'Heritage Day: A Trip Down Memory Lane'

Like many other places in Cape Town, the landscape of Simon’s Town is quickly changing. The character of what Simon’s Town was is quickly being forgotten. New residents are not really interested in the historic value and legacy of Simon’s Town. In 1965 the forced removals of the Luyolo community to Gugulethu took place. Two year later, Simon’s Town was declared a White Group Area. This resulted in the second forced removals from 1968 to 1973, when everyone else was removed to Ocean View.

Together with the Phoenix Committee, The Simon’s Town Museum arranged for a series of commemorative activities for the 2019 Heritage Day Programme. We themed it ‘A Trip Down Memory Lane’ because we arranged for Simonites from The Kloof to visit their previous homes. This was combined with the unveiling of commemorative benches that acknowledge six of the twelve sites of forced removals. The creation of these benches were done in collaboration with Greatmore Studios and their artists.

We would like to thank everyone that made the day a truly special and meaningful to the Simonites.