Dorp Street, the oldest street in Stellenbosch is The Old Wagon Road to and from Cape Town, is lined with oak trees and beautiful, historic buildings. I walked from Libertas Parva up the street to the Theological Seminary in several posts!
No.157 Dorp Street
At no. 159 Dorp Street there is this striking home, Saxonhof, named after Pieter Andriesz Saxe who was a Free Burgher and a leather tanner. He acquired the land in 1704 and built the house soon after. In 1889 the owner was Dr Johannes H Neethling, local craftsman and district surgeon, who added the second storey to the building.
The Old Reading Room at no.182 Dorp Street was used for various purposes, but I can’t find information about when it was built nor the original use. It is now a 4* Guesthouse.
When Simon van der Stel first visited the area his party camped on an island in the Eerste River and it was on the same site that the first Drostdy was built. In 1710 the settlement burned down, but the Drostdy (no.2) was immediately rebuilt on the same site. In 1762 the building burned down again and Drostdy (no.3) was built; today’s gates are from that time. In 1859 the building became The Theological Seminary at no. 171 Dorp Street. In 1868 Carl Otto Hager added a second storey, and in 1905 the building was altered to its present form.
These posts were just a little taste of the elegance, charm, and pleasure of Dorp Street and as I walked along I could imagine the farms and farmers, the wagons rolling up and down the street, the school, shop, church, and business affairs at the Drostdy. The valley was wooded, and the river was clear.
You may be interested in
The Architectural History of Stellenbosch
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