Harries Archives - The Casual Observer

Port Elizabeth of Yore: The Memoirs of Jessie Allen (Nee Lovemore)

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 2 April 2022 0 Comment

Jessie Lovemore was born and raised on the Lovemore’s Farm at Bushy Park. Her father, Charles Lovemore, was the son of Henry Lovemore, the original Lovemore owner of this farm. In writing her memoires, Jessie has left an invaluable depiction of life of one of the prominent families in the nascent Port Elizabeth. Most of her reminiscences cover her life in Port Elizabeth which she was forced to leave when her husband took up sheep farming in the Middleburg district.

Main picture: Children of Charles & Margery Lovemore circa 1879, L-R Back: Charles, Walter, Alfred & Harry, L-R Middle Hector, Florine, Jessie, Mary & William L-R Front Ian & Sinclair

Port Elizabeth of Yore: The Venerable Chelsea Cottage and Farm

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 5 March 2022 0 Comment

Most visitors to this tea garden / B&B / function venue do not appreciate that fact that portion of the buildings could represent the oldest building in the Port Elizabeth district. This is the untold story of its origin and its future owners.

Main picture: Chelsea Cottage painted by Waldon Arbouin Harries in 1855

Port Elizabeth of Yore: The Volunteer Military Units – The Initial Iterations

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 17 August 2021 2 Comments

The initial impetus to establish some form of volunteer military force in Port Elizabeth arose due to the perpetual threat posed by the warring Xhosa tribes.

To augment the British forces stationed in the Cape, especially in times of crisis, the British established volunteer military units throughout the Cape Colony. In the beginning they were typically of short duration to meet a specific threat posed to the colonists but later these temporary units would be replaced with units of a more permanent nature.

This blog will cover all such volunteer forces and units until the first disbandment of Prince Alfred Guards in 1860.

Main picture: February 1835 – Arrival of Harries’ Troop from Palos Kraal with WM Harries in the centre

Port Elizabeth of Yore: Visit by Sir George Grey in October 1858

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 21 December 2020 0 Comment

Visits by dignitaries to Port Elizabeth were always an occasion for celebration and revelry. So, it was with the whistle-stop visit to Port Elizabeth on the 21^st October 1858 when the whole town was invited to attend a welcoming parade.

Many of the issues raised during this visit are still of interest today either due their being topical or their casting a light on distant practices. But at the risk of overstatement, the original verbatim reports are somewhat jarring for the reader today, as the level of sycophancy displayed when the residents address the Governor, is cringeworthy.

Main picture: Painting of Sir George Grey by Daniel Louis Mundy in the 1860s

Port Elizabeth of Yore: When Developers almost Built on the Donkin Reserve

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 29 July 2019 0 Comment

It was a grieving Sir Rufane Donkin who arrived in Port Elizabeth on the 5^th June 1820. Even though he had married Elizabeth Markham in Yorkshire under a traditional organised marriage which was the custom in those times for the social upper classes, remarkably, he had truly fallen in love with his beautiful young wife. En route back to Great Britain, he had been diverted to the Cape as temporary Governor.

It was during the laying of the foundation stone of a proposed hotel for Captain Moresby that Donkin proclaimed that the nascent town would be named Elizabeth, after his beloved dead wife. Port Elizabeth had been conceived.

As well as naming the town after his deceased wife, he had other plans to commemorate her: proclaiming of a reserve on which a pyramid would be built as a monument in perpetuity.

Main picture: Pyramid on the Donkin in 1920

Port Elizabeth of Yore: The First Sources of Water

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 10 October 2018 0 Comment

As David Raymer points out in his excellent book on the water supply to Port Elizabeth entitled ‘Streams of Life’, “until 1880 the greatest problem [that] the settlement of Port Elizabeth faced was the question of a dependable and adequate supply of fresh water for the residents”.

This blog covers the first attempt to address this challenge.

Main picture: One of the original wells in Port Elizabeth

Port Elizabeth of Yore: The Maitland Mines – A Flash in the Pan

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 10 May 2018 6 Comments

The Maitland Mines are several disused lead mines located on the Maitland River on the western outskirts of Port Elizabeth. Geologically the mine is located in rocks of the late Pre-Cambrian Gamtoos Complex, which is related in time to the limestones hosting the Cango Caves near Oudtshoorn.

Main picture: The late Brian Waspe at the Maitland Mines

Port Elizabeth of Yore: The Harries Clan – Father and Son

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 17 November 2017 5 Comments

Among the people who were influential in the nascent Port Elizabeth, was the Harries Clan. This blog recounts the life of the father and son who deserve greater recognition.

Main picture: Painting of Port Elizabeth from South End by Walford Arbouin Harries about 1851

The Opinion Pieces are an eclectic bunch on current affairs & history often with a human interest aspect. The Movie/DVDs reviews are mainly on documentaries with a smattering of movie reviews.

Tag Archives: Harries