Page 99 - KBHA BULLETIN 7

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THE SIMON’S BAY COMMUNITY

Herbie Levendal

Origins

The first exploration of this area took place in 1687 when Simon van der Stel used it
as a base for his wider exploration of False Bay. The establishment of the winter

anchorage here by Baron von Imhoff in 1743 laid the foundations of the coloured

community that had its origins in Khoisan people, slaves from Africa and the East,
and Europeans.

The British occupation of the Cape in 1806 and the establishment of Simon’s Town
as a Royal Naval Base in 1814 resulted in further increments of people from other

British colonies. A multi-cultural population inevitably grew out of the relationships
formed in this important naval port and the majority of coloured surnames are of

British origin: Craig, Richards, Roberts, Atkins, Terry, Thompson, Higgins, Jenkins,
and so on. The arrival of the railway in 1890 and the formal construction of the

Naval Base 1902 – 1910 (Fig. 3.11) was a further stimulus to growth and, among

other things, resulted in the bringing of Xhosa-speaking people from the Eastern
Cape as a labour force. They were housed in Luyolo settlement on the slopes of Red

Hill.

The Naval Base was the largest employer in the town and fishing was second in
importance.

Fishing

Line fishing was carried on mainly by coloured fishermen. Numerous boats, 15 ft. –
30 ft. boats, went out from Simon’s Town. I myself fished from these boats from

1955 onwards. The sought-after fish were bank-fish, yellowtail, geelbek and snoek.