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Drivers at Albany

DRIVER'S BUSH and DRIVER'S HILL

Driver's Bush East (also known as Honeykop Halt), Albany - a portion of the farm Gilead. 1 ['kop' = a hill]

Driver's Bush West (also known as Haasnek), Albany - a portion of the farm Gilead. 1  ['haasnek' = hare or rabbit neck, the latter presumably a topographical neck]

Driver's Bush Inn, Albany; Lat 3318 Long 2648, on the farm Gilead. 1

Driver's Hill, Albany; 3325BC (map ref.); Lat 3317 Long 2642; ENE of Grahamstown); Trig. beacon (on Geol. Survey mapsheet 136) on farm Green Hills, 848 meters above s.l. and 2 km SE of Governor's Kop.  The 1898 Albany Div. map shows Driver's Hill or Green Hill. Prof E Mountain (1946) gives height asl as 848,3m adding that it is the same height as Governor's Kop, 2,4km to the NW along the same ridge but on Governor's Kop farm ... Driver's Hill is the prominence on which much of land-surveying calculations were centred.  Old title deeds often mention farm beacons being corrected to readings taken from Driver's Hill.  Trig Survey sheet PE SE 35/24 (!:500 000) shows Driver's Hill and Governor's Kop as the same place, in error. 1
 
Cape Archives QRR 4/62 shows Stoney Vale or Driver's Hill granted in July 1850 to E. Driver (Stoneyvale is the farm adjacent to Green Hills, lower down the slope).  Henry Hall's 1856 map marks Driver's Hill as that portion of the road down the slope from Green Hills to Komsfontein, which means that the name Driver's Hill covers the slope of the road as well as the prominence on the farm. 1  

Coetzer 1897 - "We went, by night, half-way to Fish River, and stopped under a cliff (overhang) for protection, about 10 miles from the camp at Driver's Hill.  The cave here is so large that 1000 men could easily hide in it without being visible from the outside.  EM Jones 1971: 81/2 - named after Edward Driver. 1

GREENHILLS
The farm Greenhills was owned originally by Robert Wood BAGOT.  This view is looking south, away from Driver's Bush.

Greenhills


STONY VALE

This view looking west from close to Driver's Bush.

StonyVale


BEAUMONT VALLEY

This is a compilation showing Beaumont Valley, looking NE.  If you look carefully, you'll spot the broadcast tower on Governor's Kop
about 3 inches from the left border.  The latter is on Collingham and Driver's Bush is just over the horizon in the centre.

BeaumontValley


1  Algoa Gazeteer, edited by CJ Skead
Photos and transcriptions from D. Glenister.


Modified 19 May 2002.