71-458: Thomas Charles John Bain (29 September 1830, in Graaff-Reinet – 29 September 1893) was a South African road engineer . As a prolific road building pioneer, Bain was responsible for the planning and construction of more than 900 km of roads and mountain passes, many of them still in use today, over a career spanning from 1848 until 1888. These passes through the mountain ranges between
142-541: A golden canton bearing a double-headed black eagle. An anchor was placed behind the shield. The British authorities discontinued the drostdy seals in 1814, and replaced them with the royal coat of arms. In September 1911, the Graaff Reinet municipal council adopted the Van de Graaff arms, complete with crest (a double-headed black eagle), supporters (two black eagles) and motto ( Dieu mon conduise ). The coat of arms
213-416: A local government authority. The production of specialised agricultural seed is the biggest contributor to the region's wealth today, but ostrich farming remains an important business. Through late 2004 to late 2005, South Africa lost R700 million in exports as a result of an avian flu outbreak, which also cost the ostrich industry 26,000 birds and 400 employees. The business arm of the ostrich industry,
284-415: A result 38,000 ostriches were culled. The European Union , which had been responsible for 90% of South Africa's ostrich meat exports, banned the import of South African ostrich meat. This resulted in financial difficulties for the region's ostrich farms. Farmers were offered financial compensation by the government in the form of R2,000 for each ostrich culled (about 80% of its worth) but this compensation
355-643: A result of a protest against them. Following that incident, the powers of the ANC's sub-regional politicians in Oudtshoorn were suspended, pending an investigation. The municipal by-elections in August, 2013, resulted in the ANC losing its majority in the municipality of Oudtshoorn. The Democratic Alliance (DA) obtained 12 seats, which, with its alliance partner Congress of the People (COPE), meant that it had secured
426-632: A result, Oudtshoorn came to be known as "the Jerusalem of Africa". Two synagogues were built, the first in 1888 and the second in 1896, and the first South African Hebrew school was established in Oudtshoorn in 1904. In 1891, Oudtshoorn's population had grown to 4,386 persons. The ostrich industry recovered slowly, owing in part to the Second Anglo-Boer War of 1899 to 1902. Boer forces under Commandant Gideon Scheepers were sighted near Oudtshoorn on 25 August 1901, but moved on because
497-402: A silver shield displaying, from top to bottom, a golden merino ram's head on a black stripe with an embattled edge, a pair of silver compasses on a green chevron, and an upright black spade. The crest was a double-headed black eagle, and the motto was Monemus et minimus . Oudtshoorn Oudtshoorn ( / ˈ aʊ t s h ɔːr n / , Afrikaans pronunciation: [ˈəutsˌɦuərən] )
568-472: A total population of 13,229. This made it the 21st largest settlement in South Africa, a decline of 2 places from the 1911 census when it was recorded as the 19th largest settlement. C. J. Langenhoven , the town's most famous inhabitant, rose to prominence during the post-collapse period. Considered by many to be one of the fathers of Afrikaans , Langenhoven was a prodigious writer who provided much of
639-496: Is a town in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa . It is the oldest town in the province and the fifth oldest town in South Africa, after Cape Town , Stellenbosch , Simon's Town , Paarl and Swellendam . The town was the centre of a short-lived republic in the late 18th century. The town was a starting point for Great Trek groups led by Gerrit Maritz and Piet Retief and furnished large numbers of
710-665: Is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa , located between the Swartberg mountains to the north and the Outeniqua Mountains to the south. Dubbed the "ostrich capital of the world", Oudtshoorn is known for its ostrich-feather booms, during 1865–1870 and 1900–1914. With approximately 60,000 inhabitants, it is the largest town in the Klein Karoo region. The town's economy is primarily reliant on
781-557: Is generally accepted as the launch of the industry in South Africa. By 1870, feather auctions were being held in Mossel Bay. In 1875, the census counted the town's population to be 1,837. Between 1875 and 1880, ostrich prices reached up to GBP 1,000 a pair. The value of ostrich feathers, per pound, equaled almost that of diamonds. The farmers of the region, realising that ostriches were far more profitable than any other activity, ripped out their other crops and planted lucerne , which
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#1732772212907852-922: Is influenced by the architecture of Salisbury Cathedral in England. The town is also home to tourist sites such as The Valley of Desolation, Camdeboo National Park and the Reinet House Museum, a Cape Dutch building, formerly the Dutch Reformed Church parsonage. In the South African National Census of 2011 , the population of Graaff-Reinet and the township of uMasizakhe was recorded as 35,672, which included 8,393 households. 62.2% of these residents described themselves as " Coloured " an identity that Khoi communities were coerced into accepting, 28.2% as " Black African ", and 8.7% as " White ". The dominant language
923-522: Is named after then-governor of the Cape Colony , Cornelis Jacob van de Graaff , and his wife. The town was originally established as a trading post to expand trading inland from the Cape Colony. In 1795, the town's burghers, who were annoyed by company taxation, proclaimed themselves to be the independent "Colony of Graaff-Reinet". The burghers then requested guardianship from the government of
994-778: Is the site of 45 Air School used for training in World War II from 11 November 1940 to 20 August 1945. Known as RAF Oudtshoorn, it operated under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan , flying Airspeed Oxford , Avro Anson and Fairey Battle 41 aircraft. Providing Air Observer (Type B) training, it trained aircrew from all over the Commonwealth in navigation, bombing, and air gunnery. Since 1998 Test Flying Academy of South Africa (TFASA) operates here (initially founded as National Test Pilot School of South Africa - NTPS SA). Oudtshoorn
1065-607: Is the start of the Route 62 wine route. Award-winning South African Port style wines are produced in the area surrounding Oudsthoorn. Oudtshoorn and De Rust are managed by Greater Oudtshoorn Tourism, whose tourism office is centrally situated in Voortrekker Road, next to the CP Nel Museum. Tourist attractions in Oudtshoorn and the surrounding areas include: The area is also famed for its biodiversity, as it
1136-764: The Cape Colony , peace was soon restored. In February 1803, due to the 1802 signing of the Treaty of Amiens , the British returned the Cape Colony to the Netherlands, then named the Batavian Republic. On 13 August 1814 the Cape Colony was formally ceded to Britain by a convention under which Dutch vessels were entitled to resort freely to the Cape of Good Hope for the purposes of refreshment and repairs. Britain agreed on 13 August 1814 to pay five million sterling to
1207-570: The Cape Town castle . After trial, Prinsloo and another commandant were sentenced to death. Other conspirators were sentenced to exile. The sentences were not carried out and the prisoners were released in March 1803, on the retrocession of the Cape to the Netherlands . In 1801, there was another revolt in Graaff Reinet, but due to the measures of General Francis Dundas , the acting governor of
1278-575: The Voortrekkers in 1835–1842. Graaff-Reinet is home to more national monuments than any other town or city in South Africa. It is also known for being a flourishing market for agricultural produce, noted for its mohair industry, and sheep and ostrich farming. Graaff-Reinet was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1786, after Cape Town in 1652, Stellenbosch in 1679, Paarl in 1687 and Swellendam in 1745. The town
1349-607: The "urgent wishes of [his] neighbors", C.P. Rademeyer requested permission from the Cape government to turn his farm, Hartebees River, into a town, which he would name after Baron Pieter van Rheede van Oudtshoorn . On 12 August 1847, it was announced in the Government Gazette that a number of wet and dry plots from the Hartebees River would be auctioned on 15 November of that year. The terms of sale stipulated that each plot owner or resident could use 1/500 of
1420-417: The 1800s. His father built eight during the first half of the same century. One of the few passes in South Africa not built by a Bain during that period was Montagu Pass from George to Oudtshoorn , which was built in 1843–47 by Henry Fancourt White , a road engineer from Australia . Bain's first road construction project as newly promoted Roads Inspector was Grey's Pass (renamed Piekenierskloof pass after it
1491-490: The Cape Colony) introduced an ambitious road building program. Their goal was achieved by the father-and-son combination of Andrew and Thomas Bain, whose civil engineering prowess effected a quantum leap in the quality and range of the road network of the 19th-century Cape Colony. Thomas served his apprenticeship from 1848 to 1854 as his father's assistant in the capacity of Assistant Inspector of Roads. In this capacity he
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#17327722129071562-563: The DA via legal cases funded through municipal funds, which DA Oudtshoorn caucus leader Christiaan MacPherson stated in July, 2014, had cost R13 million. The provincial leader for the DA, Helen Zille , speculated also that the ANC had been siphoning funds from the Cango Caves trust fund to finance the legal actions. John Stoffels, the Oudtshoorn speaker for the ANC, was ordered to pay the costs of
1633-713: The Institution of Civil Engineers. Bain's crowning achievement was the Swartberg Pass that connects Oudtshoorn , the largest town in the Little Karoo, with Prince Albert beyond the Swartberg mountains in the open plains of the Great Karoo. Construction on the scenic 24 km long Swartberg pass started in 1884 and was completed in 1887. Bain was assisted by another road engineer, John Tassie, who built
1704-602: The Klein Karoo Group, stated that the recent ban on exports resulted in an increase of about 500% in local sales. Most ostrich farms recovered from the outbreak and continued to operate. In April, 2011, a strain of bird flu, H5N2, broke out in Oudtshoorn. As a member of the World Organisation for Animal Health , South Africa was required under international law to slaughter infected birds that belonged to farms which had tested positive for bird flu; as
1775-449: The Netherlands. Similar action was subsequently taken by the burghers of Swellendam . Before the authorities at Cape Town could take decisive measures against the rebels, they were compelled to capitulate to the British who had invaded and occupied the Cape. In January 1799, Marthinus Prinsloo , a leader of the 1795 independence movement, rebelled again but surrendered the following April. Prinsloo and nineteen others were imprisoned in
1846-473: The Oudtshoorn and Kannaland regions due to the "rampant municipal mismanagement". In July, 2014, Western Cape Finance MEC Ivan Meyer , and Local Government MEC Anton Bredell , probed claims that the Cango Caves trust fund was being misused for municipal purposes. It was claimed that more than R16 million had been moved from the accounts, which were intended for maintenance and infrastructure development of
1917-680: The Road Department and accepted the position of Irrigation and Geological Surveyor of the (Cape) Colony. His prolific career with the Road Department resulted in a remarkable heritage of some of the most scenic and impressive mountain passes in South Africa. He continued his prolific work tempo in his new capacity until his death. During his tenure he designed and completed a large reservoir, the Verkeerdevlei reservoir, amongst other projects. Graaff-Reinet Graaff-Reinet ( Afrikaans: ['χrɑːf rɛɪnɛt] ; Xhosa : eRhafu)
1988-661: The Secretary of the Central Road Board. Georgina Bain (16 November 1860 Knysna – 6 December 1954), one of his daughters, married the Conservator of Forests, Joseph Storr Lister (1 October 1852 Cape Town – 27 February 1927, and wrote Reminiscences of Georgina Lister . In order to cross the coastal mountain ranges of the former Cape Colony, Charles Michell (Surveyor-General, Civil Engineer and Superintendent of Works) and John Montagu (British Colonial Secretary for
2059-536: The South") was issued there. The end of World War II opened new markets for ostrich leather and meat, and as a result the industry eventually recovered. In the 1940s, two justices of the peace, Ludolph Niepoth Jr. and John O'Connell, were appointed for the Olifants and Grobbelaars rivers, respectively. However, this only relieved the most pressing judicial concerns, and the government was consequently forced to create
2130-538: The United Netherlands for the Dutch possession at the Cape. The Cape Colony received a degree of independence in 1872 when " Responsible Government " was declared in South Africa. In 1877, the government of Prime Minister John Molteno began construction of the railway line connecting Graaff-Reinet to Port Elizabeth on the coast. This railway was officially opened on 26 August 1879. Graaff Reinet became
2201-574: The area necessitated an extensive and economically significant train system, which was developed in the 1930s. Despite the periodic irreparability of the Cradock Pass and Attakwaskloof in the Outeniqua Mountains, a reputable trade developed between the inhabitants north and south of the range. There was also trade with Cape Town, but its scope is uncertain; in any case, the poor state of the passes Attakwaskloof and Caledonkloof, through
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2272-462: The area that would be known as Oudtshoorn arrived in the 1750s, and became well-established in the area by the end of the 18th century. In addition to rearing livestock, they cultivated wheat and barley, made wine and brandy, and grew tobacco as well as a variety of soft fruit. As market opportunities in neighbouring districts such as George and Mossel Bay developed, the economic benefit of mixed farming came to be understood and utilized. Initially,
2343-603: The caves. The ANC and its political allies had yet to hand over control of the municipality to the DA and the COPE by July 2014. The DA, AfriForum, and the Oudtshoorn ratepayers association together filed a request with the Western Cape High Court that DA councillors who had been suspended be reinstated, and that the ANC mayor, speaker and town managers surrender their offices to the DA and COPE. In October, 2014, Francois Human, Director of Corporate Services for
2414-611: The centre of British military operations for the Eastern Cape during the Second Boer War . In 1901, a number of captured Boer rebels were tried in the town for crimes ranging from high treason , murder, attempted murder, arson and robbery. Nine were sentenced to death, with eight of these being executed by firing squad on the outskirts of the town, while the ninth sentence was carried out in Colesberg. A monument stands in
2485-586: The dreaded river crossing at Kaaimansgat which early travelers described with trepidation. This project was followed by a series of passes across the Langeberg and Outeniqua mountain ranges. These passes include the Robinson, Tradouw , Garcia and Burgers Passes as well as the Kogmanskloof road. Then followed the 185 km Tsitsikama road, linking the western and eastern portions of the Cape Colony through
2556-478: The first British settlers settled in the area. The settlement's growth was constrained by the limited supply of water in the area. In the early years, water was transported to the town in barrels, which were sold for sixpence per bucket. Forced to cope with the lack of water, many of South Africa's earliest irrigation experts hailed from the region. The local economy came to be based primarily upon tobacco and ostrich farming. A severe drought in 1865 persuaded many of
2627-478: The foundation for further socio-economic development. Farmer Cornelis P. Rademeyer was persuaded by residents in 1838 to make some of his farmland along the Hartebees River available for the construction of the first church in the area. On Sunday, 3 November 1839, the new Dutch Reformed church was inaugurated. For the next 40 years, it formed the center of congregational life in the area. Oudtshoorn gradually grew around this church. During September 1847, following
2698-474: The government to have the servitude struck. Civil commissioner Aspeling van George recommended that the original servitude be amended so that water from the river could be led across the farm Grobbelaars River to Hartebees River for irrigation purposes. In 1848, Oudtshoorn was officially founded. The founding of Oudtshoorn provided a central service area situated between the Swart and Outeniqua mountains, and by
2769-401: The highest-quality feathers cost more than $ 32 a pound in 2012 prices. Ostrich feathers were outranked only by gold, diamonds and wool among South African exports before World War I . The market collapsed in 1914, according to The Chicago Tribune , as a result of "the start of World War I, overproduction and the popularity of open-topped cars, which made ostrich-feather hats impractical." 80% of
2840-569: The indigenous forests of the coastal plain. This road involved the crossing of major ravines, including the Grootriver, Bobbejaansriver, Bloukransriver and Stormsriver gorges. In March 1873 Bain was appointed as district engineer in the Railway Department. Due to a lack of a suitable candidate to fill the position in the Road Department that he vacated, he rejoined the Road Department after 18 months. In 1877 he became an Associate of
2911-613: The industry by 2013. The first positive case of a bird flu in South Africa since 2011 was confirmed in April, 2013 on a farm near Oudtshoorn, as the H7N1 virus. Between the H5N2 virus outbreak of 2011 and the H7N1 virus outbreak of 2013, roughly 50,000 ostriches had been culled. The Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Senzeni Zokwana , said in October, 2014 that the outbreaks "in
Thomas Charles John Bain - Misplaced Pages Continue
2982-492: The last 6 km of the road leading out of the mountain pass into Prince Albert. At the same time, Bain was also in charge of the construction of the Schoemanspoort pass that connects the Swartberg pass with Oudtshoorn. Bain's last road building project was the construction of Victoria road in 1887 that connects Cape Town with Camps Bay across the neck between Table Mountain and Signal Hill. In 1888 Bain resigned from
3053-491: The legal actions brought on behalf of the ANC because he had refused to convene council meetings to avoid motions of no confidence against the ruling party. The ANC began to suspend DA councilors on absenteeism charges. A court order prevented the DA from bringing a motion of no confidence against the ANC, Independent Civic Organisation of South Africa and National Peoples Party executive. On 10 April 2014, AfriForum indicated that it had requested Helen Zille's intervention in
3124-412: The legal and administrative burdens on slave owners. For these reasons, with its founding in April 1811, the magisterial district of George subsumed Oudtshoorn. In the 1810s, due to the obstacles south and west of the area, trade contacts with developing towns to the east and north of Oudtshoorn unfolded instead. By the 1830s, the settlers' subsistence farming had transformed into a market economy, laying
3195-825: The literature that formed the backbone of the Afrikaans language during its early development. The Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees ("Little Karoo National Arts Festival"), better known as the KKNK, is South Africa's largest Afrikaans language arts festival, and takes place in the town on a yearly basis. The oldest church is the original Dutch Reformed Church , which is situated on the corner of Church Street and High Street. Other churches include, Apostolic Faith Mission , Anglican , Presbyterian , Baptist , Roman Catholic ( Roman Catholic Diocese of Oudtshoorn ) and other traditional churches. In recent years,
3266-568: The municipality for itself. On 1 October 2013, George Kersop on behalf of human rights organisation AfriForum laid charges of corruption, fraud, and financial mismanagement against Ronnie Lottering, the acting Municipal Manager of Oudtshoorn, various officials, and members of the public, with the Hawks, the counter-corruption unit of the South African Police Service (SAPS). The ANC delayed transfer of municipal power to
3337-739: The municipality of Oudtshoorn, compiled allegations against his ANC colleagues, such as incidents of corruption, bribery and intimidation, and forwarded them to political leaders, the South African Revenue Service (SARS), the Special Investigations Unit and the SAPS. According to the 2011 census , Oudtshoorn had 61,507 inhabitants—17,640 in Bridgeton, 14,724 in Bongolethu and 29,143 in the rest of
3408-768: The number of independent churches (also referred to as non-denominational churches ) have grown. Independent Churches include the Joshua Generation Church , The Vineyard and the Oudtshoorn Community Church . Apart from the many high schools in Oudtshoorn, there are also independent tertiary educational institutions, including the South Cape College . The Oudtshoorn army base houses the South African Infantry School . The Oudtshoorn airport
3479-437: The ostrich farmers were bankrupted, and the ostriches were set loose or slaughtered for biltong. Domesticated ostriches numbered 314,000 at the end of World War I, but had plummeted to 32,000 by 1930. The Jewish population of Oudtshoorn fell from 1,073 in 1918 to 555 in 1936, and only continued to dwindle. For 40 years, Oudtshoorn had been the most important settlement east of Cape Town. The successful agriculture pursuits in
3550-555: The ostrich farming and tourism industries. Oudtshoorn is home to the world's largest ostrich population, with a number of specialised ostrich breeding farms, such as the Safari Show Farm and the Highgate Ostrich Show Farm , as stated by Pierre D. Toit. Bhongolethu is a township 10 km (6 mi) east of Oudtshoorn. Derived from Xhosa , its name means "our pride". The pioneer farmers in
3621-451: The past few years" had cost the country R4 billion. In the years leading up to the 2013 municipal by-elections, Oudtshoorn had been subject to long-standing "acrimonious political battles" and the municipality was also being investigated by a Special Investigating Unit over allegations of malpractice and corruption. On 30 April 2013, Marius Fransman and other African National Congress (ANC) party members were forced to leave Oudtshoorn as
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#17327722129073692-488: The pioneer farmers in the area fell under the administrative and legal sphere of Swellendam , but in fact George was the closest that inhabitants had to government headquarters. By the 1820s, the increasing population along the Olifants River and in the valleys of its tributaries increased the need for more local administrative and especially judicial supervision; especially the 1809 Hottentot Proclamation increased
3763-501: The roads in the region at the time, the costs of accommodation, as well as the continuing lack of farm workers. Private tutors solved the problem of transport and accommodation, and allowed the children to continue to help with farm work. In 1853, the Dutch Reformed church was officially established as a kerkplaats (church farm). Oudtshoorn was proclaimed as its own, separate magisterial district in 1858. In that same year,
3834-551: The same. The divisional council, i.e. the local authority for the rural areas outside the town, assumed its own coat of arms, had it granted by the provincial administrator in July 1966 and registered it at the Bureau of Heraldry in January 1969. The arms were: Argent, on a chevron Vert. a pair of compasses expanded Argent, in base a spade erect Sable, on a chief embattled Sable a merino ram's head caboshed Or . In layman's terms,
3905-458: The settlers to move to the Transvaal . The 1865 census indicated that Oudtshoorn had a population of 1,145. Oudtshoorn's ostrich industry dates back to 1864. The main reason for the surge in Oudtshoorn's prosperity was the ostrich , whose feathers had become fashionable accessories among European nobility. Feather exports saw a sharp increase from the Cape Colony during the mid-1860s, which
3976-520: The thin coastal plain and the interior of the former Cape Colony in South Africa, played a major role in opening up the vast hinterland of South Africa. Bain was born in 1830 at Graaff Reinet, at that stage a frontier town in the Cape Colony in Southern Africa. His father, Andrew Geddes Bain , was born in Scotland and settled in the Cape Colony in 1816 at the age of 19. Bain and his six brothers and six sisters were educated largely at home like most settlers' children of that period. The children's education
4047-409: The time that the first resident magistrate, Colonel A.B. Armstrong, arrived in 1855, the settlement had spread over a mile and a half. It was not until December 1847 that a Thomas Harris started the first state-supported "Farmers' School" next to the Grobbelaars River. Prior to that, even the most prosperous inhabitants employed private tutors, the use of which was forced upon them by the poor state of
4118-468: The town to commemorate these fallen Boers. The town lies 750 metres (2,460 ft) above sea level and is built on the banks of the Sundays River , which rises a little further north on the southern slopes of the Sneeuberge , and splits into several channels here. The town is home to a number of tourist attractions, including the Dutch Reformed church in the town, which is a prominent stone building with seating to accommodate 1,500 people. The building
4189-421: The town was well defended. A second and bigger boom started after the war. It was during this period that "feather barons", ostrich farmers who had become rich, built most of Oudtshoorn's famously opulent "feather palaces", their houses, most of them on the west bank of the Grobbelaars River. The town grew even more, and in 1904 it claimed 8,849 residents in the census. This boom peaked in 1913, during which year
4260-400: The town's misery was compounded when it was hit by severe flooding during the same year, which washed away the nearby Victoria Bridge, which had been built over the Olifants River only the year before. The boom had attracted a large Jewish immigrant population of about 100 families, most of them Lithuanians from the towns of Kelme and Shavel, who were fleeing from the Tsarist pogroms. As
4331-421: The town. 70.9% of the population described themselves as " Coloured ", 15.3% as " White " and 12.5% as " Black African ". The predominant language is Afrikaans , spoken as the home language of 87.8% of inhabitants, while 7.4% speak Xhosa and 2.6% speak English . In the 1936 Census 6,512 were described as European, 6,411 described as Coloured, 22 as Asiatic, and 284 described as Native or Bantu resulting in
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#17327722129074402-415: The transverse mountains on either side of the Gamka River , had a disruptive effect on trade with Cape Town. During World War II , 500 Polish orphans along with 38 Polish childcare workers were admitted in Oudtshoorn in 1943 (see Poland–South Africa relations ). Two Polish elementary schools were established there, for boys and girls, respectively, and the Polish newspaper Krzyż Południa ("Cross of
4473-420: The water in the Grobbelaars River, and reserved certain preferential rights in this respect for the original owners. However, the title deed issued to Rademeyer on 8 March 1832 had included the following servitude : "irrigation shall be effected by the river called Grobbelaars River." This servitude effectively excluded the entire would-be town from the use of the river's water. Rademeyer successfully applied to
4544-449: Was Afrikaans , which was the first language of 76.0% of the population. 18.9% spoke Xhosa , and 3.6% spoke English . In 1804, when the Cape Colony was ruled by the Batavian Republic , the government assigned armorial seals to each of the drostdyen, i.e. administrative districts. Graaff Reinet was given the arms of its founder, Cornelis Jacob van de Graaff , namely a silver shield displaying two black stripes with embattled edges, and
4615-456: Was also affected. Other farmers resorted to heat-treating the ostrich meat, which killed the virus but also reduced its price on the market. As of January 2012, Oudtshoorn's population of more than 200,000 ostriches was the world's largest, and accounted for 80% of the world's ostrich products. The ostrich industry in the Oudtshoorn region had directly employed 20,000 people, and generated R2,1 billion per year. 50% of ostrich farmers had left
4686-420: Was interrupted by the outbreak of the War of the Axe in 1846, one of several frontier wars that raged during that era. Thomas served as a volunteer in the war and helped to guard women and children who sheltered in the church of the frontier town of Fort Beaufort. He married Johanna Hermina de Smidt in 1854. They had 13 children and enjoyed a long and happy marriage. Johanna was the ninth child of Willem de Smidt,
4757-402: Was involved in the construction of Michell's Pass near Ceres and Bainskloof pass near Wellington . After passing first in the Government examinations in 1854, he was promoted to Roads Inspector for the Western Province. Thomas and his father's careers as road builders continued to be intertwined until Andrew's death in 1864. Bain built 24 major mountain roads and passes in the second half of
4828-419: Was not enough; they were forced to fire employees, whose UIF (unemployment) benefits were depleted by December, 2011. The shortage of birds would also affect factories which depended on ostrich farming. Some ostrich farms managed to survive by selling ostrich feathers and leather, but the industry was losing R108 million monthly, and had lost R1,2 billion in total between April, 2011, and January, 2012. Tourism
4899-412: Was re-designed in the 1980s, and registered at the Bureau of Heraldry in May 1979. The arms were now: Argent, two bars embattled counter-embattled Gules, on a canton Sable an anchor erect Or (i.e. the bars were changed from black to red, and the canton to a gold anchor on a black background). The crest was differenced by placing a golden anchor on the eagle's breast. The supporters and motto remained
4970-416: Was reconstructed in 1958), completed in 1858, that opened up the Olifantsriver valley to the Swartland and the Cape Town market. One of Bain's major achievements was the construction of the road on the coastal plain between George and the forestry town of Knysna . The project was started in 1867 and took 15 years to complete. This road linked Knysna to the more developed areas towards Cape Town and replaced
5041-405: Was used as feed for the ostriches. By 1877, feather auctions were also being held in Oudtshoorn itself. The rising wealth also finally allowed for the completion of the Dutch Reformed Church, which was opened on 7 June 1879. Such was the worth of the white ostrich feather, that it was dubbed "white gold". Owing to overproduction, the ostrich industry experienced a sudden slump in fortunes in 1885;
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