Title: Swakopmund
Subtitle: Those were the days
Illustrator: Coral van der Plas
Editor: Sandie Fitchat
Genre: Illustrated book, region history
Publisher: Wordweaver Publishing House
Windhoek, Namibia 2024
ISBN 9789994582280 / ISBN 978-99945-82-28-0
Softcover, 24 x 22 cm, 80 pages, throughout illustrated
Coral van der Plas's book of paintings on Swakopmund's past is a fresh take on the town's German settlement history. The images reflect and imagine what these early immigrants faced: wild winds, thick snad, fleas - even, eventually, bombardment - and then South African rule. The lively illustrations make it all come to life, while the text weaves in some of the significant makers of Swakopmund's colourful tapestry. While respecting historical accuracy in the main, illustrator Coral van der Plas has taken liberty with imagination and reflection to tell a story with anecdotes gleaned from local Swakopmunders. If buildings were dreary, she brightened them up with colour and imaginary gardens and also repositioned buildings to make them part of the narrative.
Urban legends are hinted at and details of the beautiful exterior mouldings and figures recalling ancient mythology are highlighted. In this way Coral van der Plas hopes to preserve memories of the past. If one considers the conditions and barren landscape facing the first settlers, one can only admire their tenacity. They built a lighthouse which washed away, so they had to erect a second one. They constructed the Mole as a harbour, but it silted up. Seasonal flooding of the ephemeral Swakop River made a permanent harbour impossible. Their wooden and iron jetties were subjected to the ravages of the sea and the weather. The lack of fresh water and the thick sand had to be overcome. Swakopmund - Those were the days is to honour the spirit that persevered against all these odds.
Coral Deleste van der Plas (formerly Heath, nee Momberg) was born in Windhoek in 1953 as a third-generation Namibian. She attended St George's Diocesan and Centaurus High in Windhoek, and graduated with a BA and a Secondary Teacher's Diploma from the University of Cape Town. Coral lived in Cape Town, married and had three sons, Jonathan, Stephen and Peter Heath. She returned to Swakopmund in 2008 and married Wim van der Plas, and now is grandmother of four grandchildren, businesswoman and self-taught watercolourist.
Preface
Landing at 22° South
From Sand to Something
The Lighthouse in 1892
Martin Luther and the Horse-drawn Trollies
Schluchtstrasse, 1910
Little Hamburg
The Lutheran Church
The Brewery
The Antonius Hospital
Roonstrafie
The Prison
Camels, Coaches and Castles
Hansa Hotel
Haus Altona
Otavi-Bahnhof
The Railway Station
Woermannhaus
Ritterburg
Postal Services
Pistols and Post
Officially the First Post Office
Post Office in the Pink
Posting on Pillars
Trollies
Printers and Books
The Buchhandlung
Swakopmunder Männergesangverein and Brodmann Shoes
The 1960s Buchhandlung
The 1970s Buchhandlung
The Buchhandlung in 2023
Die Muschel
Schooling
Georg-Ludwig-Kindergarten
The German School
Altes Amtsgericht
Traders and Trends
Trendhaus, Anglican Church and Otto Günther
The New Trendhaus and Raith's
Villa Wille
Hans Lohmeier Men's Outfitters
Von Tippelskirch & Co.
Hans Putensen's Bäckerei und Konditorei
Ernst Baumgart Nachfolger
Robert Schurig Baumaterialen- und Eisen-Handlung
J Kronheimer & Co. mbH
Gables and Fables
Fuchsberg
Store Zetzmann
From Bismarck to Bazaar
Hotel Fürst Bismarck
Rudolph Hertzog
Adler Apotheke
Adler Apotheke and Blatt's Shoe Shop
Kurt Trede Ecke
The Financial Hub
Hotel Kaiserhof
A Forgotten Corner
Woermann, Brock & Co.
Deutsche Afrika-Bank
The Lighter Side of Life
Haus Hohenzollern
Kücki's Pub
The Strand Hotel
The Atlantic Cafe
The Old Bathhouse
The Mole, 1918
The Toll of War
The Radio Transmitter
The Customs House
The Museum
Kaserne, Hotel Prinzessin Rupprecht and MC Human
Major Oskar Scultetus
Down at the Beach
The Lighthouse of 1910
The Mole, pre-1990
The 'Washing Machine'
The Tug
The View from the Jetty
The Train and Dunes at South Beach
Once in a Blue Moon ... September 2023
References
Old and New Street Names
