Archistori

Built: 1813 Front facade. Photo c.1910. Cape Archives E2438. Back of house. Photo c.1880. Notes The farm was originally granted in 1709 to a free Black settler named Evert van Guinea, but it passed through various owners before Isaak Bosman acquired it. The house was built by Jacobus Bosman, son of Isaak Bosman. The stepped gables were removed and the thatched roof replaced with corrugated iron. Evert van Guinea (c.1639 Guinea - 1688 Cape). His de facto wife was Hoena (Anna) van Guinea. They had a daughter Zwarte Maria Evert (1663 - 1713) who became a wealthy landowner. Evert was one of the earliest free Black settlers (vrijswart or manumitted slave) at the Cape of Good Hope - freed in 1659. He was a farmer and market gardener. Isaak (Izak) Bosman (1732 - 1812) married Susanna de Villiers (1736 - 1818) in 1756. She was from the prominent de Villiers Huguenot line (daughter of Abraham de Villiers and Susanna Gardiol. Isaak was the progenitor (stamvader) of the Bosman family branch ...

Aka: Die Erf, Zevenwacht, Langverwacht Built: 1800 Status: razed by fire in early-1900s. Source: Cape Archives E2436 Notes Zevenfontein, or 'Die Erf' as it was also called, belonged to Pieter de Waal. His parents, Arend and Maria Margaretha de Waal, lived here until 1866. The De Waal family intermarried with Bosmans. Pieter de Waal (1798 Kuils River - 1870 Kuils River). Pieter de Waal and his wife Susanna Gertruida Louw had a large family, including notable descendants like politician David Christiaan de Waal. Arend (Jacobus) de Waal (c.1775 Kuils River - 1861 Kuils River) Maria Margaretha Bosman (1778 Stellenbosch - 1866 Kuils River) The dwelling house on the farm Langverwacht burned down at the beginning of the twentieth century. Langverwacht was originally granted in 1688 to French Huguenot Jean le Roux. From the late 1700s/early 1800s, ownership shifted multiple times. Pieter de Waal acquired both farms in the 19th century (he bought Langverwacht around 1829 and later Z...

Built: 1880 Source: Netwerk24 Location Notes The farmhouse was built in 1880. In 1928 the Bestbier family purchased the wine estate. The farm appears to have been  sold by public auction  on 8 July, 2025. Property description: Remainder of Portion 2 (a Portion of Portion 1) of the Farm Goede Hoop, No. 220 in the Stellenbosch Municipality, Stellenbosch Division, Western Cape Province. 155ha of which 58ha is vineyard. The improvements on the farm consist of a main dwelling, an office, a cellar with tasting room, a church, garages and twelve worker's houses. Source: Goede Hoop Wine Estate on FB

Architect: unidentified Date: unknown Style: Cape Dutch Revival Location Photos Source: Kuilsriver Online

Built: c.1750 Status: Demolished in c.1945 Photographer: Arthur Elliot, 1913. T-shaped plan. Sketch by Willem Malherbe. Source: Vassa History Saxenburg (also spelled Saxenborg in older records) is one of South Africa's oldest wine estates, located in the Polkadraai Hills area near Stellenbosch (close to Kuils River in the Western Cape). Its history spans over three centuries. In 1693 it was officially proclaimed as a farm when Governor Simon van der Stel granted the land to Joachim Sax, a Swedish free burgher (settler). This makes it one of the earliest privately owned farms in the Cape Colony after the VOC began releasing land to free burghers to boost agriculture and supply ships. In 1705 ownership passed to Oloff and Albertus Bergh (also Swedish-origin settlers), and the name "Saxenburg" emerged from these early owners and the Sax family connection. The first vines were planted around 1707, establishing it as a wine-producing farm. During the 1700s - 1980s the farm c...

Aka:  Kuilsrivier Laer Kleurling Skool, Die Blik Skooltjie, Die Hoogte Date:  1892 : 1908 : 1944 : 1949 Status: Demolished in 1970 * Not to be confused with Sarepta Primary School (Unidentified photographer) Notes According to the records in the Deeds office, JJ Hamman transferred two morgen, Erf 247, formerly Lot A as part of Lot G to the Trustee for Cape Colony of the Rhenish Mission Society of Barmen, Germany. His intention was for a school to be established which would be in closer proximity to the areas of Brackenfell and Bottelary from where children had to walk long distances to be educated at the already established schools at the time. Jacob Jacobus Hamman (c.1843 Kuils River - 1924 Brackenfell) The first school was called Die Blik Skooltjie because it was made of tin and wood. " Na 'n paar onsuksesvolle pogings in die sestigerjare van die negentiende eeu is in Augustus 1874 met 'n skool vir blanke leerlinge begin. Die koms van Charles Mathurin Villet in 1881 he...

Aka: Jan Krielskool Aerial view. Source: Jan Kriel Instituut Locality Notes Jan Kriel Skool (Jan Kriel School) in Kuils River is a special needs institution originally focused on children with epilepsy ("vallende siekte"). Rev. and Mrs. Kriel served as the pastoral couple of the Dutch Reformed (NG) Moedergemeente Kuilsriver from 1924 to 1937. Their beloved son Jan suffered from epilepsy, for which no effective treatment existed in South Africa at the time - Jan passed away in 1925. Their pioneering work led them to apply to the local NG Church to purchase the old parsonage (pastorie) and convert it into a home for people with epilepsy. Initially, the plan was not for a school but a residential "tehuis" (home/care facility). However, to secure state support, it had to be registered as a special school. The Union Education Department granted recognition on 1 April 1937, and Lady Duncan (wife of the Governor-General) officially opened it on 4 May 1937. Rapid gro...

Aka: Sky-Vue, Skyvue Ster Drive-In Designed by: Harris Engineering Works Built: 1956 Demolished: 1998 Locality: Van Riebeeck Road, Kuils River Notes The Skyvue Ster Drive-In (originally Skyvue) was Kuils River's iconic outdoor cinema, opening in 1956 as Cape Town's first drive-in theater and only the third in South Africa. Extensive research went into selecting the site on Van Riebeeck Road (on the former farm Monta Cristo, owned by Christiaan Nagel), with a key criterion being minimal misty weather to ensure clear projection onto the screen. The old farmhouse served as the projector room, supplemented by a roadhouse-style shop for refreshments. At launch, it accommodated 768 cars. Renamed Skyvue Ster Drive-In later (likely after affiliation with Ster-Kinekor), it thrived for decades as a nostalgic venue before closing in 1998 amid shifting entertainment trends and the rise of indoor cinemas. The site was later developed into Palma Villas and St Duma housing complexes. ...

Aka: Uniting Reform Church, Sarepta Built: 1843 Architect: Unidentified Status: Extant (Source: URC on Facebook) Timeline Location Notes The Rhenish Missionary Society (named after the Rhine River region in Germany) was one of the largest German missionary organizations, formed by amalgamating smaller missions dating back to 1799 and officially established on 23 September 1828. Its first ordained missionaries were dispatched to South Africa by year's end, where they began work in various towns, focusing on conversion to Christianity and community support. In 1829, the Society founded its first congregation in Stellenbosch, with Reverend Paul Daniel Lückhoff as the initial minister. Jana (Johanna) van den Berg (c.1800 - 1860), also known as Moeder Jana , was a formerly enslaved woman who, like many others emancipated in 1838, settled in the sandy dunes surrounding Kuils River - an informal community with little access to formal institutions. She became one of the earliest memb...

Built: 1880 : 1973 Architect: Unidentified Location Notes The railway line from Cape Town to Eerste River officially opened on 13 February 1862. It was extended to Stellenbosch (reached on 1 May 1862) and finally to Wellington (the railhead) on 4 November 1863. "Kuils River is no-where. It was but a mere stopping-place, itself called into existence by the conveyances of the times; when these were superseded, Kuils River's work was done. It would be folly to stop trains there, for there is nothing to stop for" . (Cape Argus, 1862) Initially, Kuils River was designated merely as a railway siding, with no scheduled stops for passenger trains - a decision that slowed the town's growth and limited its accessibility. Despite this, population and economic expansion continued, leading to the construction of a dedicated passenger station building in 1880. By 1885, Kuils River Station had been upgraded and designated as a telegram office, reflecting its growing imp...

Architect: Unidintified Date completed: 1957 Style: Cape Dutch Revival Location Notes " Thanks to an initial donation by Stella Weich, and the untiring energy of Mr Louis Hurwitz over a number of years, Kuils River can now be proud of a very fine new library built in the Old Cape Dutch style. It contains the largest audio-visual room of all the libraries, and with Gordon’s Bay, comes up to public library standards. " (1957) Louis Hurwitz was Chairman of the Kuils River Library committee. (late 1950s) In 1892 when Mr Pieter Francois de Wet became principal of Kuils River Primary School , the school consisted of two reasonably large classrooms (located on the premises of the current public library of Kuils River in Carinus Street). It was a thatched-roof building, without a ceiling. (Vermaak) " Tydens die inspeksie van April 1893 het mnr. Lee melding gemaak van die nuwe tweevertrekgebou, van die bevredigende beligting en ventilasie en van die netheid van beide klask...

Aka:  De Boss, De Kuilen, De Cuylen,  Kuilsrivier (Afrikaans) Established:  1680 Location Source: OpenMapTiles Timeline (In progress) History Early VOC days Kuils River, about 25 km east of Cape Town, has a rich history spanning indigenous habitation, colonial outpost, farming village, and modern urban expansion. The area was originally inhabited by the San (hunter-gatherers) for millennia, with fossils and archaeological evidence showing early human presence, followed by the Khoikhoi pastoralists around 2,000 years ago, who grazed cattle and sheep along the Eerste and Kuils rivers, establishing temporary kraals. European settlement began in the late 17th century under the Dutch East India Company (VOC). In 1680, Governor Simon van der Stel established a cattle post and refreshment station called De Boss (or De Kuijlen/De Cuylen), a halfway stop for travelers heading inland to fertile Stellenbosch and beyond. "Op 8 Januarie 1680 het Simon van der Stel besluit om 'n eenvou...