https://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/issue/feedToposcope2021-10-04T17:07:17+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.comOpen Journal Systems<p><em>Toposcope </em>(ISSN 1011-1948<em>) </em>is published annually by the Lower Albany Historical Society (LAHS) to reflect the Society's activities and the interests of its members and readership, concerning, but not limited to, the history of the Lower Albany area in the Eastern Cape. The journal, published since 1970, is produced by the Editorial Committee and is issued free of charge to members of the Lower Albany Historical Society. In 2019 the Lower Albany Historical Society celebrated their 60th year of existence.</p>https://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2379Editorial2021-10-04T14:53:45+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2396New Local Publications2021-10-04T17:07:17+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com<p>Local Publications:</p> <ul> <li>Children of Hope / Sandra Rowoldt Shell</li> <li>Nottinghamshire: Settlers and Locations in the Eastern Cape of Good Hope / Rob Smith</li> <li>1820 Settlers and other early British Settlers to the Cape Colony / edited by John Wilmot</li> <li>Cock tales on the Kowie / Sue Laburn Gordon in association with Ed Cock</li> </ul>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2395Editorial Policy2021-10-04T17:01:24+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2383Visit to Southwell and Kariega Baptist Church 20 May 20212021-10-04T16:03:00+00:00Yvonne Surteesdigitalcommons@ru.ac.za<p>On Thursday 20 May, 43 members set off from the Port Alfred Civic Centre at 9 am sharp to visit the old school and St James church in Southwell, where Moira Stirk kindly addressed us. This was followed by a visit to the historic Baptist Church in Kariega, where we were addressed by Hubert Webber, whose family has long been connected with the area.</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Yvonne Surteeshttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2384From their Southwell to ours2021-10-04T16:12:29+00:00Rob Smithdigitalcommons@ru.ac.za<p>Rob Smith of Southwell, Notts, England first happened upon the link between Nottinghamshire and our Ndlambe area while researching the history of the County House of Correction in the Notts Archives. Intrigued by the story of the Southwell 1820 settlement, he visited S Africa in 2016, meeting the Stirks of Southwell and some LAHS members.</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Rob Smithhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2385Farewell to Sally Poole2021-10-04T16:17:08+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2386Obituary: Graham Dickason (1936-2020)2021-10-04T16:21:02+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com<p>Graham was born in Johannesburg in 1936, attended Jeppe Boys High, worked in Foreign Audit, Rhodesia Railways, Bulawayo (1954-1957) and then went to London (1957-1960) where he worked for a private merchant bank. On his return he became PA to the Mining Director and an Investment Analyst at JCI (1960-1967). He was General Manager of MPF Investment, the mining industry pension fund (1967-1998) and was Chairman and co-founder of City Lodge Hotels, 1985-1994.</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2387Obituary: Merwynne Twentyman Jones2021-10-04T16:27:24+00:00Heather Howarddigitalcommons@ru.ac.za<p>One of this area’s most enthusiastic amateur genealogists and historians was lost to us when Merwynne Twentyman Jones died peacefully at Damant Lodge on 10 February 2021, aged 85.</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Heather Howardhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2388A member remembers2021-10-04T16:32:15+00:00Rolfe Matthewsdigitalcommons@ru.ac.za<p>Rolfe Matthews, an Honorary Member of LAHS, joined the Society on his retirement in 1997 and now lives in Bathurst. He is probably a descendant of William Matthews, the 1820 Settler who settled at Salem and was its schoolmaster, but Rolfe feels this lineage has not been properly confirmed. However, behind the church in Salem is a graveyard where a lady called 'Min' is buried. “Aunt Min was my Dad’s aunt and I think I still remember her,” says Rolfe. It seems too coincidental that the famous teacher Matthews and his wife are buried there, too.</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Rolfe Matthewshttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2389A brief history of the Xhosa Chiefs and King represented on cairns on Toposcope Monument, Bathurst2021-10-04T16:36:21+00:00Margaret Snodgrassdigitalcommons@ru.ac.za<p>A brief history of the Xhosa Chiefs and King represented on cairns on Toposcope Monument, Bathurst</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Margaret Snodgrasshttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2390The Bathurst Powder Magazine Project2021-10-04T16:42:06+00:00David Forsdykedigitalcommons@ru.ac.za2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 David Forsdykehttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2391Bicentennial Commemoration at Seven Fountains2021-10-04T16:45:06+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com<p>On 27 September 2020, along with representatives of local farming families and wellwishers, we were drawn to this Church to celebrate perhaps the only public settler Bicentennial Commemoration that took place in 2020, the year of Covid pandemic and lockdown. The event had been planned and organised by Graham Dickason, a direct descendant of widower Robert Dickason of the 1820 Latham Party.</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2392William John Burchell, multi-skilled polymath2021-10-04T16:48:53+00:00Roger Stewartdigitalcommons@ru.ac.za<p>Two hundred and ten years ago, 29-year-old William John Burchell stepped on to the wooden jetty near Cape Town's Castle and immediately started planning his journey of scientific exploration of southern Africa. This would take four years, mostly by ox-wagon, and cover 7000km. On 19 June 1811, he departed Cape Town '’with a mind free from prejudice'’ and “solely for the purpose of acquiring knowledge” …He travelled to about 150 km north of Kuruman, explored the Ky-Gariep (Vaal) River and returned to Cape Town via Graaff-Reinet, the mouth of the Great Fish River, Uitenhage, Mossel Bay and Swellendam...</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Roger Stewarthttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2393The bridges over the river Kei2021-10-04T16:52:41+00:00William Martinsondigitalcommons@ru.ac.za<p>The article is the outcome of the author's long-standing interest in the number and variety of bridges that were built within a short section of the Great Kei River at Victoria Drift - in close proximity to the village of Komgha - over a 100-year period. The particular bridges under scrutiny - with their dates of construction - are as follows:</p> <ul> <li>Temporary Military Bridge, 1877 (no longer extant)</li> <li>Lattice Girder Wagon Bridge, 1879</li> <li>Timber Railway Bridge, 1905 (only foundations remaining)</li> <li>Relocated Lattice Girder Railway Bridge, 1948</li> <li>N2 SANRAL Concrete Bridge, 1977.</li> </ul>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 William Martinsonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2394Trauma and slavery, Gilo and the soft, subtle shackles of Lovedale2021-10-04T16:58:01+00:00Sandra Rowoldt Shelldigitalcommons@ru.ac.za<p>A recent study of sixty-four Oromo slave children from the Horn of Africa has provided valuable information of the children’s experiences from capture to the coast. In 1888 a British warship liberated a consignment of Oromo child slaves in the Red Sea and took them to Aden. A year later, a further group of liberated Oromo slave children joined them at a Free Church of Scotland mission at Sheikh Othman, just north of Aden. Two of the missionaries learnt Afaan Oromo (the children’s language), and, with the assistance of three fluent Afaan Oromo speakers, they conducted structured interviews with each child asking for details of their experiences of their first passage i.e. the journey from cradle to the Red Sea coast. When a number of the children died within a short space of time, the missionaries had to find another institution with a healthier climate to prevent further deaths. They decided to ship the Oromo children to the Lovedale Institution in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.</p>2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sandra Rowoldt Shellhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2382Erratum2021-10-04T15:55:32+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2381Chairman's Report for the year 2020-20212021-10-04T15:01:43+00:00Gwyn Crothallgwynn@crothall.co.za2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Gwyn Crothallhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2380LAHS Committee 2020-20212021-10-04T14:58:44+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordonhttps://journal.ru.ac.za/index.php/toposcope/article/view/2378Front-matter2021-10-04T14:48:18+00:00Sue Gordonsuelaburngordon@gmail.com2021-10-04T00:00:00+00:00Copyright (c) 2021 Sue Gordon