500 bricks arrive on site!

On Monday 19 April 2010, 500 NFP bricks arrived on site from Corobrik in Somerset West, kindly donated by Corobrik.

This followed in-depth investigations into the size, colour and type of bricks to be used for repairing the hostel and rebuilding the screen wall at the entrance to the bucket system area, which disappeared somewhere around 2005/6.

Bricks securley stored and carefully stacked ready to be hand-picked for colour and size. Photograph: Noeleen Murray, Hostel 33 22 April 2010.

500 bricks donated by Corobrik. Photograph: Noeleen Murray, 22 April 2010.

Project manager Renchius van der Merwe's efforts in this respect have been meticulous and after meeting with David Mellem and Allistair Cloete of Corobrik at Hostel 33 on Wednesday, 7 April 2010, Allistair suggested the possibility of Corobrik donating/sponsoring the bricks and their transortation to site.


Renchius van der Merwe's image of Hostel 33 bucket system area external wall shows precisely how uneven the existing brickwork and coursing is on site. Repair will entail hand-picking bricks for colour and size, which Renchius will do on site with the local contractor who is appointed to do the works! Photograph: Renchius van der Merwe 15 April 2010

Corobrik's kind donation is hereby gratefully acknowledged.

A close reading of the Urban Foundation Report by Urban Design Services (Bermann and Penz), 1987, Lwandle Investigation into the potential for Black Housing, Draft report for the Urban Foundation, February 1987, p.19. reveals that Corobrik once had a hostel in Lwandle, which makes this donation even more significant.

An extract from p. 19 of the 1987 Report reads:
" At present there are 41 permanent hostel buildings with 1 hostel privately owned by Corobrik."

We hope to find out more about this hostel and its whereabouts from residents through the Museum's on-going oral history programmes.

If anyone has any information in this regard, please could you let us know?