Early History of the KNP Area

[Hippotragus]

gmlsmit - again really enjoyed your writings.

Even had to return to KNP to read them!!! Travelling down the Trichardt Road in an air-conditioned, power steered, 4x4 on a recently graded sand road, I said to my daughter "Imagine doing this across virgin territory in an ox wagon at the pace oxen walk". It really makes you admire those folk.

My husband and I had the pleasure of joining Cecil Barnard's son, Izak, on an over-land, camping trip to Moremi and Okavango in 1984. He was a fascinating and interesting man. Unfortunately we didn't get to ask him much about his father's exploits.

[gmlsmit]

Alois Hugo Nelmapius

The Hungarian born Alois Hugo Nelmapius was an entrepreneur who had visions of a transport route from the old Transvaal Republic to the harbour of Delagoa Bay to export gold and other goods from the Republic and to import goods from the harbour and then trade locally.

He made a proposal to the Government in January 1875, that he be allowed to import goods that had been shipped from Delagoa Bay by boat to the footings of the Lebombo Mountains, where they would be stored, from where they would then be carried by large relays of members of the local population, stationed at convenient stations along the route to Pretoriuskop and from there then be distributed by ox wagon, to wherever the destination may be.

He proposed that a company be formed that would build bridges over rivers and streams or erect pontoons where bridges would not suffice, make and maintain roads, make and maintain accommodation for the bearers and transport riders and their goods. He also proposed a weekly mail service, carried by native runners between the Republic and the harbour town.

Nelmapius befriended the then President; Paul Kruger, who supported the idea. The plan was put forward to the Volksraad, Kruger was criticised by members for his listening to an outlander but eventually, the proposal was approved and a contract was drawn up on 18 May 1875, with Nelmapius. Under which he as reward for his services he be awarded a number of farms each 3000 morgen in extent, situated fifteen miles apart, along the road. The farms within the later Sabi Game Reserve were Ludwislust, Joubert’s Hoop, Pretoriuskop and Burghershall. He was also allowed to collect a reasonable toll fee from others who may use the facilities.

After the agreement with the Transvaal Volksraad, Nelmapius set of to Delagoa Bay where he obtained similar concessions from the Portuguese Government, a local trader was to supply the required funding of the project and Nelmapius would carry out the practicalities. Nelmapius established a limited liability transport company The Lourenco Marques and South African Republic Transport Service, with its head office at Pilgrims Rest.

Native carriers were employed for the transport work, as they were less vulnerable to the prevalent tsetse and anopheles, carried diseases.

The scheme was doing well but unfortunately due to the outbreak of the war between the Republic and the Sekhukhune chief, leading to the desertion of the native carriers’, had to be abandoned late 1876.

After this first successful attempt to establish a transport route many other smaller enterprising transport riders using ox wagons en route from Pilgrims Rest along the Crocodile River to the harbour of Delagoa Bay were established. The fly belt was evaded by doing a hard trek during the dark of night through the infested area. The road was formed by the tracks of the toiling oxen under the sounds of cracking whips and the calls and shouts of their drivers and the creaking of heavily laden wagon tracks.

The barking of the accompanying dogs gave birth to another legend of the Low Veld – Jock . . . .

[BrendaK]

Dear gmlsmit
Thank you for great reading, I recognize the Bvekenya history from the Ivory Trail by TV Bulpin.
It would be great if you can do a little bibliography after each fascinating historical piece.
Do you perhaps have a complete collection of your writings that I can access somewhere?

[gmlsmit]

Rinderpest.

When the Sabi Government Game Reserve was proclaimed by President Paul Kruger on 26 March 1898, there was very little game left in the area. It is very often assumed that this was only due to hunting by whoever.

A factor which is seldomnly taken into account is the effect the outbreak of the Rinderpest epidemic during 1896 had on the livestock and game animals of southern AFRICA.

Rumours of “cattle plague” rapidly approaching from North AFRICA, reached the already troubled Boer Republics. Very many antelope and heads of livestock had already succumbed in Uganda to this feared disease.

Rinderpest was discovered at Bulawayo on 22 February 1896.

This highly contagious viral disease was already known to be endemic among ceratin game populations in North-AFRICA, but deadly to cattle.

By 10 March it was decided to isolate Matabeleland, however it was already too late the disease had already spread to Botswana and large numbers of game and cattle had already died as a result of this disease.

President Kruger proclaimed on 11 March1896 that no cattle or game animals were to be allowed to cross the border from Botswana, Matabeleland or Masjonaland. Borderguards were appointed and placed in an effort to ensure that no animals crossed the border into the ZA Republic.

Arnold Theiler who was a pig farmer in the Pretoria area was contacted and requested to go to Matabeleland to investigate the epidemic. It took Theiler ten days to reach Bulawayo, he telegraphed back on 19 March the disease was unmistakenly Runderpest and that he had observed hundreds of cattle bodies were strewn all over the landscape.

He reported back that “ One might as well have tried to stop a rising tide on the sea-shore, as prevent this dreadful disease from travelling steadily down the main roads, nothing but rotting carcasses and ruined men are left behind’.

At that stage this disease had already crossed the border into the ZA Republic; it had already caused the first cattle deaths in the Nylstroom and Zeerust Districts.

The disease caused an uprising by the AmaNdebele making life even more difficult by now all movement of cattle was stopped all horses and mules were requisitioned and for official duty.

Theiler on his return to Pretoria was shocked when he realised that Runderpest was spreading at the rate of 130 to 160 kilometres per week.

One of the Officers in the detachment on their way to relieve Bulawayo from the uprising remarked at Mafikeng: “All the way, the road was inches deep in dust and this, disturbed by the hooves of 60 horses kept everyone enveloped in continued cloud. When trotting it was impossible to distinguish any trace of the man immediately in front of me. Added to this was the terrible stench from the decaying carcasses of the dead oxen-victims of Rinderpest-which lined the roadside. It was common occurrence to see the remains whole spans of twenty to thirty oxen lying within a radius of a hundred yards. The air was never free from this pestilent taint. Now and again, wagons were met-derelicts of the veld- laden with timber, furniture and cases of all kinds of merchandise, drawn up in the bush just off the road and left to look after themselves. All the trek oxen .had succumbed and the transport riders had no alternative but to abandon their loads. There was wholesale looting . . . . .

Then horses and mules started dying of horse-sickness, only donkeys seemed unaffected.

It was decided that all cattle herds were to be destroyed in order to prevent the Rinderpest from spreading to the Cape Colony. By now Botswana had lost more that 90000 head of cattle. After a long train journey Arnold Theiler reached Pretoria on 7 April 1896. A conference was set for 17 April 1896 at Mafikeng where Theiler would address representatives from The Cape, Transvaal and the Free State about the dreaded disease and possible ways of preventing the spreading thereof.

It was decided that cattle herds had to be destroyed and that a double fence be erected along the Transvaal boundary.

There was no vaccine available.

Despite all the above there was no stopping the disease which was spreading like a wild fire through the Transvaal. Thousands of animals died – there just no stopping or cure for the disease.

The Government purchased mules from outside the Transvaal in an effort to assist with transportation.

Theiler reported that thousand of head cattle and antelope were dying in the Waterberg District.

By August 1896 the epidemic had spread through the whole of the Transvaal, the Free State the Northern Cape. Bitterness by the Cape Community lead to replacement of Prime Minister sir Gordon Sprigg who was blamed of slackness and he was replaced by the dynamic John X Merriman.

By now in the Marico district the cattle herds had reduced from 30000 to 6766 due to Rinderpest.

By December Theiler reported to Pres. Kruger that he was expecting positive results from a serum which he had developed from the blood of cattle that had survived the disease.

By now assistance from Europe was also busy developing a vaccine.

Hunters reported thousands of game animals were found dead: Kudu, Nyala, Bushbuck, Eland, Warthog, Buffalo and Bush pigs were mainly affected; Blue Wildebeest, Impala, Sable Antelope and Roan Antelope were reported to have been affected to a lesser extent.

Very few cattle and game animals survived the Rinderpest in the Soutpansberg district, while horses and mules died of horse-sickness. What was left of the crops during after the drought was destroyed by the locust swarms, famine reigned and many people died of starvation.

It was estimated that two thirds of the entire cattle population had died as a result of the Rinderpest.

Theiler and Koch continued their research and on 10 February 1897 reported success when a vaccine made from the gall of an infected animal was injected into a healthy animal, serum was also developed from the blood of infected animals, eventually a vaccine with a 85% success rate was developed.

By August 1897 Rinderpest had spread through the Cape and Natal up to the sea shores, fortunately they were not as hard hit as the developed vaccines prevented the destruction suffered by the Transvaal, Botswana and Rhodesia.

After the Rinderpest the price of immune cattle rocketed an ox that earlier fetch R12.00 was now sold for R120.00.

Many game animals died as a result of the Rinderpest epidemic, Buffalo and Eland had almost disappeared while the only surviving Kudu in the Game Reserve were found on a hill near Klopperfontein.

[bernadettej21]

Thanks for sharing with us your information regarding the early history of the KNP area. These information could be rather filed to a book and then publish it. Bookworms will absolutely grab a copy of it.

[gmlsmit]

Hi bernadettej21, welcome to the forum.
Thanks for your kind words - appreciated.
The Shangane are very special people, they live on the land and from the land and they do not waste.
They have wonderful traditions and a very rich culture, which they still honour and respect, even today.
Most of the early employees in the KRUGER PARK were Shangane who always did their jobs with pride and yet humble.

[gmlsmit]

The Little People Part 1.

The last glacial period lasted between 30000 to 12000 years ago.

Temperatures started rising and it is therefore commonly accepted that due to climate change that what we accept now as Sothern Africa, started being populated about 12000 years ago, the area then became more suitable for human population with temperature and rainfall changing.

That climatic change through many centuries definitely had an effect on the cyclic changes is a given fact; indications currently are that in recent history there have been no major changes to the topography, rivers and game areas during the past 12000 years.

Short term changes should have had an effect as periods of drought would cause rivers and waterholes to run dry, resulting in plants withering and animals moving away or even succumbing, then during periods of recovery would begin at the start of a better rainfall cycle.

This does not at all mean that Southern Africa was not populated earlier in the earlier Stone Age periods. As many remnants of tools and bones dating back to the earlier periods are found.

Carbon dating of ash deposits in a shelter near Skukuza indicate habitation about 6800 years ago with another deposit closer to the surface at the same area indicate about 3300 years.

Remnants of many species roamed the plains during the mentioned periods include: Impala, Kudu, Reedbuck, Bushbuck, Sable, Roan Blue Wildebeest and Eland. Warthog and Zebra were also found as well as many of the currently known smaller animals as well as birds.

The hunter gatherers of this period seemed to favour a bow and arrow with a sharpened poisoned rock point attached to the shaft as their favourite weapon, this may have been developed towards the end of the late Stone Age. No indication of the type of poison used had been found in the Kruger Park but it may have been from a Euphorbia or even snake or spider derivative.

Bone was used as tools e.g. as drills, scrapers and even cutting tools. Bone was also used as needles and even for adornment.

Pieces of rock were also attached to sharpened timber and used as digging tool.

Indications are that as the technology improved the hunting of larger animals became more frequent.

Flat rocks with scour marks indicate grinding of nuts and seeds, also possibly ochres and hematite oxides for adornment and painting.

Grooves in rocks indicate scouring of items including Ostrich egg and Mollusc shells which was used for adornment and worn around the neck, arms and legs, of these were also attached or sewn onto belts and carrying bags.

Very few finds indicating the type of clothing worn are made, but fortunately much is visible on the many discoveries of rock art made.
It is clear that they clothed and covered themselves in animal hides depending on the activity and the reigning climate including the temperatures.

Very few graves have been found, remains indicate much of the appearance, lifestyle, clothing and jewellery as the deceased were normally buried together with their belongings. The remains of a little girl who had died about 9000 years ago and wrapped in an animal hide was found in the Bushman Rock shelter still with a string of Ostrich eggshells around her little neck.

Some graves covered by a rock with maybe a painted emblem thereon were found in the southern parts, however very few of these have been found in the Kruger National Park.

Many sites of rock art have been discovered in the Kruger National Park, mainly due to the efforts and guidance interest and perseverance of Senior Ranger Mike English now retired.

This rock art gives us today an indication of the lifestyle and culture and habits of the artist and his people who roamed this area many thousands of years ago. The San people or the Bushman or as I prefer calling them – the Little People who lived their little lives in peace, who never wasted or brought any harm over anyone.

The other ethnic groups started moving southwards about 3000 to 2000 years ago bringing the Iron Age with them to the area. The earliest indication south of the Limpopo was found in the Swaziland area dates back to approximately 300 A.D.

Proof that there was contact between the Little People and the Black People is founding many of the rock art paintings, tall people clearly not Bushman with faces indicating of possible East African Masai or Watusi decent.

Unfortunately there was conflict between the Little People and the Black People coming from the north, who brought their livestock with them, the Little People regarded the livestock as fair game resulting in retribution raids, the Little People moving out of the area further westerly towards the more arid areas, leaving behind their art and a few artefacts.

[gmlsmit]

The Little People Part 2.

These wonderful Little People were of the very first inhabitants of the Kruger National Park Area. They were nomads who lived off the veld and moved as the conditions changed and recovered.

The men were the hunters, using their little bows and poisoned arrows, while the women collected smaller animals, roots, tubers, berries and other edibles.

They were not cultivators; they did not build villages, maybe a temporary little grass or reed structure. They lived in caves and under overhangs where many of their artefacts ashes and other remnants are uncovered.

Exploration in Kruger have uncovered few remnants in the higher areas, most of the finds were made in the lower lying parts of the southern areas.

Anyone really interested should take part in the Bushman’s or Wolhuter Trail in the Kruger Park with a specific request to the Trails Ranger to take you to these precious sites. You will return tired but with a fulfilled spiritual experience.

Col. James Stevenson Hamilton made mention of rock art discovered in the South Westerly regions, in his journal dating back to 1911.

Ranger de la Porte posted at Kaapmuiden, made mention in 1912 of findings made while out on patrol.

Ranger Mike English made many finds and Prof. Murray Schoonraad of the Pretoria University was contacted during 1978 about the preservation of the Rock Art, he started his exploration under the guidance of Mike who in total at first made a discovery of 120 rock art sites and at a later stage a further 60 now totalling 180 sites by Mike English. I was very privileged to have access to Mike’s photo albums of rock art, this dedicated conservationist together with Andre his wife truly has a caring love for all that is available.

Mike has plotted every one of his sites on a 1:50000 map indicating the exact geographic reference, after using aerial photos of the area and doing very careful stereoscopic studies of possible sites.

After retirement Mike set up a further venture to uncover rock art sites, after the approval of SANPARKS Management had been obtained, he applied for a grant from Anglo American worth R250000 which was approved and together with a few other experts a further 240 rock art sites were found mainly in the southern part of Kruger during 2007 and 2008.

It is worth mentioning that the first engravings of animal spoor were discovered in the Punda Maria area.

Characteristics of the sites are that they are mainly:

In the low laying areas or at the foot of Koppies and Mountains, normally about 15 to 20 metres above the surrounding areas. This would make it easier to bring in water and food and wood and other while ambushing game animals from these placements would also be an advantage.

Close to natural waterholes and rivers and fountains and pans, this would be advantageous as drinking water was close by and would also attract game animals and edible vegetation for own use would be more in abundance resulting in less distance to travel in finding sustenance.

They have a good view of the current game paths.

They are camouflaged by natural vegetation, which has possible added considerably to the preservation of the works of art. This would also make their living area less visible to possible enemies and also less exposed to the elements, adding to the comfort of the living area.

[gmlsmit]

The Little People Part 3.

The majority of the paintings show human shapes in different postures e.g. sitting, sleeping, walking, running and activities like gathering, hunting, dancing, single or in groups, making fire etc. Wild animals. Birds and Reptiles have been painted with remarkable detail and finesse.

Many of the paintings depicting humans clearly indicate Bushman being short, slightly stooped with largish anterior. Other paintings depict of the Black East African people tall and slender with prominent noses and “pageboy” hairstyles.

Wild animals are well proportioned and detailed. Some of the paintings clearly identify Oribi, Reedbuck, Roan, Sable, Eland, Blue Wildebeest, Elephant, Leopard, Impala, Kudu, Klipspringer, White ***, Lion, Hyaena, Zebra, Wild Dog, Ostriches, Waterbuck and Monkeys. Even what seems to be a Crocodile hide is shown.

Paintings of snakes lizards and tortoises have been found.

Paintings found varied from monochrome, to polychrome- single to various colours. Colours used are mainly red, yellow, black white and grey.

The yellow and red contained iron oxide from hematite and red iron oxide for the red Hematite could by heat treatment produce different shades of red and even a purple. Limonite and iron hydroxide (ferrihydroxide) for the yellow.

Charcoal and Manganese oxides (Proselytes) provided the black, while bird droppings, Kaolin and Zink oxides provided the white. A mixture of whites and blacks provided the different shades of grey.

Pigments were prepared and mixed and the binder was very often blood or blood serum for the red. Plant sap e.g. Euphorbia for the white and water for the black. Animal fat, egg yolk and white was also used.

The paint brushes were produced from soft twigs that were chewed until bristles were formed. Feathers as well as animal hair were set in hollow reeds. Examples of finger painting are also quite plentiful.

It has often stated that these paintings were made while the artists had been worked into a trance and then give expression to their spiritual experience and visions, however this is just a possible theory, and many others feel this is just an expression of an experience or a situation.

These Little People over many centuries documented human and animal, happenings, and activities in the area. By interpreting these treasures we can all obtain a much more informed insight in the culture and rituals of the humans and animals that roamed the area. The knowledge gained assists in making management decisions e.g. the reintroduction of extinct game animals.

These Little People were not aware that their contribution to our knowledge of the history and even pre history would be so valuable to those who arrived long after their departure.

My little contribution hopefully makes the importance of preserving these historical sites very clear. These sites should be found, documented, and preserved and also knowledgably interpreted as they will surely in times still to come provide and reveal many more facts about this now near extinct little group of Little People of South Africa, who once just preferred to live their uncomplicated little lives in peace they hunted and painted and danced and were happy, they never brought harm over anyone and who never wasted.

[gmlsmit]

The Little People Part 4.

These Little People have a few different names like San, used by the Koi-Koi.

It may be that the name “San” or “Sonqua” is of Dutch origin and means “Native” or “Indigenous People” after the Dutch settlers started using the word “Bossjeman” meaning “People of/from the bush” when referring to these Little People and was in no way meant as derogatory or belittling them.

Unfortunately the word “Bushman” has now been politicized and is now regarded as belittling the Little People or has been a racist label. Studies of the Koi-Koi language have indicated that San or Koi-San actually means scoundrel.

Barrow in a report dated 1790 mentioned that :”the central theme of the origin of the “Bossiemans” is that the aboriginal “Bossiemans” skulked I the dwarf bushes of their and habitat in the interior, and from this protective cover shot their poisoned arrows at their European foes.

Smit a researcher stated that the name Bosjeman or Boescheman was already used more that a century prior to their confrontation with the Dutch Colonists during the latter half of the last century.

He stated “ long before the early Portuguese rounded the cape late in the 15th century, one branch of the southwardly migrating pastoral Hottentots deviated westwards along the bank of the Gariep, ultimately making first contact with the nomadic pigmy “Bossiemans” somewhere in the north-western Cape, but below the river. They found these strange people had curious customs, among which they used the aromatic leaves of the Pteronia onobromoides (Buchu Bush), largely to be found in the Klein Namaqualand in traditional tribal ceremonies. Because of this practise the Hottentots who, unlike the bantu, appear to have had no special name for these pigmy people, spoke of them as “Sanqua” or “San”.

San = bushes
qua = men of

which when literally and correctly translated by the early expeditions as “boshjesmans” meaning “man of the bushes”.

Later these names turned into “Boesmans” in Afrikaans and “Bushman” in English.

Smith further mentioned that “when the Hottentots became into conflict with the Bushmen they called them Abiqua or Obiqua (robber men). The term still survives in the plant vernacular name Abiquaboom or Abiquageelhot (two species of the Tamarix), as well as the place names Obiquas Mountains in the Tulbach district and Abiquaspan in the Great Namaqualand.

Hopefully I have may have cleared up a bit about the origin of the name of the little people.

I may mention that during of my early visits in the 1970s to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park which was then named The Kalahari Gemsbok National Park and even in the year 2002 many of the rural Little People still proudly referred to themselves as Boesman or Bushman, depending on the language. It is often such a shame that these things have to be so politicized.

[Waterbuck]

What a great thread. Really worth the read!!
I have been searching for an appropriate place to post the following and have decided it can't do any harm to post it here.

My parents (as far as I can ascertain, visited Kruger in the sixties, seventies and eighties). Sadly time marches on and today I received an envelope in the post from my sister, who felt it appropriate to send me a bundle of old maps that she found stashed between my parent's belongings. They range in size, most are in fairly good condition and seem to only have superficial folding. I am guessing they came from my parent's visits to Kruger and I think they have probably been sent to me because of my Kruger fanaticism. The maps include the following:

Ou Transport en Wapaaie, Suidelike Laeveld en Platorand 1844-1902 (seems to have initials HW in the corner).

Die Spore van Ontdekkings - Reisigers deur die Laeveld 1855 - 1875 (also HW)

Die Handelsvoetpaaie vanaf die Ooskushawens deur die Laeveld (volgens Dr JB de Vaal 1984 / initails HW)

Voortrekkerroetes deur die Krugerwiltiun (volgens die navorsing van Dr WHJ Punt 1960 / initials HW)

Historiese Terreine in die Nasional Krugerwiltuin (initails HW)

Now the big question. Do I pack these maps up and store them, frame them (they are interesting but not very catching to the eye), or do you have any other suggestions? Please advise.