A different view on current affairs & history
Mustard gas was first used in WW1 and thereafter according to Wikipedia it has been used another 14 times. Yet in the immediate aftermath of WW2, numerous people in Port Elizabeth were to endure the effects of mustard gas. How did this occur and why was mustard gas stored in Port Elizabeth during WW2?
Main picture: Gas warfare during WW1
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This tearoom has formed the focal point of this hamlet for a century, its centennial being celebrated in 2018. From a rambunctious start as The Hut Tearoom in 1918, the tearoom has also experienced its lean time with the war years probably being the most difficult. The post war years were just as lean but the decision to renovate and rebrand the restaurant as the Sacramento revived its fortunes. On a macabre note, this establishment has witnessed two murders, one being of my uncle, Francis McCleland.
Main picture: The crowds gather for tea at The-Hut-Tearoom-in-Schoenmakerskop in December 1922
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Last year was supposed to be the Chinese Year of the Rat but the year had hardly started and it transmogrified into the Year of the Bat. It not only created genocidal mayhem but also drove the world schizophrenic with false narratives and bad data. This blog focusses on the latter with particular reference to South Africa.
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Just less than a century ago, it would not be a mischaracterisation to claim that the name Frielinghaus possessed a certain je ne sais quoi. With a house in the elegant Matopos at No. 68 Park Drive, they were the embodiment of success.
Main picture: HO Chappie Frielinghaus
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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 21st 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
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As his life wound down but before the candle of his life guttered and fizzled out, Norman Lovemore “decided to amuse myself by rambling amongst the many memories which haunt [ed him]”. In 1982 in the twilight of his life, he set out on a new adventure, a journey to record the highways and byways of his interesting life for posterity. The only detours that he made was to knowingly exclude those parts of this journey of which he was ashamed.
In using Norman Lovemore’s transcribed reminiscences, I have largely retained the original script but have detoured to improve readability and have often converted the first person into the third person. I have also taken the liberty to improve his grammar and vocabulary where required. In all other respects I have been faithful to Norman’s original text.
Main picture: Norman Lovemore as a pilot in the Royal Flying Corps during WW1
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Being the first principal of Alexander Road High School for its first 17 years, Cordingley had an inordinate influence on the development of the school. By shepherding it through its formative years, his role was pivotal in setting the school on the road to greatness.
Main picture: Winston Cordingley
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The beauty of the Christian Science Church is to be found in its external appearance; the strong form of the simplified, lofty three –arched entrance and well-proportioned lines of the structure make it one of the finest examples of stylised nee-Gothic churches in this region. It possibly reflects overtones of Californian/ Mediterranean architecture.
In 1995, this structure residing at No 110a Park Drive would be no more.
Main picture: Christian Science Church Port Elizabeth (Restorica 1996)
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The first sale of park lands took place on 16 September 1863. The income from the sale of the lots was to be used for the development and maintenance of the St. George’s Park. The first owners to build on these lots were Samuel Bain and William Pattinson. They were regarded as “living in the country” because their homes were some distance from the town.
This blog and subsequent blogs on houses in this street were supplied by Tennyson Smith Bodill for which I am grateful.
Main picture: This 1907 shows Samuel Bain’s house is on the left of Nazareth House
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As a residential area, Park Drive attracted the well-healed and it was aspirational. If one wanted a villa with spacious grounds close to town, this was it. The area immediate garnered a cachet which it never lost. Given the fact that the plots were extremely large, this would be the undoing and demise of many of these stately homes. Subsequent generations of residents viewed the properties as cash cows and the mansions were demolished to be replaced with insipid blocks of flats.
By now most of the original mansions have been replaced but some have miraculously survived.
Main picture: Kockfierna circa 1900
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