{"id":5094,"date":"2019-02-15T15:29:22","date_gmt":"2019-02-15T13:29:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/?p=5094"},"modified":"2019-04-26T14:26:10","modified_gmt":"2019-04-26T12:26:10","slug":"small-towns-and-churches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/small-towns-and-churches\/","title":{"rendered":"ABOUT SMALL TOWNS AND CHURCHES"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Every small town\nhas a certain ambiance when you visit it. \nSome of them immediately speak to me and others, well they do not\nactually speak to me \u2026 and I just observe and pass by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, there\nare small towns with tons of history dating back hundreds of years. And then there are churches with unique\narchitecture and some interesting history on the why, what and how it came\nabout. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
With its rich\nhistory and influences from the Dutch, French and English, who all reigned\nSouth Africa at some period in the early years, you can just imagine the\ndifferent church styles that came about. Each church structure tells a story. One can feast on some fascinating stories\nthat at times can be humorous or a bit shocking, this includes that has been\nset alight by deranged persons and destroyed by fire, and steeples\ncollapsing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Looking up the\nhistory of all the churches and paying a visit to it is a travel destination in\nitself. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
DR Colesberg (NC) \u2013 1863 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Colesberg is one\nof those towns that you normally zip by and just stop at one of the many filings\nstation next to the N2 to buy something cold for the road, use the bathroom and\nfill up with fuel. Next time take ten\nminutes and drive through the town. You will\nnotice that many of the town\u2019s buildings are preserved very well. One example is the DR Church which dates back\nto 1863.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Like many other\nchurch building the competition\nto design the church was won by George William Smith but it was not built to\nhis design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When you look up\nyou will also notice that there is a red rooster on the roof of the church\nindicating the wind directions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Coordinates: \n30\u00b043’23.04″ S 25\u00b005’43.88″ E Alt: 1383m<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DR Church Uniondale (WC) \u2013 1866 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
You will notice that the tower has the inscription\n\u201cherbouw in 1908\u201d. This is because the original sandstone tower was unable to\nwithstand the strain of the swinging action of the heavy church bells when they\nwere rung. These huge bells are now\nmounted on a wooden beam and the time every half hour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the 1974\/1975 the weights keeping the heavy\nbells in place in place, came loose and fell right through the wooden floor at\nthe bottom. After this mishap measures\nwere taken to protect the floor from another mishap and metal plates were installed\nbelow the bells on top of the wooden floor. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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If you look closely you will notice the there is only\nthree clock faces. But why? Well, the one side faces the mountains and\nwho on earth needs to the know the time when they are up there? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then there is also a rumour that the clock goes faster during the cold winter months and tends to be a bit sluggish during the hot summer months. Please share your comment if this rumour is not a rumour, but a fact! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
DR Church Winburg (FS)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Next\ntime when you are travelling on the N2 take the turn-off to Winburg. It is not much of a town, but it has a\nbeautiful sandstone church in the centre of town and is quiet easy to\nfind. Just follow the spire \u2013 there is\nno high rise buildings in Winburg \u2026..<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe European community of Winburg is famous for the\ndifferences in political heritage. The town was divided into two camps, due to\ntheir support to either the South African Party of General Jan Smuts, or the\nNational Party of Dr Daniel Fran\u00e7ois Malan. This led to the division of the\nDutch Reformed Church into two separate congregations, Klip Kerk (Stone Church,\nbecause it was built from sandstone) and which was the original church for the\nDutch Reformed Church and Rietfontein Kerk. Bitter feuds were fought between\nsupporters of the two parties.”<\/em>\n(Extract from Wikipedia)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Coordinates: 34\u00b001’03.63″ S 20\u00b026’47.52″ E <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
DR McGregor (WC) – 1904<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is another beautiful Hesse design tucked away in the Breede River\nregion dating back to 1904.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Coordinates: 33\u00b056’56.82″ S 19\u00b049’38.99″ E<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DR Church Swellendam (WC) \u2013 1910 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cape Dutch gables, Gothic windows, Renaissance entrances, and a Baroque spire combined into one building. Also the work of Folkert Wilko Hesse and his son Francois. This church\u2019s spire was once removed with a helicopter to do some repair work on it! Must have been great a commotion when this happened in the town of Swellendam. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mary Myrtle Church in Bonnievale (WC) \u2013 1921 <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
The only church in the world believed to be built on the request of a child! This was a special request to her father before her death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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The floor is made of marble from Italy the stained glass windows comes from England, the main door from Zanzibar (made originally for a jail and over 300 years old), the side doors out of wood from Knysna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DR “Moedergemeente”, George (WC) – 1842<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is also a\nstory concerning my home town\u2019s church. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Due to lack of funds\nit took more than 12 years to construct the church building at a cost of\nbetween R24 000. On Wednesday, 13\nSeptember 1905, at five o\u2019clock in the morning disaster struck. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
‘n Geweldige\nramp die gemeente getref toe die kerktoring op Woensdag 13 September 1905, om\nvyfuur die oggend ineengestort het. Re\u00ebn wat in die loop van jare by die\noopstaande vensters van die toring ingedryf is, het die houtwerk ongemerk laat\nverrot en die mure sodanig verswak dat dit nie bestand was teen die swaar\nneerslag wat op 11 September begin en op 13 September reeds sowat 10 duim gemeet\nhet nie. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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The\ntower was reconstructed under the supervision of architect Hesse who was by now\na well-known figure in the church building arena. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Coordinates: 33\u00b057’22.25″ S 22\u00b027’47.33″ E<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And I am off to find some more interesting churches with interesting stories. You are welcome to let us know in the comments sections when you spot a church with an interesting story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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