Page 19 - Bulletin 18 2014

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interests several of these businessmen began to be elected to the Kalk Bay – Muizenberg

Municipality (KB-MM.)

The Move to Muizenberg

Around this time the Delbridge family began to act in concert. All evidence points to older
brother John being the investor and his brother William running the contracting business. It

was a good arrangement that kept it in the family and maximised profit. Three members of

the Delbridge family had a long and major involvement in the Kalk Bay – Muizenberg area.

As mentioned earlier, John was the older brother and having been an active contractor and

investor came to turn his attention to property investment and civic affairs. He took an active
role in affairs at Wynberg and was a vociferous opponent of municipal amalgamation with

Cape Town. Working in conjunction with his brother and son they were soon very involved
in property development in Kalk Bay and Muizenberg. The Delbridge brothers were seventh

generation masons – and masters of stone. In a letter to the Cape Institute of Architects in
1919 Herbert Baker wrote “My kind regards to Mr Delbridge [John’s son – see below] - I

owe his father a debt of gratitude as one of the first and best who helped me in using the

stones of the Peninsula.”

In 1905 John was elected as a Councillor of the Kalk Bay Muizenberg Municipality. (Fig.
1.12.) Things were buzzing in the far South with many wealthy people such as the late Cecil

Rhodes, Bailey and other Randlords building huge holiday homes here. Although there was
self-interest in Council involvement, the hard working councillors did a remarkable amount

of work improving the town they served.

After a leave of absence from the KB-MM he was elected mayor in May 1911, an office he

was to hold for the two final busy years of the Municipality.

In 1907 the municipality had built its own power station near today’s Sunrise Beach at a time

when the economy was in a severe recession. (Figs. 1.13 & 1.14.) Take-up by locals had been
very slow and the Municipality was hard pressed to claw back their considerable investment

in the scheme. They had approached Simon’s Town who opted instead for a vapourised oil
system. If an agreement could be struck enabling Wynberg to buy electricity, it would kill