Weltevreden Park an ode to the past
WELTEVREDEN PARK – Find out what your suburb looked like in the 1800s.
Discover the origins and parts of Weltevreden Park and the surrounding suburbs.
Clarinda Venter has lived in the Weltevreden Park area her entire life. In fact, her family was one of the first to purchase land in 1870. Venter explained how the areas – we know of today – came about.
“The land back then was completely uninhabited. No one wanted to farm here because the area was so dry and hail and lightning were serious problems for the early settlers,” remarked Venter.
Weltevreden Park, or as it was formally known, Weltevreden Farmhouse, all began with the Smit and Badenhorst families. In 1860, the land belonged to the Badenhorst family.
Then, in 1872, Badenhorst decided to split the land up. He kept a piece for himself and divided the rest into two portions.
The land was sold to his brother Hendrick Badenhorst and to Cornelis Johannes Smit in 1872.
Cornelis Johannes Smit bought the land, by paying for it with a wagon, a herd of oxen and 700 British pounds. The farmland included Fairland and Randpark Ridge, continuing all the way to Allen’s Nek and Constantia Kloof.
The farmland included Fairland and Randpark Ridge, continuing all the way to Allen’s Nek and Constantia Kloof.
GALLERY: Find out what your suburb looked like in the 1800s
Smit had four children: Cecelia, Anna, Martha Crisstina and Cornelis Junior.
Cecelia and Anna both died when lightning struck their home in 1876. When Smit died in 1891, his children inherited the land when they came of age.
Martha Crisstina inherited in part, east of of J G Strydom Road and Cornelis Junior west of J G Strydom Road (Extension 69).
Martha Crisstina married Theunis Erasmus. Their children were Albert, ‘Dissy’, Cornelis Junior Junior and Martha Junior.
Martha died in 1918 from Spanish influenza. According to her will, the children could inherit the land when they reached the age of 21.
In 1933, the names of the children were placed into a hat and when their names were picked, that told them which plot of land they would inherit.
Cornelis Junior Junior received land from J G Strydom Road up to the border of the old Panorama area. ‘Dissy’ received all the land next to Jim Fouché Road, right up to the mountain at Constiania Kloof.
Albert was given the area where Allen Glen High School is. The area is known as Allen’s Nek; however, Philip Allen never owned the land. “I haven’t been able to find an explanation as to why it was called Allen’s Nek,” said Venter.
Martha Junior inherited east of J G Strydom Road right down to the Klein Jukskei riverbed. Strubens Valley (Clearwater Mall area) was sold to Philip Allen by Fred and Harry Struben.
