Robertson, Route 62

The settlement was named after Dr William Robertson, the first DRC Minister in Clanwilliam, and up to 1857 it affairs were Administered by the local Church Council. The 1865 census indicated that Robertson had a population of 715. In 1875 this number had risen to 1 104, and in 1891 it was 2 121. By 1904 it stood at 3 244, of whom 1 875 were literate.

With 150 years of History, Robertson has grown into one of the most attractive Cape Winelands Towns. Victorian buildings, jacaranda-lined Streets, rose-boarded Vineyards, columns of red and yellow Cannas as well as bright Bougainvilleas all form the back drop to this delightful Town. This Region may be best known for its wines and forms part of 'Route 62', but there are many attractions, activities, accommodation, and culinary delights on offer. Combined with spectacular Scenery and the warm hospitality of the people, makes it a superb getaway.  No matter what time of year and no matter whom the visitor, Robertson ensures visitors an unforgettable stay.

In 1728 a large tract of Land which fell within the very large boundaries of Swellendam District, was let to a Mr. P Joubert.  The area soon attracted other migrant farmers who required grazing for their sheep and by 1800 many of them settled permanently on these pieces of Land, which they now purchased outright from the Government.  The names of the original farms are still much in evidence as districts eg. "Roodezant; Le Chasseur; Retreat; Noree; Goree; Vink Rivier; Willem Nels River; Klaasvoogds; Goudmyn; Vlolikheid and De Hoop.'

In 1852 it was decided that a town be established and  Mr. Van Zijl’s farm was purchased for the then enormous sum of 4 200 Pounds.  The sale of plots at about 40 Pounds each and the laying of the cornerstone in 1853 of the DRC  at a well-situated block in the centre of Town was considered the birth date of the Town. The original Church was pulled down in 1905 and a larger, more imposing Church was erected above the old foundations. The erection of Churches of other denominations soon followed, Wesleyan Church being completed in 1859 and St Mary’s Anglican Church, designed by Sophie Grey, commenced in 1862. Soon traders and general dealer stores started to open up and several Private Schools, were opened.

The year 1860 proved to be disastrous for the small Town, when a measles epidemic broke out followed by an enteric fever epidemic of alarming proportions, which swept through the entire Village, killing eighty-nine people. By 1872, Robertson boasted a well stocked Public Library and by 1880 a branch of the Standard Bank of South Africa was opened. During this period few Farmers were wealthy but the District was already gaining a reputation for its fruit, wine and brandy, and with ostrich feathers becoming high fashion overseas, ostrich farming too developed. The main industry of the Town itself was that of Wagon Building, and there were many Wheelwrights, Blacksmiths, Carpenters, Upholsterers and Professional Transport Riders.

A New River Irrigation Scheme, which brought water by means of Canals to the Farms, meant that farms became more productive.  In 1891 the Standard Bank Manager’s report could state that the income for the area was between 30 000 Pounds and 40 000 Pounds a year, making it extremely prosperous.  Where before post had arrived in the Town bi-weekly it was now delivered daily, because of the newly built Cape Central Railway, a privately owned line that ran between Worcester and Mossel Bay with Robertson its Head Post Office.

The Anglo Boer War of 1899 – 1902 saw the stationing in the Town of a British Garrison under the Command of Lieutenant Cooper, and even before hostilities ceased, the wagon making Industry was grinding to a halt, and the Railways had taken over the transport of all goods.

The beginning of the First World War in 1914 saw many, for the size of the Town, young men leaving their tranquil surroundings for the horrors of War in France.

The total collapse of the Ostrich Feather Industry in 1915, ruined many farmers, some of whom never recovered and while Robertson had never depended entirely on ostriches as had Oudtshoorn and Ladysmith, there is no denying that many were materially affected, and it is perhaps at this stage that wine farming started developing into the multi million rand industry it is today. These, together with the Racehorse Breeding Farms, which have proliferated in the last thirty Years, certainly have added to the prosperity of the Town and the District.