A RETROSPECTIVE
If, in 1886, when men were trekking to the
Witwatersrand to found the history that was to make a Republic prosperous
and lay the foundations of fortune for South Africa, you had stood on
the ridge of what is now Brixton, you would have seen below a homestead
among the trees, and a placid stream flowing by. It was the home of
Petrus Lindeque, who gave his name to Lindeque's Drift, one of the pioneers
from across the Vaal who had settled in the valley, where there was
fertile ground for his crops and good grazing for his cattle and sheep.
There was no other habitation in sight. The veld stretched endlessly
to the horizon where the hazy blue of the Magaliesburg merged with the
sky. There was game and great diversity of birds on the farm, and in
the craggy recesses of the koppies of Braamfontein and Westcliffe baboons
were numerous. The site of the Lindeque homestead was the old annexe
of the country club, recently burned down. A New Zealander named Landau
later on bought the place, laid it out as a township, and called it
Auckland Park, because it reminded him of a valley near his native town
With the progress of events, Lindeque's homestead
became a hotel, Auckland Park's population gradually increased, and
Johannesburg grew rapidly.
The boom that succeeded the Anglo-Boer War was followed
by very grave depression, and 1906 was an unusually bad year. Men who
knew Johannesburg, however, were not discouraged, and a number of them
who long cherished the idea of forming a sporting and social club found
an opportunity to realise their hopes. The chief difficulty in the way
of such a scheme was removed when the Auckland Park Real Estate, Limited,
offered to build premises and to lay out grounds suitable for a social
and sporting club.
The club was formally opened on Saturday, 22nd December,
1906. The following description of the opening is taken from the Rand
Daily Mail of 24th December 1906: -
"The country Club at Auckland Park had a splendid
send off on Saturday afternoon on the occasion of the formal opening
by the Mayor (Mr W. Kidger Tucker, C.M.G). Nothing finer could have
been wished for in the way of weather, and there was a very large attendance
of ladies and gentlemen, for whose enjoyment nothing that thought could
suggest had been left undone.
"In declaring the Club open, the Mayor said that
he had never had a more pleasing duty to perform. The Club was something
that the people had been longing for ever since Johannesburg had been
a town. It was now due to the great enterprise of the Directors of the
Auckland Park Real Estate, Limited, that that magnificent piece of land
had been opened to those that were willing to subscribe a very modest
sum per annum. He thought that there need be no fear in the matter of
support, or that the Club was going to interfere with established institutions
like the Wanderers, and although there might be rivalry between the
various clubs, he hoped that it would result in greater efficiency.
Having spoken of the various facilities for sport and recreation which
the Club offered, the Mayor said that he had the greatest pleasure in
declaring the grounds open.
"The visitors were entertained to afternoon tea,
and they subsequently strolled about the beautiful grounds or listened
to the selection of music played by the Band of the 9th (Queen's Royal)
Lancers under Bandmaster WJ Gibson.
"During the afternoon a tennis match was played
for two Cups presented by the Company. Those who competed were Messrs.
Finlayson and Patterson, Sherwell and Cradock, Warriner and Grieveson,
Robbs and Orr, and Kitson and Hathorn. The match resulted in a substantial
win for the two latter gentlemen.
"Already there are about 400 members, so that
the success of the Club is assured."
Back to the Top! |
