To be or not to be #2 - Keep it green

From about the mid 1800's until 1903, when they were forcibly removed from the area, the Mfengu people lived in Richmond Hill, in an area that was known as the Strangers Location. These were people who worlded predominantly on offloading ships that arrived in the Bay. The Strangers Location was established by an act of Parliament, which meant that there was security of tenure. That is until the bubonic plague broke out and as a result of sweeping powers that were granted to get rid of the plague, the Strangers Location was burned to the groound and the residents were moved to New Brighton.

The park in Richmond Hill was originally the cemetary of the Mfengu resident and is recorded as such on the early maps of the city. Over the years the cemetary became public open space and eventually a park. Part of it was integrated as a playground for the old Erica School.

The old Erica School Play ground, which is marked on the old maps as part of the cemetary, looking towards the St Phillips Church, which was established in 1884 to serve the community.

The National Department of Public Works and the SA Police service now want to build a 1011 call centre and a 50 metre lattice mast on part of the cemetary, but before they can do so they have to comply with with the heritage laws. This requires that the NPWD and the SAPS have to follow a lengthy public participation process before they can even consider building on the site. Hopefully the reaction of the Mfengu people and the duration of this process will throw a spanner in the works and they will rethink their blighted strategy.

Notice required by the developers to locate persons with an interest in the cemetary. The fact that this should be in the official languages of the province, does not seem to have occurred to the developers.

We certainly do not want an ugly four storey admin building dumped on the edge of our park and will continue with our protest action. We feel that this should remain a green area and that a small monument should be erected on the site, in memory of the contribution of the Mfengu, to the early development of the city.

Sky Watch Friday - Above and below

A flock of pigeons flying over the Russell Road Cemetary on one of our early morning walks through Richmond Hill.


For those who are interested in history James Langley Dalton, one of the 11 recipients of the Victoria Cross, after the Battle of Rorkes Drift is buried here. The battle at Rorke's Drift, took place from 22 to 23 January 1879, when 139 British soldiers defended a supply station against an about 4,500 Zulu warriors. It was estimated that 500 Zulu worriors died in the battle and 17 of the defenders were killed.

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Apparently the only person who did not think them worthy recipients of the Victoria Cross, was Sir Garnet Wolseley. He felt their survival was not a matter of bravery, and likened their action to fighting for survival like cornered rats. So much for the cynicism of commanding officers - but it was a time when heroes were needed, so his objections went unheeded. On the 22 January 1879 a British column of 1,357 men was over run and wiped out by the Zulu Impis.

Dalton's character also featured in the epic 1966 movie Zulu, which was about the Battle of Rorkes Drift.

In the bigger scheme of things those moments of "glory" are just as fleeting as those pigeons flying by in the first picture.

Saturday morning stroll

This morning started off very misty, which is always a good indication of a hot sunny day to follow. The weather report has in fact predicted temperatures of around 35 degrees centigrade today. Our walk took us to the old Russell Road cemetary (established in the middle of the 19th century), by which time the mist was beginning to clear.

Russell Road Cemetary at the Corner of Campbell Street and Elliot Street


Looking across the cemetary towards Russell Road. It is so sad that many of the old graves have fallen into disrepair through neglect.


View across Russell Road towards Central


The grave of James Langley Dalton, is the only one that is still maintained. He was one of the 11 recipients of the Victoria Cross after the Battle of Rorkes Drift in January 1879. You can follow the link to an earlier post on Dalton.


This family of Dikkops have made their home in the cemetary. It is always a delight to seem. They are nocturnal and seem to cope well with city life, especially where there are open spaces. Very often we see them running down the middle of the road at night, screaching at the top of their lungs.

Heroes and those long forgotten

On one of our early morning neighbourhood strolls my wife and I ended up at the historical Russell Road Cemetery as the sun was rising.

In our 29 years in Port Elizabeth I have never visited the cemetery, which is unusual for me, because I have a morbid curiosity with cemeteries, especially the older ones. This one dates back to the mid to late 1800’s, when Russell Road was still known as Hyman’s Kloof. There was no road then, it was just a gorge with a stream running through it.

One can glean a lot about the history of a place by reading the tombstones.

The rich and the poor lie side by side in their graves. Some graves are monuments to the life of one person, but what I found intriguing was, that whole families were often buried in the same grave. This was a particularly sad place because of the high mortality rate, especially among the women and children.

When you read about the unsanitary conditions in the town at the time one can understand why.

One tombstone that I found very poignant was that of the Brunkhard family – Ralph aged 23 years and 4 months died on October 4 th 1889; Thomas aged 3 years and 4 months; George aged 2 years; Annie aged 9 months and 7 days; Margaret Ward aged 7 years and 4 months and their mother Margaret Ward aged 51 died on July 29th 1892. A lot of tears for one family.

Many people of Irish descent are also buried there, originating from places like Tipperary and County Cork. One section of the city around Evatt, Alice and Strand Streets was known as Irish Town. I can only wonder if some of these people came from that infamous area.

Here follows a few quotes on Irish Town from the book Port Elizabeth in Bygone Days, JJ Redgrave, The Rustica Press, Wynberg Cape 1947:

“It was a paradise for depraved seamen and drunken Hottentots of both sexes,
and was known as Irish Town. Interspersed between these drinking dens were a few low shops where big profits were made from smuggling liquor”.

At that time the police were only on duty from 8 am to 6 pm and,

“There were no night duties and the town was left to make its own arrangements to prevent burglaries, assaults, drunken brawls and other crimes that occurred under
cover of darkness, and Irish Town, the hotbed of vice, was given a wide
berth by respectable people, including the constables”.

Today the police fortunately patrol at all times of the day and night.

“The buildings in Strand Street were the veriest rookeries, reeking of filth and
swarming with rats”.

They are still there - came across a dead rat in Strand Street just the other day.

When you read the history books, it was like the Wild West.

The wheel has turned - today Irish Town no longer exists. The same crimes are still very prevalent today, but the characters have changed. We are now faced with the scourge of Nigerian criminals who are into drugs, prostitution and any other crime that brings in a quick buck. (I will save that subject for another day though)

Amongst all the decay of the cemetery one can’t help but notice a well tended grave at the far end of the cemetery. James Langley Dalton a survivor of the Battle of Rorkes Drift and the recipient of the Victoria Cross. Dalton was an Acting Assistant Commissary with the Commissariat and Transport Department.

The action at Rorke's Drift, took place from 22 to 23 January 1879, when 139 British soldiers defended a supply station against about 4,500 Zulu warriors. About 500 Zulus died in the battle and 17 of the defenders were killed. What was remarkable about Rorkes Drift was that 11 Victoria Crosses were awarded – the highest number ever awarded in any battle. Dalton’s character was featured in the 1964 film Zulu, which was about the battle of Rorkes Drift

War buffs can read more about James Dalton and the battle of Rorkes Drift at rorkesdriftvc.com and britishbattles.com

Grave yards are fascinating places, you never know what will emerge, like this vagrant who has made his home behind one of the crypts.