History Narratives

We have several words in English to refer to places where we bury our dead: burying ground, burial place, graveyard, churchyard and cemetery, for example. In the history of Hermanus, different terms have been used at different times. It also appears that different places have been used as cemeteries at […]

The Luyt family in Hermanus had a strong entrepreneurial spirit. Their investments were successful, more often than not. The Marine and Riviera hotels were a longstanding success. P J Luyt had brought his energy and managerial talents to many other organisations in the town, for instance, the Wildflower Society (forerunner […]

Generally, the owners and managers of Hermanus hotels kept quiet establishments. Their guests were mainly middle to upper-middle-class individuals and families, not given to riotous nights. But sometimes events beyond management’s control occurred and resulted in a story that would go round the village. Then, it might be passed down […]

The Napier Family This account of a more recent journey to Hermanus was written by Nancy Okes (born Napier) and tells of a trip from Cape Town to Hermanus almost exactly 100 years ago, in 1922. The writer contributed a chapter to the book “Hermanus Stories III” by S J […]