Tulbagh Historical Tour

Tulbagh Historical Tour

Situated in the Tulbagh Valley bounded by the Witsenberg in the East, The Winterhoek range in the north and the Sarons, Obiekwa and Waterval (waterfall) mountains in the west. This fertile valley with two prominent rivers running through it, the north flowing Berg River and the south- flowing Breede Riverand has a long history dating back further than 1699, named after Dutch Cape Colony Govenor Ryk Tulbagh originally called Het Land van Waveren. This basin has been inhabited by the Khoi and Bushman people for thousands of years. A Dutch Reformed church was built in 1743 for the congregation, The Drostdy (magistrates) residence was built in 1806, designed by architect Louis Thibault, located 4km`s north of the town and is now a museum which exhibits fine period furniture and porcelain. Apart from the many beautiful sites and old buildings Tulbagh is well known for its Church Street and the magnificent old restored buildings many of which were destroyed buildings by the 1969 earthquake.

Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product

Stop At: Bainskloof Pass, South Africa

Remains an engineering master piece and a National Monument designed and constructed by Scotsman Andrew Geddes Bain – providing access to the hinterland beyond the mountains, became the official ‘Gateway to the North’, over which countless wagons creaked their way to the diamond and gold fields, it offers magnificent vistas, indigenous and unique flora and fauna, crystal-clear rock. A National Monument, the magnificent Pass remains a well-travelled attraction and offers unsurpassed vistas, indigenous and unique flora and fauna, crystal-clear rock pools, camp sites and hiking trails originally built with convict labor.

Duration: 10 minutes

Stop At: Wellington, Wellington, Western Cape

 Perfect Place Bistro, Coffee & Antique Shop ( wellington )

Duration: 40 minutes

Stop At: Tulbagh, Tulbagh, Witzenberg Municipality, Western Cape

Drostdy Museum
The Drostdy Museum was built by the Dutch East India Company in 1747 to serve as residence and official headquarters for the Landdrost. Soon after a gaol, a house for the secretary, a mill and various outbuildings were erected.

The first Landdrost to be appointed to this district was Johannes Theophilus Rhenius and he was assisted by a board of burger heemraden and subordinates like secretary and a gaoler as well as many slaves. From 1827 the Drostdy was occupied by the civil commissioner who, with the resident magistrate, replaced the board of Landdrost and heemraden when they were abolished by the British colonial government.

In 1846 the government sold the Drostdy and the property was subdivided. In 1855 the former Drostdy was bought by the Steyn family and it remained in the hands of this family until 1939 when it was bought by the government of the Union of South Africa for the purpose of establishing a museum.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Tulbagh, Tulbagh, Witzenberg Municipality, Western Cape

House Number. 4 – Earth Quake Museum
The Earthquake Museum, commemorating the devastating 1969 Earthquake which laid several Boland towns in ruins and which gave rise to the resurrection of Church Street, Tulbagh in its 1870 form.



Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Tulbagh, Tulbagh, Witzenberg Municipality, Western Cape

The Oude Kerk Volksmuseum
The Oude Kerk Volksmuseum, built in 1743 and established in 1925, is one of the oldest museums in the Western Cape. Its theme is: “The development and history of the Tulbagh Valley”. The museum complex consists of four very historic buildings in Tulbagh: the Oude Kerk (Old Church), one of the last surviving cruciform churches built by the VOC (Dutch East India Company) still in its original form with a unique collection of Cape furniture and restored historic cemetery, amongst others the original table on which the capitulation of the Dutch to the British was signed in 1806.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Tulbagh, Tulbagh, Witzenberg Municipality, Western Cape

Readers Restaurant and curious Cats Gift Shop
Is situated in the oldest house in Church Street in Tulbagh, built in 1754. Offering simple yet outstanding local and global cuisine, Readers has maintained a standard of excellence that has created a notable reputation with both locals and tourists.

Duration: 1 hour

Stop At: Tulbagh, Tulbagh, Witzenberg Municipality, Western Cape

The Victorian House Museum
The Victorian house museum, an excellent example of a rural Victorian house, depicting the lifestyle of a rural middle-class family in the Victorian era. The Victorian House Museum is currently being worked on and will eventually have its unique textiles on display as well.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Tulbagh, Tulbagh, Witzenberg Municipality, Western Cape

Cape Dutch Quarters & Country House
Tulbagh Country Guest House at 24 Church Street was established in 2000 by Ginny Clark, the current owner’s late mother.
The original T – shape house with its neo-classical gable was built in 1810 by Petrus Francois Theron and extended into its current H – shape before 1861.
After the earthquake, this house was destined for demolition; however Boland Bank (who owned the building at the time as the home of their local bank manager) elected to pay for the bulk of its restoration, the cost of which exceeded that of any other in the street.

Cape Dutch Quarters was established in 2005 by Ginny and Jayson Clark, a mother and son team who had acquired several neighboring Church Street houses and garden properties with the aim of extending their original guest house business.
Our ‘welcoming’ 1666 bronze cannons are emblazoned with the VOC (Dutch East India Company) logo and along with a wealth of cargo, many other cannons and mortars salvaged from the 1747 wreck of the Rygersdal by Brian Clark (the owner’s late father) in 1980.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Tulbagh, Tulbagh, Witzenberg Municipality, Western Cape

Paddagang Eethuis & Fijne Wijne
In the heart of the historic town of Tulbagh, hungry souls will find this unusually named eatery a joy, where traditional Boland cuisine and fine local beverages have been served since 1821.
At Paddagang you find mouth-watering examples of the finest Cape Dutch and Cape Malay cooking. A tantalisingly creamy Smoorsnoek starter, served with homemade grape jam and freshly baked bread, Bobotie (spiced mince baked to perfection with a savoury custard topping) served with turmeric-infused rice and fresh vegetables, or the iconic Waterblommetjiebredie, a stew of lamb and asparagus-like indigenous water hawthorn. The legend is, that in years gone by, during their mating season, the paddas (frogs) that inhabited the restaurant gardens would have to hop down a path past this building to get to the river at the bottom of the property to find their froggy companions. Hence the name, which can be translated into English as “frog’s passage”.
The setting is impressive. Paddagang is set back on Tulbagh’s picturesque Church Street, where one finds no less than 28 national monuments. While you visit why not stop and taste some of our wonderful wine?

Duration: 30 minutes