[edit]
Pre-colonisation[edit]
From remains found in a cave, we know that people lived in this cave between 100 AD and 500 AD. These people were known as the Late Stone Age people. They had no metal tools or weapons and used stone to make whatever implements they needed. They were gatherers of wild plants, shellfish and the seabirds and animals that were washed ashore. They also hunted and fished using hooks fashioned from bones and nets made from fibrous plants and the skins of animals.
The Khoi-Khoi and Bushmen were descendants of the late Stone Age people. They were called Khoi-Khoi because of the clicking sounds contained within their language. The Khoi-Khoi were also called Strandlopers because they gathered food from the beaches. Some people also referred to them as Kaapmans, Men from the Cape. The Khoikhoi were gatherers, hunters and herders, which meant that apart from gathering and hunting for food, they also possessed large herds of cattle and sheep. They lived in huts made of restio mats tied to a Beehive shape frame made of pliable poles. The Khoi often set up camp in Hout Bay. The names Hotnotshuisie and Oudekraal originated from the days when the Khoi camped in these places. The Khoi traded with the early voyagers from Europe who were on their way to the East and had stopped at the Cape in order to get fresh food and water. The Khoi bartered with these early sailors exchanging cattle and sheep for small pieces of copper, brass and tin.[citation needed]
Some hunting tools used by the Khoikhoi people
The first written account of Hout Bay dates to 1607 when John Chapman, masters mate on the English boat, the "Consent" which was becalmed at the entrance to the Bay, was sent in the ship's pinnace at dusk on a chancy venture because Hout Bay was unknown wild country and the time was late afternoon which would make it difficult for him to find the Consent in the darkness. [citation needed]
Recorded in the Rutter (Logbook) by the pilot, John Davis: "Chapman’s Chaunce hath in latitude 34-10 and is a harbour which Leith within the south-west point under a little hill like charring cross (a sculptured memorial of a cross on an ornamental mounting in London) close hanging by the seaside of the S.S.W side of the land " Chapmans Chaunce was the first name given to Hout Bay and it was also the first English name to appear on the maps of Southern Africa.[citation needed]
In 1614 an English sailor records having taken wood from the forest of Hout Bay in order to mend his ship.[citation needed]
Dutch colony[edit]
When the Dutch established a colony in Table Bay in 1652, a great quantity of good timber was required for construction, shipbuilding and other purposes. There was no large forest in the immediate vicinity of the settlement, mainly because the rainfall was not high enough. It was soon apparent that the colonists would be able to fell wood they needed in the wetter valley that lay on the other side of a low pass (now called Constantia Nek) between the southern end of Table Mountain and Constantiaberg. Van Riebeeck described the forest of Hout Bay as being the finest in the world. It was Van Riebeeck who gave Hout Bay its present name. In 1652 on 22 November Van Riebeeck wrote in his journal about T’ Houtbaaitjen. Since then it has been known as Hout Bay.
In 1662, the year when Jan Van Riebeeck left the Cape, the Boscheuwel road was extended from Kirstenbosch in a rough track over Constantia Nek to Hout Bay.
In 1668 the first permit to cut and saw wood in the Hout Bay forest was granted. In 1677 the first agreement to rent land for farming purposes was signed. In 1681 two farms were established Ruyteplatts and Kronendal.
March, at Fort de Goede Hoop, 1677
Because His Excellency, the High Indian Council, has strictly forbidden any disobedience to the orders issued, and violators will face such penalties as will be clearly stated in a forthcoming decree, it is necessary—due to the high consumption of rice and its limited availability—to begin reducing the daily allotments.
Given these circumstances, and suspecting abuse among the garrison, it has been decided that the rice ration will be cut from 20 pounds to 10 pounds beyond their standard allowance, and the remaining will be provided for cash payment.
To ensure proper distribution, the city officials are to urgently compile an accurate list of all those in need and present it at the next meeting, where special attention will be given. Those who have their own grain and are considered able to support their households without rice are to be excluded from the distribution entirely.
In order to continue essential agriculture and revive idle farming activity (blessed by very favorable weather), herders will be granted assistance of 2 to 3 Dutch workers of their own choosing, provided they feed and house them at their own cost—as is the practice with hired or borrowed help.
Furthermore, following serious recommendations from our superiors in the Netherlands, and in order to promote agriculture, it has been approved that Willem Schelck and Pieter van der Westhuijsen, both diligent and capable farmers, are to receive a loan of land in Hout Bay for 12 years, as much as they are able to manage.
They must cultivate the land yearly and pay one-tenth of the harvest or profit to the Company. If the land turns out to be unproductive due to no fault of their own, they will be excused from this obligation, as if the Company itself had suffered the loss.
Additionally, they are allowed to graze up to 30 of their own sheep on the land, and the sea route must remain open for future trade. These are the conditions under which they have accepted the land.[citation needed]
Forts[edit]
In 1781 the French built three forts at Hout Bay. These were part of a line of forts known as the French lines that were built in order to protect the Cape from falling into the hands of the English. The west fort at the harbour dates from this time. In the latter half of the 19th century, the farms Moddergat, Nooitgedacht, Oakhurst and Uitkyk were established.
Fort Klein Gibraltar
East Fort of today
East Fort of old
Manganese mine[edit]
In 1873, manganese was discovered in the Constantiaberg. In 1909 to 1911 manganese was mined in Hout Bay. Reminders of these activities are the ruins of the manganese ore jetty and the old mine workings up the mountain. In 1880, Crisp Arnold set up fishing sheds and started curing snoek for export to Mauritius.
Manganese, and related tools for mining the mineral
St. Peter's the Fisherman church[edit]
In 1895 Walter Gurney built the first church in Hout Bay. It still stands today and is known as St Peter's the Fisherman. The first school in Hout Bay was started in this church.
R Marrow Ship - No longer in existence
Morrow - Factory Boat[edit]
In 1904 Hout Bay's first crawfish canning factory was established in the wreck of an old sailing ship, The R Morrow that stood where the present South African Sea Products factory is today. For almost 10 years the factory operated successfully exporting canned crawfish overseas and providing work for the local inhabitants. On 31 July 1914 a leak in the acetylene gas supply caused an explosion which blew up the canning factory, killing 7 people including the owner Mr. Lucien Plessis.
Chapman's Peak[edit]
In 1922 Chapman's Peak Drive was opened to the public. It had been built by the provincial administration using convict labour. It had taken 7 years to build and had cost (R40 000).
First cutting of road on Chapman's Peak, Hout Bay
Fishing industry[edit]
German immigrant and farmer Jacob Trautmann established the first fishing village here in 1867. The fishing industry expanded substantially in the 1930s when fish became a popular item on menus and improved facilities for transporting fish inland were created. The Trautmann family improved their fishing boats and built more sheds on the beach for processing the fish. They owned Trans Africa Fisheries. The Trautmann brothers introduced the valuable frozen rock lobster tail export business and the Dorman family, who like the Trautmanns, had originally bought land in the 19th century for farming purposes became more involved in the fishing industry. Duikersklip and Chapman's Peak Fisheries were two companies owned by the Dormans.
Today Chapman's Peak fisheries have expanded to incorporate a fish importing business as well as retailing local catches. Mariners Wharf, South Africa's fish emporium, was opened 1984.
Harbour facilities have improved steadily over the years. In 1937 the South Breakwater was built and in 1968 the North Breakwater was added. The post-war fishing factories spread everywhere and at Hout Bay, the South African Sea Products Company was established.
Hotels[edit]
Holiday accommodation in the form of the Hout Bay Hotel was built sometime between 1871 and 1889 by Jacob Trautman. Originally known as the Royal Hotel it was a popular honeymoon hotel at the end of the 19th century.[citation needed]
Chapman's Peak Hotel was originally called the Beach Hotel and was built in 1903 after the original hotel was gutted by fire. It was a noted example of an Edwardian seaside hotel until 1981 when extensive alterations were embarked upon.[citation needed]
Flora Bay[edit]
Flora Bay bungalows had been a favourite camping site for many years before Flora Bay was developed. A large sandy beach, which linked up with the main beach, covered the rocks below this area. The sand slowly disappeared when the breakwater quays were built on the west side of the bay in 1937. A small beach was still there in the 1960s.
Pollution[edit]
The air pollution by the Oceana fishmeal factory in Hout Bay harbour has elicited a large number of complaints throughout the years and had a negative impact not only on tourism, but on the lives of the people living in the whole area. In 2014, photographer and writer Kiara Worth and Hout Bay based singer Ike Moriz created the air pollution portfolio of the HBRRA (Hout Bay Rate Payers and Residents Association). Worth and Moriz founded the environmental group Fresh Air for Hout Bay to research the causes and effects of the pollution. The group provided a platform for residents to voice concerns and questions and communicated with all parties involved, including the Oceana group, the City of Cape Town's environmental department, representatives of the fishing community and the relevant worker's unions. The factory officially closed in 2020.
