Port Elizabeth of Yore: Powering the Harbour in the late 1800s

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 0 Comment

Prior to the era of electricity, without light, the harbour was unable to operate at night. As steam powered cranes were available from the mid-1800s, these were installed during 1881 on the North Jetty. In due course, these would be replaced with hydraulic and later electrically powered cranes.

From an openness and disclosure viewpoint, I hereby state that all the technical details have been supplied by the Technical Editor, my brother Blaine. This does not imply nepotism as he provides his assistance purely on a pro bono basis.

Main picture: Steam powered cranes on North Jetty

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Port Elizabeth of Yore: Building’s name reflects change

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 0 Comment

Most buildings bear the same name throughout their life. This assumes that its name is not that of the tenant. In South Africa’s case, there is another reason for name change: politics. In this process, many buildings since 1994 have been renamed to reflect the new political order. In the case of this building, it has had to suffer the indignity of two names, each one to reflect this change.

In this process the Colonial Mutual Life [CML] building was renamed Pleinhuis and ultimately Noninzi Luzipho. In the case of the sale by CML in 1980 of this four storey Art Deco style building on the corner of Baakens Street and Whites Road evoked concerns regarding “insensitive changes.”

Main picture: The CML Building per La Femme 28 Aug 1996

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Port Elizabeth of Today: Threats Confronting the Swartkops River and Estuary

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 0 Comment

.In the Swartkops River and its estuary, Port Elizabeth possesses a priceless environmental jewel. Will it ultimately follow the dismal well-trodden path taken by the mouth of the Papenkuils River known as Smelly Creek. By the early 1960’s it was taking its last gasp The destruction of the habitant chocked the water flow and the ingress of industrial chemicals killed the reeds and other vegetation. Ultimately the few resilient flamingos doffed their caps and bade their millennia old sanctuary adieu. And not a tear was shed.

Too easily the same steep and slippery slope could ineluctably overwhelm nature’s defences in the Swartkops Valley.

To eliminate the threats and mitigate others, this is what the plan of action should encompass.

Main picture: The Swartkops Estuary

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A SMAC in the Face #58:  King Con

By Blaine McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 0 Comment

The King of the grifters, King Con, found himself in court and it has been a virtuoso display of petulance, bullying, victimhood, obfuscation, deflection, blame the other guy, denial and meandering logic.  Although he didn’t have to attend proceedings until called, he elected to sit at his lawyers’ table and defiantly glare at everyone, particularly if there was a camera pointing at him.  This is the glare he had stayed up all night practicing for his mugshot on 24 August when he was arraigned on election racketeering charges. 

This trial is a civil case of fraud and he had already been found guilty of fraudulently overvaluing his properties.  The court is now sitting to determine his sentence

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Port Elizabeth of Yore: The Scandalous Female Cyclist of the 1890s

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 0 Comment

Outdated sexual mores impede the development of humankind in multiple ways. In a previous blog I have already dealt with all the rules and regulations preventing males and females from sharing a swim. These rules were only dispensed with on the opening of King’s Beach in the early 1900s. Unbelievably female cyclists were frowned upon for cycling, let alone for being accompanied by men. Unlike their swimming counterparts, these restrictions were normative rather than rules and regulations based.

This is the story of a female who defied those norms.

Main picture: The Brown family cycling at the Van Staadens River

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Port Elizabeth of Yore: When Main Street could have been called Motor Town

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 0 Comment

In the space of a century, not only have the vehicles vastly improved in quality and performance but the modus operandi of the industry too. In this blog we will follow the work experiences of Rupert Charles Mouat during the 1920s when many vehicle sales, assembly and repair shops were located in Main Street. This influential period in the development of this industry would become pivotal to rescuing Port Elizabeth from insignificance as the Transvaal grew by leaps and bounds  

Main picture: 1926 – General Motor’s first factory in Darling Street

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Port Elizabeth of Yore: The Loton Tipper Families of P.E.

By Dean McCleland in Port Elizabeth of Yore 0 Comment

Like all families in which multiple generations share the same names, confusion reigns but doubly so when two are equally well known. So it was with the Loton Tippers of Port Elizabeth. The father was a merchant operating in Main Street whereas his son, also Loton Tipper junior was renowned as an athlete and as an administrator. Now probably only known for a steep road in Amsterdamhoek called Tipper’s Creek.

This blog is largely derived from an article entitled The Two Loton Tippers of Port Elizabeth by Margaret Harradine. Perhaps due to being related, even if distantly to the Tippers, her insight into the family is profound.

Main picture:  Weekend and holiday cottages along the Swartkops River more than a century ago

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Port Elizabeth of Yore: St. John the Baptist Anglican Church

By Alan Montgomery in Port Elizabeth of Yore 0 Comment

The suburb now known as Walmer; Port Elizabeth was originally a farm known as Welbedacht. It was loaned to a Johannes Potgieter in 1776 and subsequently granted to a Antonie Michael Muller[1] (B c 1770 married Aletta Maria Potgieter c 1782, died 21 January 1843, Uitenhage who was from Holland). On 24 May 1852, a portion of the farm that was granted to Anthonie Michael Muller in 1815, was divided in one morgan erven by his sons into a township called Walmer. The sons got into financial difficulties, and they decided to sell the farm in lots. Whilst it is not definitely known, a Mr D. MacDonald a Government surveyor probably gave the name. The auctioneers responsible for the sale went bankrupt immediately after the sale and the Muller brothers suffered financial loss thereby although some of the money was recovered in subsequent lawsuits. In 1860, the local newspaper the EP Herald reported tigers (leopards) in the Walmer area. In 1899, Walmer became a municipality. Walmer was named after Walmer Castle, the death place of the First Duke of Wellington 1769-1852.He is buried under the dome of St Pauls Cathedral by the side of another famous Englishman Lord Nelson.

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