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Table Bay Harbour - Port Captain’s Building
Waterfront, Cape Town, Western Cape
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Contact Artefacts | MenuHomeUpfront Now Up Books Towns Structures People Firms Lexicon | Table Bay Harbour - Port Captain’s Building | | ||
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Click to view large map Coordinates: | Transcription of information plaque (see photo): THE PORT CAPTAIN'S BUILDING This building was the Port Captain's second office. It was built in 1904 to replace the Clock Tower as the docks became busier. From 1975 harbour administration was conducted from the Lourens Muller Building at the end of the South Arm. This handsome Victorian structure houses the headquarters of Victoria & Alfred Waterfront (Pty) Ltd. By the time this building was completed, the management of the docks was a complex job involving the movement of many goods, and the supervision of customs, labour and landing duties. From the earliest days of European contact the Waterfront had also been a centre of communication with the outside world. Originally postal stones were used. (You can see some in the SA Maritime Museum.) By 1904 the Waterfront was entering the era of modern telecommunications with the nerve centre in the new Port Captain's building. Telephone lines linked the Port Captain's Office and the public with the Post Office Central Exchange in town. A branch of the West Quay Post Office was installed on the ground floor of the new building. Telegraph linked the Waterfront with the rest of the world. By 1900, with about 5 000 people working at the docks, the Port Captain was one of the best paid professional men in Cape Town. During World War Two, Captain Jackson was responsible for building the boom defences across the harbour entrance. In the Alfred Basin you can board the museum ship, the SAS Somerset, which was one of the vessels used for this purpose. References:
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