Page 168 - Bulletin 9 2005

155

PAINTERS AND SCULPTORS OF KALK BAY (2)
GEORGE W. PILKINGTON

Simon Cooper

Introduction

I shall be talking about my grandfather, the marine artist George Pilkington – whom I shall

refer to, simply, as Pilkington. The talk will comprise some genealogy and family
background, followed by Pilkington’s career, and then his work as a painter.

Family background

George Pilkington was born on September 18, 1878, in Cape Town and into a Cape family.

Originally, however, the family came from England, and family legend has it that the
branch of the Pilkington family from which we are descended was in fact Irish, an ancestor

having been expelled from England for heresy (the specific offence being unknown).

A wonderful old book published by Lieut-Colonel John Pilkington in 1894, and dealing
with the history of the Pilkington family from 1066 to 1600, records this of the name

“Pilkington” – “ton” signifies a dwelling place, town or village; “ing” (short for “ingas”)

means “the offspring of”; and “pilk” is a proper name, probably of a place originally. The
name thus inplies “the town of the family of Pilk”.

The first “South African” Pilkington was Pilkington’s great-grandfather (also George) who

was a Royal Engineer who came out to South Africa to help in the construction of the Table
Bay Breakwater. His son secured a contract with the Cape Copper Company to ship copper

ore at Port Nolloth and the third generation of Pilkingtons took charge of that work. That