Scheepers se manne beroof die Prince Albert-poskoets by Botterkraal
9 Oktober 1901 · district · Prince Albert
[SRC-172, Helena Marincowitz, *Prince Albert and the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902)*, Fransie Pienaar Museum, 1999, p.25] 'On Wednesday 9 October 1901 the post was carried as usual by Jan Haak's post coach to Prince Albert pulled by eight mules. After leaving the hotel at Prince Albert, it stopped at THE HALFWAY STAGE AT BOTTERKRAAL. Suddenly Scheepers' men surrounded the coach. All the post bags were cut open and anything of value was taken. The remaining post was burned. Six of the eight mules were seized. It was thus impossible for the driver to proceed any further. Fortunately there were no passengers in the coach.' BOTTERKRAAL WAS A STAGE ON THE POST ROAD, which is a fact about the farm this project did not hold. In 1901 Oudtshoorn had no rail link to Cape Town, so the post went over the Swartberg Pass to Prince Albert Road Station and Botterkraal was the halfway change of mules. The next day the commando reached Kopjeskraal, 'only 20 kms from Botterkraal', with Scheepers by then seriously ill. EVT-000326.
Grond waarop dit gebeur het
Bronne
- Helena Marincowitz, Prince Albert and the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902), Fransie Pienaar Museum, Prince Albert, 1999 Marincowitz, Helena (1999): Prince Albert and the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902). Prince Albert, Fransie Pienaar Museum. 51 pp. Read in full from pp.4-51; pp.1-3 (cover, title, contents) not photographed.