Page 87 - Bulletin 23- 2020

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Frances Moore (b. Cooke) was born in Devonshire and the house was named after Upcott, a
hamlet in North Devon. (Fig.3.20). A diminutive woman (she was 4ft 11ins – 1.5m) she was

brave and resourceful to have built in this unoccupied ‘street’ where it stood alone for the next 7

years. The Moores became a long established Kalk Bay village family and the best known
member locally was her oldest son – John ‘Jack’ Christian Wilson (JCW) Moore. Frances died in

1923 aged 70 at a house in St John’s Road called Du Plessis. Her will divided the estate chiefly
among her three sons. There was a house in Rondebosch as well, but she had specified that she

would like Upcott and its furniture to remain in the family. It was bought by eldest son Jack for

£760 with £31 16s 6d for the furniture in 1924. (1924 Municipal valuation £590.)

JCW ‘Jack’ Moore was a Customs Clearing Agent with offices in Riebeeck Street but his main

interest lay in the outdoor life. He knew the mountains and caves of the Cape well and wrote
several articles on the subject. His earliest memory of caving was as a 12-year old when in about

1890 his father took him to visit Muizenberg Cave.

He was a prominent member of the Mountain Club of South Africa and in the early years

recorded the names of many caves on Table Mountain. In later life he is credited with surveying
and recording 67 caves between Muizenberg and Kalk Bay. (See KBHA Bulletin 3, p. 20.)

There is an amusing story where he started into Boomslang Cave above Clovelly at the same

time that Johannes Meyer – the well-known Mole – started from the northern end. The two met
up in a central cavern deep in the mountain, lit a candle and had a chat about caves and

exploring. (Fig. 3.21).

His grandson (also Jack Moore) gave this account of caving with his grandfather:

I used to spend many happy hours on the Kalk Bay mountains with my grandfather. I still
remember the smell of rooikrans woodsmoke, when he boiled water from St. Ronan’s

Well in a billy can, to make tea. He took me through the Boomslang Cave when I was
very young. There were passages going off in different directions and he left burning

candles at intersections, so that we could find our way back again. We arrived at a point
where the passage became very low. We had to crawl through it on our stomachs. I was

petrified, but he persuaded me to go through with it. After a while I saw daylight at the