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THIS IS THE ARCHIVE FOR SAHRIS 1.0


THIS SITE IS NOW AN ARCHIVE AND IS NOT SUITABLE FOR MAKING APPLICATIONS

Please be aware that no content and application creation or changes to information on this version of SAHRIS will be retained.

To make applications or utilise SAHRIS for the creation of information, please use the new site:

https://sahris.org.za

Changes to SAHRIS!

The South African Heritage Resources Information System (SAHRIS) has undergone a generational upgrade and restructure. These changes to the site include, but are not limited to:

  • A new & modernised look and layout
  • Improved site usage flows with respect to applications and content creation
  • Improved site performance and stability

Launch for the new version of SAHRIS occurred on Monday the 30th of October 2023.

The new site can be found here:

SAHRIS | SAHRIS

9/2/030/0028

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28831

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Oak tree, Main Street, George

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Anonymous

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Post date: 07/08/2012
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Archive Import
History: On the Groote Wagen Weg from Swellendam via Mossel Bay to the east lies ""the prettiest little town in the world"" according to Anthony Trollope. The first traveller to be enraptured by this beautiful valley in the foothills of the Outeniqua Mountains was Francois le Vaillant; in 1780 he wrote: ""Here we were privileged to see the most beautiful land in the universe. In the distance we spied the mountain range covered in proud forests, that had cut off our horizon . . . below us lay the extensive valley, decorated by shapely hills alternating with count less undulating forms down to the sea.""
For more than fifty years this area was part of the district of Swellendam. The only established settlement was a Company’s post under the command of a Resident, and a beacon which is now exhibited in the entrance hall of the public library was erected there. The area from the Gouritz River to far beyond Plettenberg Bay and from the Swartberg range to the sea was proclaimed as a separate district by the Earl of Caledon on 23rd April, 1811. The Company’s post in ""Outeniqualand"" became the chief administrative centre and was renamed George in honour of King George III. Adrianus van Kervel was appointed as the first landdrost and it was he who laid out the new town round the Company’s post. He built a drostdy on the site now occupied by the Victoria Hotel and planted avenues of oaks along Courtenay, Meade and York streets. The oldest and finest surviving tree of these avenues in the historical centre of the town stands in front of the public library at the top of York Street; it is a proclaimed monument and recalls the earliest days of the history of George.
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