Heritage Walk Around Kimberley Girls' High School

Why Kimberley Matters

Over the years, we have noticed that many of our guests—whether visiting Kimberley for business or leisure—have wondered why this remarkable city has played such an important role in South Africa's history over the past 160 years.

These pages invite you on a coffee-table journey through Kimberley's past, from the discovery of the Eureka Diamond in 1867 and the Great Diamond Rush, through wars, political change and the rise of the world's diamond industry, to the city we know today. They are not intended to be an academic history, but rather an enjoyable introduction to the people, places and events that shaped Kimberley.

So, make yourself comfortable, pour a cappuccino or a cup of chai, and enjoy exploring the remarkable story of one of South Africa's most fascinating cities.

Stop 1 – Doc's Coffee (5 Egerton Road)

Begin your walk at Doc's Coffee, 5 Egerton Road. There is convenient roadside parking nearby, with car guards usually present during the day. Today the building is one of Kimberley's favourite coffee shops and is well worth visiting either before or after your walk.

The house itself has an interesting history. It was built in July 1901 for Gustav Bonas, one of Kimberley's leading diamond buyers and merchants. Bonas had earlier built Lillianville on nearby Lodge Road (today known as Dunluce). After selling that house to John Orr in 1902, Bonas moved to 5 Egerton Road before selling it in 1904 to another merchant and diamond broker, A. Greenberg.

Stop 2 – The Halfway House Hotel

Whilst you are in the vicinity, have a look at the historic Halfway House Hotel on the corner of Du Toitspan Road and Egerton Road (by the traffic lights). It is one of Kimberley's oldest surviving hotels and today is home to three popular restaurants.

After viewing The Half, return to Doc's Coffee. From there, walk along Egerton Road towards Elsmere Road. When you reach Elsmere Road, turn left.

Stop 3 – Kimberley Girls' High School

As you walk along Elsmere Road, on your right, you'll notice the impressive red-brick frontage of Kimberley Girls' High School. Originally opened in 1907 as Belgravia Public School, the building became the permanent home of Kimberley Girls' High School in 1913.

Designed by Daniel Westwood Greatbatch, it remains one of South Africa's finest examples of Edwardian school architecture. Read more: Kimberley Girls' High School

Continue walking along Elsmere Road until you reach Rendlesham Road. Turn right and walk 180 metres along Rendlesham Road until you reach Lodge Road.

Stop 4 – Rudd House

Here we take a short detour to view Rudd House. Turn left onto Lodge Road and continue for approximately 150 metres until you reach Harley Street. Turn right into Harley Street and walk north for about 100 metres. Turn left into Loch Road, and on your right, you'll see a gateway offering views of Rudd House, one of Kimberley's most important historic residences. Read more: Rudd House

Retrace your steps back along Harley Street to Lodge Road. Turn left into Lodge Road and retrace your steps for approximately 100 metres, passing McInnes Street on your left. Shortly afterwards, you'll find the Cape Police Memorial set back from the road on your left.

Stop 5 – Cape Police Memorial

The Cape Police Memorial was unveiled in 1904. It honours members of the Cape Police who lost their lives during the Anglo-Boer War. The life-sized granite policeman still faces Carter's Ridge, where many members of the Cape Police fought during the Siege of Kimberley. Read more: Cape Police Memorial

Continue westwards along Lodge Road for approximately 50 metres until you reach Rendlesham Road.

Point of interest: about 50 metres along Rendlesham Road to your left once stood the Belgravia Mine, established in 1896. Although nothing survives today, this was once one of Kimberley's lesser diamond mines.

Cross Rendlesham Road and continue along Lodge Road. On your right, you'll now be walking past the rear of Kimberley Girls' High School. For many pupils, however, this serves as the school's everyday entrance.

Stop 6 – The Historic Houses of Lodge Road

Lodge Road is one of Kimberley's finest heritage streets. Along the next 300 metres, you'll encounter five remarkable homes associated with the city's diamond pioneers, all within easy walking distance of one another.  Most were designed by Daniel Westwood Greatbatch, whose work helped define Belgravia during the city's golden age.

No. 5 Lodge Road

Built in 1907, this attractive single-storey house is in the Cape Dutch Revival style, complete with distinctive Cape Dutch holbol gables and a broad bullnose verandah supported by paired timber columns. The house has long associations with the Oppenheimer family. Archival records from the Kimberley Africana Library record that Harry Oppenheimer celebrated his fifth birthday here in 1913. Many years later, his son Nicky Oppenheimer used the property as his Kimberley residence, although he spent most of his time in Johannesburg.

No. 7 Lodge Road

Designed by Daniel Westwood Greatbatch for Sir Ernest Oppenheimer and completed in 1906, this was the family home in which Harry Oppenheimer was born in 1908. Sir Ernest lived here until anti-German demonstrations during the First World War forced him to leave Kimberley in 1915.

No. 10 Lodge Road – Dunluce

Directly opposite, at No. 10 Lodge Road, stands the magnificent two-storey house known as Dunluce, widely regarded as one of Kimberley's finest Victorian homes. Originally built in 1897 as Lillianville for diamond merchant Gustav Bonas, it was purchased by John Orr in 1902 and renamed Dunluce after the famous medieval castle in Northern Ireland. Today it forms part of the McGregor Museum and remains one of the city's greatest architectural treasures. Read more: Dunluce – The John Orr House

No. 11 Lodge Road – Lindow House

Continuing west along Lodge Road, the next house is Lindow House, also designed by Daniel Westwood Greatbatch. Built in 1906 for Wilfrid Solomon, son of Sir David Harris, the house was purchased by De Beers in 1914 for Assistant General Manager Irvine Grimmer. During the anti-German demonstrations of 1915, Sir Ernest Oppenheimer and Fritz Hirschhorn sought refuge here.

No. 13 Lodge Road – The Grange

The final house of interest is The Grange, designed by Greatbatch and completed in 1893 for De Beers director H. Hirsch. In 1901, it became the home of Fritz Hirschhorn, one of Kimberley's wealthiest businessmen and noted philanthropists.

Return

Continue to the end of Lodge Road and turn right into Egerton Road. From here it is only a short walk back to Doc's Coffee, where you can reward yourself with a well-earned coffee, breakfast or light lunch after discovering one of Kimberley's most remarkable historic neighbourhoods.