Durban - Himeville, in the southern Drakensberg, is a cold place. Its old prison is extremely cold, a volunteer at the local museum tells me, relaying a story she heard from another visitor.
The museum, you see, was the jail up until 1972. When the stone compound was built, 70 years earlier, its purpose was to be a laager to protect early settlers from an attack that never happened.
Many of the exhibits depicting different themes including farming, communication, education, military and trout fishing, have their own little rooms – former prison cells. One of the rooms represents its old purpose.
How the former volunteer knows about it being a cold place is that she once spoke to a visitor who came to museum and confessed that he had spent a cold week in that cell, “cooling off” after having been arrested for being in a fight.
“He was a respectable-looking man and obviously had a good job. He said it was very cold with only two blankets at night, one used underneath and one used on top of his body.
“At the end of the week someone else who had something to do with the fight was brought in for something else and he was able to jeer at him. He said he had never been back to such a place.”
A nearby chamber has a replica of an old “nommer asseblief” rural telephone exchange. There used to be two of them within close proximity in the area: one in Himeville, one in Underberg. Each of the rival exchanges held on to its identity until the arrival of the automatic exchange.
Before that, display boards tell us, mail came to the district on a post cart journey that would involve frequent stops to change horses, or with runners.
The trout fishing display has an excerpt from a Saturday edition of the then Natal Mercury, dated February 25, 1933.
“The trout fishing in the Underberg waters, notwithstanding the drought conditions prevailing until last week, has been exceptionally good.
“Parties on two consecutive days netted 16 and 22 respectively. These fish, although averaging about three quarters of a pound, afforded very good sport and with light tackle cannot be beaten for a good game struggle.”
The museum is not difficult to find – it’s in the only commercial street of the village in an area where most attractions are outdoors.
Himeville Museum is open from 9am to 3pm from Tuesday to Saturday and from 9am to 12.30pm on Sundays. It is closed on Mondays. Tel: 033 702 1184. - Independent on Saturday