This week we take a closer look at the Louis Trichardt Heritage Committee’s fourth treasure, the town’s old railway station and locomotive, in their ongoing “treasure hunt” to highlight the region’s rich cultural heritage.

Local historian Charles Leach did some research on the station building 10 years ago and some of his findings were published under the heading: “Is Louis Trichardt station the oldest building in town?” in the Zoutpansberger of 24 August 2007.

In the 4 August 2017 edition of the Zoutpansberger, Dr Norbert Hahn’s research on the waning grasslands of the Soutpansberg was published. He describes how the eucalyptus and pine tree plantations have succeeded in “drying up” the marshy conditions south of the mountains and he explains by mentioning the example of the Louis Trichardt railway station. The railway line was constructed between 1912 and 1914, but stopped just south of the town at the Ledig siding to avoid the marshy lower town. “In the 1920s it was decided to shift the station to the lower town as the planting of eucalyptus and pine trees below Hanglip had dried up the marshes,” wrote Hahn in his research.

When Pietersburg received a new station building, civil engineer H F Greaves, the grandfather of Soutpansberg resident John Greaves, was tasked with the block-by-block dismantling of the old granite building and re-assembling it where it stands today in Louis Trichardt. The new station was opened in October 1928, only eight years after the establishment of the plantations.

An excerpt from the November 1928 issue of the S.A Railways & Harbours Magazine describes the official opening of the Louis Trichardt deviation line as follows: “When the speeches had ended the special train was again requisitioned, and, to their delight, nearly 800 school children were taken for what proved to be a thorough joy-ride around the deviation. The festivities were concluded in the evening by a public dinner in the Louis Trichardt Hotel, when the guests of honour were Mr. Wilcocks and Mr. Greaves, the District Engineer.”

The red post box mounted in the granite wall still bears the letters ER with a king’s crown in between and the Roman numerals VII below, indicating the British monarch Edward Rex, or King Edward VII, the same man after whom Fort Edward was named. The fort can still be seen today in the municipal park next to the municipal library.

Regarding the history of the old steam locomotive that still features prominently in front of the old railway station, the Heritage Committee received the following correspondence from Mr Les Pivnic, assistant curator of the SA Railway (SAR)/SATS Museum (1972 – 1989). He writes: “I was, with my curator Jan Coffee, directly involved with the mounting of Class 8 No.1090 at Louis Trichardt. Back in the early 1970s to 1972 to be precise, Jan Coffee introduced a policy to preserve the history of the SAR and steam traction in particular, by mounting retired steam locomotives on platforms or in the grounds of platteland stations. There was also an extension to the scheme whereby private bodies - mostly municipalities - could apply for an old locomotive and such applications were in all cases, favourably considered providing that the private body or municipality up-lifted the relic from their nearest rail-head and undertook to maintain the relic in good cosmetic order.”

Participants in the heritage treasure hunt should take their selfies at either the red post box or the locomotive and post it on the Heritage Committee’s Facebook page: ERFENIS BEWUSMAKINGS-EN BEWARINGSKOMITEE: LOUIS TRICHARDT EN STREEK. The GPS coordinates for the station are 23° 3'8.63"S  29°54'20.99"E.

“Mr Hennie Heymanns, an enthusiastic authority on the railways of Southern Africa, and his network of colleagues at the Transnet Heritage Library have done much to provide information and photographs for this article. Our sincerest thanks to Charles Leach, who put us in touch with the right people and his initial research about the Louis Trichardt station building,” said the Heritage Committee.