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The Kenhardt Lourenses
The Acquisition of N'Rougas-Suid |
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Kenhardt was declared a separate magisterial district in 1889 and it is probably for that reason that this date is considered the date of establishment of the town and the reason why the centenary was celebrated in the year 1989. Farms were then offered on a 40 year leasehold basis and there was great interest in this offer but the land could not be registered in their names until 1891.
The farm N'Rougas-Suid was originally of 18,334 morgen, 586 square roods and was surveyed by A.Moorrees and J J Bosman in 1884, and according to the title issued on the 29th June 1891 the farm,"lot number 6252 named N'Rougas -Suid" was publicly sold on the 9th August 1890 to Christoffel Petrus Johannes Louwrens for the sum of 1,385 Pounds". Although Oupa Stoffel had probably already been staying on the farm by then, I have taken this date 9 August 1890 as the date when for the first time he had the undisputed right of possession. It was as well that he stayed on the farm before then and according to a bible in the hands of Tant Elzabe he was already on the farm in 1887. The title in his favour was issued on the 29th June 1891. Oupa Stoffel was married to Elzabe Christina Jacoba Pieters, and when they arrived at the farm they had 3 children, namely Elzabe Christina Jacoba (ousus Ella) born on 11 August 1880, Jacobus Johannes Nicolaas (Oupa Koos) born on 14 January 1884 and Hermanus Jacobus (Oom Manie) born on 9 March 1886. A daughter born on the 1st May 1880 died on 11 August 1880 while a son who was born on 21st November 1889 lived only until 18th December 1889. Ousus Ella told her Aunt Elzabe that a hairy worm came in her linen and he died from infection. I do not know whether that is so. There are child graves on the farm and I suspect one is the baby's. If one of the other child graves is that of the baby daughter it means that they were all on the farm in 1880 - that is, before the farm was surveyed. |
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At that stage they had no house on the farm and stayed in front of the hill. I do not know what form the dwelling took but will guess that it almost certainly was a galvanised iron tent. It could possibly have been a wooden structure because the marks where the building stood are still visible and there are anchorages made from stones. The only remaining evidence of the fact that people stayed there is the calving shelter which is built against the hill and which still stands. |
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In those days the road between Kenhardt and Olyvenhoutsdrift (Upington) was considerably west of the old existing track between Upington and Kenhardt and passed the western part of the present farm house on N'Rougas-Suid. The first physician at Kenhardt was Dr Haarburton and he and the magistrate had from time to time to go to Upington to deal with the sick and epidemics. He was already in Kenhardt from the 1880s and was followed by a Dr Meyer in 1895. Oupa Stoffel suffered stomach fever and one day the magistrate and the doctor came along the road returning to Kenhardt from a visit to Olyvenhoutsdrift when Ouma Ellie stopped the doctor to hear whether he could do something for her husband. According to my father both the doctor and the magistrate were so drunk that they had no idea what was going on and the doctor did nothing for the old man. Oupa Stoffel was soon dead on 11 November 1890. Now I wonder whether this doctor who was so drunk was the same doctor Haarburton. After Oupa Stoffel's death Ouma Ella was appointed Testamentary Executrix in his will, and it is clear to me that he had a will although I could not trace it. Although there was a will, all the goods were sold. Ouma Ella bought the farm for 1380 pounds, 19 shillings and 9 pence, and bought many of the livestock. I noted that, in total, there were 32 horses, 1,343 sheep, 233 buck and 145 cattle sold. In her Deed of Transfer, which was written out in handwriting, Oupa Stoffel was written as Cristoffel Johannes Petrus Lourens or Christoffel Peterus Johannes Lourens and her name is written as Christina Jakoba Lourens born Piters - the only thing that was correctly spelt was the name of the farm. I don't know whether this wrong spelling was due to Ouma Ella's lack of schooling, or the lack of schooling of the Secretary who wrote the document, but the important error that was made was the final omission of the "w" from the spelling of the Lourens surname - and so it has remained. |
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