Local history takes the spotlight
ORANGE GROVE – The history of Orange Grove and its surrounding areas have been explored in a book by community leader Brett McDougall.
The Gardens resident and local community leader Brett McDougall has authored a A Heritage Study of the Orange Grove Waterfall and Surrounding Area.
The book includes historic details and photos of the area, as well as information on the Orange Grove Waterfall and the property on which it stands.
A stream originating at Sacred Heart School feeds the waterfall. This goes under Louis Botha Avenue and then flows onwards to the Houghton Golf Course.
The house on the property, House Bleloch, was built in 1938. It was designed in 1938 by Theophile Schaerer for William Edwin Bleloch. ‘Stylistically, the house may be described as a simplified expression of Cape Dutch Revival, which was immensely popular in the 1930s,’ and extract of the book says. ‘It has a veranda overlooking the property, which itself has a garden, layered into terraces, which would have been stunning in its day, as a pleasure park.
‘The house remains largely intact, with the only major change to its original plan being the removal of the wall between the lounge and dining room. Many original fittings remain in the house, although the original floors are in poor condition.’
For details on the heritage study visit https://www.lovenorwood.com/discover/
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