The remains of Stuart Township

 

I think most of the regular PE Daily Photo readers know by now that I am an addicted Geocacher.  One of my own caches is situated close to a old footbridge over the narrow gauge railway line next to the South End Cemetery.  Between the cemetery and the railway line used to be a residential area with only a few remains still visible today.  After publishing the cache one of my fellow cachers sent me a link containing some information on the area which used to be called Stuart Township.  The picture above was taken from just beyond the footbridge showing what used to be Poole Street which can be seen in the old picture below.

 

 

Stuart Township was established in 1938 and named after JH Stuart who became a municipal councillor in 1936.  It was situated at the end of South End between the railway line and the Airport road.  Two hundred semi-detached houses were built to house members of the Coloured community.

 

In the early 1950’s Coloured communities from nearby Forest Hill were moved to houses added east of Poole Street.  After the proclamation of the 1961 group areas, members of the non-white population living in South End (and other parts of the city) were moved out of the area.  By the beginning of the 1970’s the Coloured community of Stuart Township were completely removed and relocated to the northern areas of Port Elizabeth and in 1972 members of white population were moved into Stuart Township.  In 1979, 127 houses of Stuart Township were demolished.  Unfortunately I couldn't get any more information on when people were finally moved out of Stuart Township for it all to be demolished.

The three historic photos as well as the information was taken from a document on the

South African Heritage Resources Agency website.

 

Follow the leader

A breeding herd (or family group) of elephants led by the matriarch on their way to the Hapoor Waterhole in the Addo Elephant National Park

Science Centre dinosaur

The Nelson Mandela Bay Science and Technology Centre in Uitenhage is Nelson Mandela Bay's newest "museum" and is slowly becoming a favorite with both local and visiting school groups.  Taking a walk around the centre I found this boy looking at the T-Rex model with interest.  While his friends were gathered around the racing simulator nearby he was looking at the mechanical workings of the model.  Amazing how different people have different interests. 

Swartkops aloe and muggies

Have aloe, will photograph.  That is the case with me when I find a flowering aloe somewhere in the wild.  With the aloes' flowering season something of the past I will run out of pics soon, but seeing that I still have one or two, I'm posting one today.  This aloe is from the Flamingo Trail in the Zwartkops Nature Reserve and the little smudges above it isn't from a dirty lens but thousands of little muggies (midges) swarming around us at one stage.   

Old train shed door

Another picture (see Old Railway Shed Roof) from my visit to the old railway sheds next to the Nelson Mandela Bay Science and Technology Centre in Uitenhage.

Preditor Park hyena

During my last visit to the Seaview Predator Park I snapped a couple of pics of their two Hyenas and wanted to share this one with you.  Since my visit the two, named Ed and Shenzi, has been returned to the reserve they came from as babies and word is that they are doing great and have found themselves at home with the group right away.  I couldn't find any other information on their website or FB on why the hyenas came to Seaview as cubs and where the reserve is, but for the sake of the post, just enjoy the picture. 

Walking past the Voting Line

I just can't get enough of Route 67 and all it's art pieces.  There are so many possibilities for photographers looking for interesting angles and subjects.  The Voting Line is one of my favourite pieces and for some reason I've only photographed it looking towards the lighthouse and pyramid.  Visiting the other day there was a group of people walking past as I was standing by the base of the flag pole and I got to snap it from a different side for a change.

Bus station mural

The Bus Station Mural by 4 Blind Mice which forms part of Route 67 is probably the one piece which I would love to have seen somewhere else.  Not because I think that it doesn't fit perfectly in the bus station, but because I would love more people to see it.  Its colourful and vibrant and I absolutely love it for that.  The mural celebrates public transport and the daily journeys undertaken by the people of the city.

Bay West Development

In June (2013) construction started on the Bay West Mall just west of Sherwood in Port Elizabeth.  Construction on the first phase of this mega development next to the N2 is expected to be completed in 2015.  The development will cover about 300 ha when finished and will be focused around a 90000m² shopping centre.  The rest of the Bay West City Precinct will be made up of commercial and residential components and the whole project is said to take place over a 15 year period.

The crowning pigeon

I don't quite think I would like to be a statue.  Yes, people walk past you and remember you every day, tourists stop by and take pictures and you have lots of feathered company but the problem is those same feathered friends and what they leave behind when they fly off again.  Passing Queen Vic in front of the Public Library the other morning there was a pigeon sitting on her crown back to front.  I wondered to myself what the chance would be of catching a photo of the pigeon leaving its calling card on the Queen's nose.  That didn't happen but the pigeon did give me a very regal eagle pose before flying off.

 

The statue of Queen Victoria in front of the Public Library was unveiled in 1903 to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee which took place six years earlier.  The statue is made of Sicilian marble and was sculptured by E. Roscoe Mullins of London.