the donors of the original building fund, erected, as soon as the condition of the country warranted our doing so, a large and well-built school-room of burnt brick for our day schools, thereby supplying one great and increasing need of the Mission.
"The August of this year saw an important addition to our mission buildings in the shape of a new school-room. My readers will recollect that the buildings hitherto erected were merely temporary structures of raw brick or sod, plastered with mud; but we felt that the time had at last come for the realization of our plans as to structures of a more permanent and substantial character. We greatly needed a mission-house, our huts being, after so many year's wear and tear, almost beyond repair; but a still greater need was a suitable school-room for the rapidly increasing numbers of our children.
"The school-room was a substantial, well-built structure of burnt brick, fifty-two feet by twenty-eight, under a galvanized iron roof, and the possession of it enabled us to pull down the partition wall between the old school-room and the chapel, thereby giving us in the latter and additional space of twenty feet.
In 1885 and 1886 John Widdicombe reported upon the building of a new mission house at Thlotse Heights:
"The house was substantially built of burn brick, ceiled, and contained nine rooms. It possessed also a good broad stoep, to which a verandah has since been added, and last, but not least, it stood in its own grounds. These latter have since been laid out, and planted with trees and shrubs; a portion being reserved as an orchard, with a kitchen garden attached to it.
"During the year we succeeded, by the help of friends at home and abroad, in enclosing both our compounds with a strong stone wall, a protection greatly needed now that the sod ones were old and altogether beyond renewal. The cemetery was also enclosed in the same manner, and carefully laid out and planted with shrubs and flowers".
In 1887 John Widdicombe told of the building of a new church at Thlotse Heights:
"A design, with plans and specifications, had been carefully prepared some time before, and I immediately set about getting a competent man to put in at least the foundation stone of the building.
Canon Balfour's promise was speedily performed, his own purse, I am sure, being considerably lightened by the transaction; and we had in this way £500 to start with. This more than warranted me in having not only the foundation stone laid, but the whole foundation finished, and accordingly the work was pushed on with vigour, so that the stone might be ready by Jubilee Day. The foundation was broad and massive, and reposed upon a bed of gravel, which a few feet deeper ended in solid rock, and this first part of the work cost just £200. The design approved was for a stone building under the roof of galvanized iron. Its exterior length was to be eighty feet, and its breath thirty-eight, with clergy and choir vestries on the north side, and a sacristy and porch on the south, and there was to be a baptistery thrown out at the west end. The interior was simple, but effective, and not without a certain dignity of its own. A low stone screen separated the nave from the choir, and the altar was of good proportions and sufficiently elevated. Such a church would cost at least £2000, and I resolved not to undertake the commencement of the superstructure until at least half the money was ready and waiting in the bank for the purpose.
"It seemed in every way a pity to build with brick when beautiful white, grey and red sandstone was abundant a short distance off, especially as the bricks made in South Africa are so inferior to those used for church building purposes in Europe. We had waited so long for a church that we were resolved, if possible, to have one which should be strong and durable in its character, now that apparently the opportunity had come to realize the hopes of so many years.
"With the approach of spring, I hoped that the work of building might be resumed, now that we had sufficient money in hand to warrant a recommencement of the church. So I began to look about for a competent and reliable builder willing to undertake the work, and found him in the person of an old friend, Mr Morgan Harries, a resident of Ficksburg, and a member of the Church. A contract was duly drawn up between us and signed, the Church officers assisting me in the matter with their advice, and entering into the proposal with the utmost cordiality. The work was to be resumed in August, and the building to be finished, if all went well, by the Feast of Epiphany, 1890. Quarrying commenced at once, my old friend Nathanaele Makotoko giving us permission to "break out" stone wherever we pleased round the heights. Beautiful stone was abundant at a spot about a mile off, and large blocks of it soon began to make their appearance on the building ground. Six men - three whites and three Mauritius Creoles - were at work by the middle of August, cutting and shaping the stone into the required dimensions, and by the end of the year the walls began to rise. I had myself to be clerk of the works, and watch everything, the contractor not being able to be often on the spot; and any one who has undertaken such a task in a country like Basutoland will readily realize what it involves. The appliances were few, and both Mr Harries and myself were at the mercy of the men, who worked when they pleased, and idled when they took it into their heads to do so. But still the work went on little by little, the nicely finished blocks of stone accumulated, and the walls grew gradually higher and higher.
"The work of building came at length to an end. In spite of many drawbacks and vexations, and much waste of time, the contractor was true to his contract. By the Feast of the Epiphany, 1890, the church was almost finished. It quite realized our hopes and expectations, and has, I think, since won the admiration of all who have seen it. That it was an enormous gain to the Mission goes without saying. Let us hope that it may stand as a beacon light upon the heights of Thlotse for many generations to come. The structure is massive and solid throughout, and the work put into it thorough and good, from the foundation to the wall plates.
"The fabric when finished had cost £1997, almost the exact amount of our estimate. The floor is simply of beaten earth in the usual African fashion, but covered with cocoa-nut matting, generously given for the purpose, the sanctuary being partially carpeted in addition. Such things as stained glass and encaustic tiles are, of course, things of the future – probably for the far future.
THOMSON, Idutywa, Cape: No data available
THRELFALL MISSION, Natal: see KOSI RIVER, Natal
THUNXE, also spelt THUNXA, Cathcart, Cape: see HENDERSON, Cathcart, Cape
THUTTOANE, Transvaal: Bn 1867
THWECU, East London, Cape: see WESLEYVILLE, East London, Cape
TIDMANTON, Fort Beaufort, Cape: LMS; CUSA. Believed to have acted as an outstation for the BLINKWATER mission in the charge of James Read. In 1849 Arie van Rooyen entered the ministry of the United Congregational Church, the first "coloured" man to do so, and in 1850 took charge of Tidmanton, which thereafter is referred to as the "Hottentot Mission".
TIGER KLOOF, Cape: LMS 1904
TINANA, Mount Currie, Cape: No data available
TINANA, Mount Fletcher, Cape: No data available
TINANA CHURCH, Cape: Mor 1870; MorG 1914
TINTWA, Transkei, Cape: No data available
TIYO SOGA'S, Stutterheim, Cape: see MGWALI, Stutterheim, Cape
TJIMALI, Zimbabwe: LMS 1906
TONDORO, Namibia: Rc 1925
TOOVERBERG, Colesberg, Cape: LMS 1814
TOISE, also spelt TOYSE , King William's Town, Cape: see PETERSBERG, King William's Town, Cape
TOLENI, Butterworth, Cape: see CUNNINGHAM, Butterworth, Cape
TOLENI, Mount Frere, Cape: No data available
TOMBO No 1, Port St Johns, Cape: No data available
TOMBO No 2, Port St Johns, Cape: No data available. This second mission was located some 4km south of the above.
TONTI, Flagstaff, Cape: No data available
TOOVERBERG, also spelt TOVERBERG, Colesberg, Cape: see GRACE HILL, Colesberg, Cape
TORA, Transkei, Cape: No data available
TOYISE, King William's Town, Cape: see PETERSBERG, King William's Town, Cape
TRAINING SCHOOL, also known as KAFFIR INSTITUTION, Grahamstown, Cape: SPG 1860
TRINITY, Cape: SPG
TRINITY CHAPEL, Zeerust, Transvaal: SPG 1881
TSAKOMA, Transvaal: Bn 1874
TSCHIBI, also spelt CHIBE, Zimbabwe: DRCSA 1900
TSCHUANENG, Transvaal: Bn
TSCHUNGWANA, Mount Frere, Cape: see OSBORN, Mount Frere, Cape
TSEKONG, Mount Fletcher, Cape: No data available
TSEMBEYI, Glen Grey, Cape: No data available
TSHABO, King William's Town, Cape: MGB 1869. Established near Berlin Village by the Rev Hugo Gutsche and Carl Pape.
TSHANDI, Namibia: see TYENDI, Namibia
TSHAPILE, Engcobo, Cape: No data available
TSHUNGWANA, Mount Frere, Cape: see OSBORNE, Mount Frere, Cape
TSIOKOANE, near Leribe, Lesotho: SPG 1892. In 1892 John Widdicombe reported as follows:
"... the new development (at Tsiokoane) took effect early in 1892, when Mr Deacon went into residence there. A neatly-built four-roomed cottage of stone was erected in an extensive compound granted by the chief just under the Tsikoane mountain, close to the school-chapel, and within five minutes' walk of the outskirts of the town".
TSITSANA, Mount Fletcher, Cape: see LOWER TSITSANA, Mount Fletcher, Cape
TSITSIKAMA, also spelt ZITZKAMMA, Knysna, Cape: CUSA
TSOELIKE, Lesotho: P 1900
TSOJANA, Tsomo, Cape: No data available
TSOLO, Cape: ECS 1865; SPG. See also SOMERVILLE, Tsolo, Cape
TSOMO, Cape: SAfMS 1867; ECS 1899; WMS
TSUMEB, Namibia: RM 1907; Rc 1913
TUKU, Cape: WMS
TULBAGH, Cape: RM 1817; LMS
TUNXA, Cathcart, Cape: see HENDERSON, Cathcart, Cape
TUTLOANE, Transvaal: Bn
TUTURHA, Kentani, Cape: Established in 1867 by Tiyo Soga who subsequently died there in 1871. Originally it was called SOMERVILLE-TRANSKEI.
TWECU, more correctly spelt THWEKU, East London, Cape: see WESLEYVILLE, East London, Cape
TWISTWYK, Caledon, Cape: MorG 1792
TYENDI, also spelt TSHANDI, Namibia: FMS 1909
TYENI, also spelt TYENE, Transkei, Cape: No data available
TYHUME VALLEY, north of Alice, Cape: LMS 1820
TYINIRHA, Nqamakwe, Cape: No data available
TYIRA, also spelt TYIRHA, Qumbu, Cape: No data available
TYOLA, Transkei, Cape: see LOWER TYOLA, Transkei, Cape
TYUMIE POST, also spelt TYUMI POST or CHOOMIE, Alice, Cape: see GWALI, Alice, Cape
TZATZOE, also known as TZATZOE KRAAL, King William's Town, Cape: see BUFFALO RIVER, King William's Town, Cape
Mission Stations - U
UITENHAGE, Cape: SPG 1846; SAfMS; CUSA; WMMS
UITKOMST, Natal: NMS. It was visited by James Backhouse in March 1840.
UITKYK, Potchefstroom, Transvaal: WMS
UKUAMBI, Namibia: Rc 1924; FMS
UKUKANYENI, Pietermaritzburg, Natal: SPG 1850-1864
ULUNDI, Mount Fletcher, Cape: see LUNDI, Mount Fletcher, Cape
UMBILO, Durban, Natal: ABCFM 1850
UMBONAMBI, Natal: NMS 1869
UMGABABA, Ifumi, Natal: SPG 1850-1864
UMGENI RIVER, Natal: ABCFM 1842, abandoned 1843
UMGUNGUNDHLOVU, Natal: SPG 1837, open for four months only
UMHLANGENI, Natal: MHLF 1901
UMHLATI, Natal: ABCFM
UMJIKA, Cape: SPG 1873
UMKOMAAS, also known as BEULAH, Natal: HFMA 1908
UMKONGE, Tabankulu, Cape: see MKONGE, Tabankulu, Cape
UMLAZI, Natal: ABCFM 1836. Moved to a new site in 1847 and renamed ADAM'S MISSION
UMLAZI, also known as EKUFUNDISWENI, Natal: SPG 1856
UMOYAMUHLE, also known as UMZILA'S, Mocambique: ABCFM pre-1891
UMPUKANI, OFS: see MPOKANE, OFS
UMPUMULO, Natal: NMS 1850; SKM 1912
UMSINGA, Natal: see GORDON MEMORIAL, Natal
UMSUMBE, Natal: ABCFM
UMSUNDUSI, Natal: ABCFM 1851
UMTALI, also known as NEW UMTALI, Zimbabwe: MEFB 1898
UMTATA, more correctly spelt UMTHATHA, Cape: ECS 1871; SPG 1873; WMS; SAfMS
UMTUNJAMBILI, Natal: Sch
UMTWALUMI, Natal: ABCFM c1851
UMVOTI, Natal: see GROUTVILLE, Natal
UMXELO, also known as BOTMAN'S KRAAL, Cape: LMS 1840
UMZILA'S, Mocambique: see UMOYAMUHLE, Mocambique
UMZIMKULWANA, Natal: SPG 1881
UMZINTO, Natal: SAGM 1899
UMZINZATYANE, Natal: SPG 1893
UMZUMBE, also spelt UMZUMBI, Natal: ABCFM 1861
UNGOYE, also spelt UNGAYE, Natal: NMS 1881
UNIONDALE, Keiskammahoek, Cape: UPCM 1849; SPG. Established by the Rev Robert Niven, the mission was burnt down during the war of 1850-1853.
UPINGTON, Cape: Society not known 1820-1848; DRCSA 1871
UPSHAW, also spelt UPSHER, Seymour, Cape: UPCM. Believed to have acted as an outstation.
USAKOS, Namibia: Rc 1904; RM 1907; SAfMS 1914
USUTU, Swaziland: SPG 1881
UTRECHT, Natal: DRCSAT 1894; SPG
Mission Stations - V
VAALBANK, Glen Grey, Cape: No data available. A mission station, name unknown, is recorded as having been sited in Vaalbank Location.
VALDEZIA, Transvaal: MSR 1875
VANRHYNSDORP, Cape: DRCSA 1914
VEREENIGING, Transvaal: SACIM; WMS
VERMAAKELYKHEID, Cape: Bn
VERULAM, Natal: SAfMS 1850; WMS
VICTORIA, Cape: see VICTORIA WEST, Cape
VICTORIA, Zimbabwe: DRCSA; SPG
VICTORIA FALLS, also known as CHUTES VICTORIA, Zimbabwe: P 1898
VICTORIA WEST, also known as VICTORIA, Cape: DRCSA 1860
VILJOENS DRIFT, OFS: SACIM
VILLIERS, also known as VILLIERSDORP, OFS: DRCSAO 1908
VILLIERSDORP, Cape: DRCSA 19O6
VLAKLAAGTE, Transvaal: see BOSCHHOEK, Transvaal
VLUCHT, Cape: Bn
VOGELSTRUISKOPJE, OFS: Bn
VOGELVLEI, Mount Currie, Cape: No data available
VOLKSRUST, Transvaal: SAM; WMS
VOSBURG, Cape: DRCSA 1900
VREDE, OFS: DRCSAO 1887
VREDEBERG, Namibia: see AFRIKANER'S KRAAL, Namibia
VREDENBURG, Cape: DRCSA 1907
VRYBURG, Cape: SPG 1884; LMS 1904
VRYHEID, also spelt VRIJHEID, Natal: DRCSAT 1894; FBS 1904; SAfMS; SPG
VYGE KRAAL, Cape: SPG 1839
Mission Stations - W
WAGENMAKERTHAL, Cape: Bn
WAGONMAKERS VALLEY, Cape: No data available. It may have been the same Mission Station as WAGENMAKERTHAL. It was visited by James Backhouse in April 1840 who, however, did not make a written report.
WAKKERSTROOM, Transvaal: DRCSAT 1893
WALDFRIEDEN, Namibia: Rc 1942
WALMANSTHAL, also spelt WALLMANNSTHAL, Transvaal: Bn 1869
WALVIS BAY, also known as WALVIS BAY SETTLEMENT, Namibia: RM 1854; Rc 1927
WARM BATH, also spelt WARMBAD, Namibia: LMS 1807; RM 1867; WMMS
WARTBURG, also known as POSSEL'S or POSSELT'S, Stutterheim, Cape: Bn 1843.Original name not known. stablished by the Rev Liefeldt in 1843, the mission was burnt down in 1845 and abandoned during the course of the 1845-6 war. It was rebuilt in 1855 and renamed WARTBURG.
WARTBURG, Natal: Bn 1855
WATERBERG, also known as MODIMOLLE, Transvaal: Bn 1867; DRCSAT 1885
WATERFALL, Bedford, Cape: This is the name of a farm in the vicinity of Bedford. It is believed that, at one time, a mission station, with a leper hospital attached, was located there. No further data available.
WATERFALL, Spelonken, Zoutpansberg, Transvaal: MSR 1875
WATERLOO BAY, Cape: WMS 1849
WEELO, also spelt WILO, Mqanduli, Cape: see MORLEY, Mqanduli, Cape
WEENEN, Natal: Bn
WELGEVALLEN, Transvaal: DRCSA
WELLINGTON, Cape: PMS 1829; DRCSA 1832; Independent Trade School 1898
WEPENER, OFS: DRCSAO 1911
WERFT WINDHOEK, Namibia: Rc 1921
WESLEY, Peddie, Cape: No data available
WESLEYVALE, Namibia: WMMS
WESLEYVILLE, East London, Cape: LMS 1823; WMS 1825. Established by the Rev William Shaw, it was burnt down during the 1835 war but was reoccupied at the end of hostilities. Andrew Geddes Bain visited it in April 1829 and wrote the following report:
"This morning we waited on the Revd Mr Shaw, Missionary at this station. We were astonished to see the improvements he had made there in the short span of 3 years. He has built a very excellent house & a chapel which is also made use of as a school. There is a store kept by a Mr Walker & a good house for the school master besides a great many small houses for the (Xhosa), all the latter being built on one plan & laid out in streets at right angles".
In March 1839 it was visited by James Backhouse who reported that:
"The Wesleyville station was despoiled during the late war, and its inhabitants were scattered. Some of them afterwards settled at the Beeka and at Newton Dale, two stations nearer to the Colony; others went to other places, and but few returned hither. The houses of the missionary and artisan were now in a dilapidated state; the end of the former had fallen in during the late rain. A chapel newly built of stone was just roofed. A son of John Ayliff, the missionary, kept a store at this station, in a little wattle-and-dab hut. Stores, if conducted by conscientious persons, are often useful in such situations; they are an encouragement to trading, which has a civilizing tendency; but they are hurtful where persons are allowed to contract debts, as is the case at some of the (Khoikhoi) Stations. The trade with the (Xhosa) is conducted by barter.
WESLEYVILLE, also known as ISLAMBIE'S TRIBE, Mqanduli, Cape: WMS 1837. Andrew Geddes Bain visited it in April 1829 and recorded the following:
"This morning we waited on the Revd Mr Shaw, Missionary at this station. We were astonished to see the improvements he had made there in the short span of 3 years. He has built a very excellent house and a chapel which is also made use of as a school. There is a store kept by a Mr Walker and a good house the school master besides a great many small houses for the (Xhosa), all the latter being built on one plan and laid out in streets at right angles". (p 84)
WESSELS NEK, Natal: SFM ]921
WHITBANK, Transvaal: WMS
WHITE RIVER, Transvaal: SvAM 1922
WHITEVILLE, Keiskammahoek, Cape: No data available
WHITTLESEA, also known as HILTON, Cape: SAfMS. Thomas Baines visited it in September 1848 and recorded the following:
"Tuesday Sept, 11th went up the rocky hill over the Police kraal to take a view for Mr Loxton, an inhabitant of Whittlesea, and, after examining various places, fixed upon the eastern end of it near the pyramid erected by the surveyors as the spot from which the most comprehensive view could be obtained, embracing at once, south by west, (?//////) the Moravian Institution of Shiloh under charge of Mr. Bonatz, with its numberless huts, the row of willows, and the cultivated land beside the Klipplats, and behind it the mountain on which runs the boundary line of the immense tract of country allotted to it; to the right or west of this the Katberg, along which the line stretches for several miles till turning north it reaches the Oxkraal River and runs with it to the Klipplaats, which forms its eastern boundary, including a space of 30,000 morgen or double that number of acres.
In front of the Oxkraal, or on its north bank, stands Whittlesea, or at least the few houses forming the nucleus of the future town, to the SSW, of the hill on which we stood, with its streets, erfs, allotments, and locations, pegged out and, I believe, now being surveyed.
Mr Loxton grew eloquent on the political wrong of allotting only 2,200 morgen of land to a town while 30,000 were given to the Mission Station, and it is to illustrate his arguments and bring the new town into public notice he goes to the expense of having a painting of it. He therefore is desirous of having all the points of interest carefully attended to, and particularly its abundant supply of water which must be brought prominently into notice, especially where a fine street is formed by the junction of the two rivers. He is also very particular about the water furrows for irrigating the land. The plain and mountains, he says, with the first rain will be again clothed with verdure and as I have before witnessed the magical effect of even a slight shower upon the parched fields of Africa I think it no harm to gratify him by making the grass grow a little. The Police kraal and huts at the foot of the hill, SW by W, did not take his attention; nevertheless, as a characteristic feature I inserted them in their proper place, as well as the aloes, zamias, broken rocks, and pyramid, in the foreground, which possessed greater charms for my eye than his. I took bearings of all the points after sketching, holding the compass first on my knee and afterwards for more steadiness placing (it) on a stone a little on the south side of the mountain.
"At length, about 10 o'clock, Mr W signified that he was in readiness and vaulting into his saddle with the elegance of -I am at a loss for a comparison - he led off toward Shiloh. Here we saw a black carpenter making very neat and substantial work of some window frames for a new building".
WILBERFORCE, Cape: LMS 1829-1851. Believed to have acted as an outstation. No further data available.
WILLIAM KAMA, Middledrift, Cape: see ANN SHAW, Middledrift, Cape
WILLIAMS' MISSION to the Xhosa, location unknown, Cape: LMS 1816
WILLISTON, Cape: Society not known 1820-1848
WILLOWVALE, also known as GEALEKA MISSION, Cape: SAfMS
WILO, Mqanduli, Cape: see MORLEY, Mqanduli, Cape
WILSON, Transkei, Cape: No data available
WINBURG, OFS: SPG 1864; DRCSAO 1892; WMS
WINDHOEK, also spelt WINDHUK, Namibia: SDA 1823; RM 1842; Rc 1896; SAfMS 1914
WINKLEBOSCH, Cape: No data available
WINTERHOEK, Tarkastad, Cape: No data available
WITTEBERGEN, Cape: SAfMS 1843; WMS; LMS. Olive Schreiner is recorded to have been born here. On 20 May 1897 the following report entitled "Wittebergen Mission Station" was published by "The Methodist Churchman" under the byline of "O Brigg":
"This Mission Station is situated on the south side of the Orange River, about 4 miles from it, at an altitude of some 4 500 feet above sea level. It is about 28 miles east of Aliwal North. It was established more than half a century ago by Rev William Shepstone, who had previously been a Missionary at Hloholwani, beyond Plaatberg in Basutoland, and who on one of his journeys into the Colony met with a Dutch farmer called Piet de Wet, living at the hot springs at Buffels Vlei, near where the present town of Aliwal North stands. Mr Shepstone was recommended by Piet de Wet to establish a "school place" at the Wittebergen, which was then a wild and rugged country, and practically unoccupied. There were a few coloured people living at a fountain where the Herschel Magistrate now lives, and they subsisted on game. There were also scattered remnants of Bushmen tribes. The country abounded with game, such as springbok, hartebeeste, eland, quaggas, and ostriches. There were also wild cats, jackals, baboons, wolves, leopards and lions; wolves being particularly numerous and dangerous.
"When Mr Shepstone first visited Wittebergen, he found some Boers living in what is now the Lady Grey district; and he at first thought of founding his "school place" where Lady Grey now stands; but on second thoughts he gave up the idea in favour of an elevated rocky eminence at the foot of the Wittebergen, where there was a large extent of flat rock, which Mr Shepstone saw at once would make a firm foundation for his house and church. It was not long before it became known among the natives far and wide that they could find a home for themselves and grazing for their stock by going to live near Mr Shepstone; and many who had been for years harassed by tribal wars took refuge there. Soon Mr Shepstone found it necessary to build a roomy house and church. A stone foundation was laid on the bare rock, so as to get a level surface to build on, and then the buildings were expeditiously made, not with stones or bricks, but with clay which had been well trampled by oxen; this was put on layer upon layer, the walls being shaped to the perpendicular by the use of the spade. The roofs were made of yellow wood, and thatched, some of the "riempjes" being made from skins of quaggas. As wood was very scarce, the benches in the church were made of unburnt brick, an aisle was left op the middle of the church, and as Mr Shepstone wished to seat as many people as possible, the seats were made so close that it was inconvenient, if not impossible, to kneel at prayer. The communion rail was neatly made of yellow wood and bamboes cut from the kloofs of the adjacent mountains".
WITTE RIVER, Uitenhage, Cape: see ENON, Uitenhage, Cape
WITTEWATER, Cape: MorG 1845
WITTKLEIBOSCH, Humansdorp, Cape: MorG
WIT WATER, Uitenhage, Cape: see ENON, Uitenhage, Cape
WITZIESHOEK, OFS: DRCSAO 1873
WODEHOUSE FOREST, Cofimvaba, Cape: Name of society not known. Believed to have been established in 1866 by the Rev EJ Barrett.
WOGENTHIN, also spelt WOYENTIN, Transvaal: Bn 1884
WOLHOUTER, Transvaal: SACIM
WOLMARANSSTAD, also spelt WALMARANSSTAD, Transvaal: HM 1907
WOODLANDS, King Williams Town, Cape: WMMS
WOODSTOCK, Cape: DRCSA 1897
WORCESTER, Cape: RM 1831. Mrs Ross visited Worcester in April 1862 and wrote the following:
"... in the afternoon we passed a pleasant hour in inspecting the arrangements of the Missionary schools, and learning the history of their foundation and success. They owe everything to Mr Esselin, who came to this Colony seven years ago, and settled at Worcester in the hope of doing some good amongst the neglected coloured folk. About nine hundred of these poor people were then living at what is now called the 'Location' - a double row of huts and cottages, extending for nearly two miles out of town - and were almost in a state of barbarism; but so hopefully and manfully did he set to work, that in a very short time he had got most of them to attend service pretty regularly, and even display some anxiety to be taught. The church and school were then both held in a rude, thatched building belonging to the Town Council, while their pastor was being supported by the Parent Society at Berlin. After a year or two, he conceived the bold idea of building a church and schools for the especial use of his flock, the expenses to be defrayed by the coloured people themselves. To this end he called a meeting of all the heads of families, and fully entered into the details of his scheme. He then, addressing first the one and then the other by name, fully ascertained from them all what amount of time, labour, or material each one could give towards the erection of the proposed buildings during the ensuing year. As each man came forward with a distinct promise, according to his trade or calling, to carry so much material, quarry so much stone, or do the work of carpenter, mason, or smith for so many days, Mr Esselin entered the name and all particulars of the public promise into a large book; and then, after adding up the sum total, he determined to draw his own plan, become his own architect, and commence the work without delay. He procured a fine piece of ground, near the market-square, and six months afterwards, with his own hands, he laid the foundation-stone of one of the handsomest, most convenient, and most solidly-built churches in the Colony. It was truly a labour of love. Both pastor and flock worked at it with might and main, and at the end of another six months the final touch was put to this splendid monument of one man's unflagging energy and spirit.
"One cannot help being struck by the order and cleanliness of everything connected with this pile of buildings, both within and without. From pulpit to belfry it has been reared by poor men, and owes nothing to charitable support. The church has seats for eight hundred people ...
"I learned from the minister, who is a very able, ingenious, and thoroughly well-informed gentleman, that it was not until a year afterwards that they were able to complete the schools. But now - many years after their erection - they look as clean and orderly as if just finished. The white-washed walls are like snow, the arched roof glistens with stained pine, the floor is clean enough to eat from, and shines till you can almost see your face in it. There are four of these schools, built in a sort of quadrangle: one for boys, another for girls, a third for infants, and the fourth for infants of a larger growth. Arranged in long rows up each side of the hall were the desks and benches, each shining as if they had been newly varnished; whereas they owe all their polish to five years' elbow grease. The infant school was like a little cabinet of curiosities, everything being on the tiniest scale. From the floor up half-way to the ceiling rose tier upon tier of highly-polished little benches, and round the walls were hung every description of bird and beast, well painted; with lessons on colour, on form, - in fact, everything that a child should learn. No English school could be more perfectly furnished!"
WOYENTHIN, Transvaal: see WOGENTHIN, Transvaal
WRENINGHAM, Zimbabwe: SPG 1897
WUPPERTHAL, Cape: RM 1830. James Backhouse visited it in March 1840 and wrote the following:
"The village consists of the Mission-house, a chapel in Dutch style, a tannery, a watermill, buildings in progress for schools, and some dwellings, all of which are scattered among the luxuriant trees; at a little distance, are the houses of the (Khoikhoi), which are in cottage style.
WYDERS RIVIER, Cape: Bn
WYNBERG, also spelt WIJNBERG, Cape: SPG 1838; DRCSA 1881; SAGM 1899; WMMS
Mission Stations - X
XABARHA, Transkei, Cape: No data available
XANGORHA, Transkei, Cape: see LOWER XANGORHA, Transkei, Cape
XENTU, Engcobo, Cape: No data available
XILINXA, Nqamakwe, Cape: No data available
XOLOBE, Tsomo, Cape: UFS 1886
XONYE, Engcobo, Cape: No data available
XOPOGAZI, Transkei, Cape: No data available
XORA, also spelt XORHA or XHORHA, Mqanduli, Cape: WMS
XORAN, also spelt XHORHANA or XORHANA, Mqanduli, Cape: No data available
XUGXWALA, Umtata, Cape: No data available
XUKA, Elliot, Cape: No data available
XUKWANE, Middledrift, Cape: see KNOX, Middledrift, Cape
XURHA, also spelt XURA, Lusikisiki, Cape: No data available
XURHANA, also spelt XURANA, Lusikisiki, Cape: No data available
XUZELE'S, Transkei, Cape: No data available
XWAYI, Mount Ayliff, Cape: No data available
Mission Stations - Y
YLANDFONTEIN, Cape: Bn
Mission Stations - Z
ZANDUKWANE, Libodi, Cape: No data available
ZANGOTSHI, Bizana, Cape: No data available
ZASTRON, OFS: DRCSAO 1910
ZEBETIELE, Transvaal: Bn
ZEERUST, Marico, Transvaal: SPG 1874
ZELE, Libodi, Cape: No data available
ZELE CONVENT, King William's Town, Cape: No data available
ZIBHODLA, Mqanduli, Cape: No data available
ZIGUDU, Cofimvaba, Cape: No data available
ZIMBUNGU, Libodi, Cape: No data available
ZIMUTO, also spelt ZIMUTU, Zimbabwe: DRCSA
ZITHULELE, Elliotdale, Cape: No data available
ZITZKAMMA, Cape: see TSITSIKAMA, Cape
ZOAR, Cape: DRCSA 1817; Bn 1838. James Backhouse visited it in October 1838 and wrote the following report:
"We visited Zoar, which belongs to the South African Missionary Society. It has an extensive tract of land, chiefly rocky, karroo hills; but by the side of the river, there are two fertile spots, capable of irrigation, containing together upwards of 100 morgens, equal to 200 acres. These are converted into gardens, and planted with corn. Upon the verge of one of them stands the chapel and a number of huts, forming the village, which is inhabited by from 3 to 400 (Khoikhoi), including children. The place was without a Missionary for nearly seven years, and went to decay. The present Missionary who is placed here by an arrangement between the Berlin and the South African Missionary Societies, is a pious man, but does not possess much knowledge of handicraft trades. Some knowledge of these is highly desirable in a Missionary, both to enable him to make his own dwelling comfortable, and to teach useful arts to those amongst whom he is placed".
ZOLO, Nqamakwe, Cape: UPCM
ZONNEBLOEM, Cape: SPG
ZOUTPANSBERG, Transvaal: DRCSA; WMS
ZUURBERG, believed to have been in the Cape: No data available. The site for the location of a proposed Mission Station in the Zuurberg was visited by John Campbell in April 1813. He reported as follows:
"On examining the ground which we supposed was that which had been recommended for a missionary station, there did not appear to be a sufficient quantity of water, and the pools we saw are probably without water altogether in the dry seasons. There is indeed plenty of stone for building, on various parts of the ground, the grass is good, and timber for building abounds in every direction".
ZUURBRAAK, Cape: LMS 1811; DRCSA 1812; SPG 1883. James Backhouse visited it in October 1838 and wrote the following:
"The mission-house, chapel, and school-house are tolerably good buildings; they, as well as two or three cottages, are whitewashed, and have a neat appearance. At this time a street of considerable length was laid out; along it a few (Khoikhoi) had erected houses, and others were in progress, or left half built, and there were many scattered hovels of sticks, reeds and mud, in which (Khoikhoi) families were living. About 850 (Khoikhoi) resided here, half of whom were children. Zuurbraak is the site of a native kraal or village of (Khoikhoi), from which they had never been driven when the London Missionary Society took them under its care; but so little were the natural rights of these people regarded, that under one of the English Governors of the Cape Colony, it was taken from them, and was not restored till application was made to the Home Government.
"We walked through the street of the settlement, and entered most of the cottages of the Hottentots, as well as some of the scattered hovels. The latter were poor places indeed for the residence of human beings. Some of the cottages were neatly white-washed inside, and had a coloured surbase of French grey. The material used for colouring, as well as that used for whitewashing is clay, found on the Zuurbraak property. The walls of the cottages were of mud, the roofs thatched: few of the cottages had chimneys: the fires were generally made in the middle of the floor; the inside of the thatch was consequently black with smoke. Most of the inhabitants of this settlement were very poor, and some were old and decrepit".
ZWARTKOP, Natal: WMS