1900 – Fighting Disease Behind the Lines

107 days into the Siege of Kimberley

As the Siege of Kimberley entered its fourth month, disease had become as dangerous as the Boer artillery.

In The Diary of a Doctor's Wife – During the Siege of Kimberley, October 1899 to February 1900, Winifred Heberden recorded her husband Dr Jack Heberden's growing concern about a renewed outbreak of typhoid fever among the troops. Dr Heberden discovered that many soldiers were storing drinking water in old canvas water bags, some of which had been in use for years. He suspected these containers had become contaminated and were contributing to the spread of disease.

Recognising the danger, he recommended that all privately owned water bags should be destroyed and replaced with large communal canvas water coolers mounted in wooden frames that could be properly cleaned and maintained. The recommendation reflected an increasing understanding of hygiene and public health, at a time when medical science was only beginning to appreciate how contaminated water spread disease. For Kimberley's doctors, preserving health had become just as important as defending the town itself.

Did You Know?

More soldiers and civilians often died from disease than from enemy action during nineteenth-century wars. Clean water and good sanitation became vital weapons in the defence of Kimberley.

1903 – A Foundation for Women's Education

On this day in 1903, Mary Crowninshield Endicott Chamberlain, wife of British Colonial Secretary Joseph Chamberlain, laid the foundation stone of the Women's Hostel in Lennox Street, Kimberley. Mary Chamberlain was the daughter of the former United States Secretary of War, making her visit to Kimberley an event of considerable public interest.

The hostel was established to provide safe accommodation and support for women living and working in the rapidly developing city. It reflected Kimberley's growing maturity as a permanent urban centre, where education, welfare and community services were becoming increasingly important. Today, the laying of the foundation stone is remembered as part of Kimberley's continuing social development in the years following the South African War.

Did You Know?

Joseph Chamberlain visited South Africa after the South African War to help promote reconciliation and reconstruction throughout the British colonies and former Boer republics.

1909 – Extraordinary Courage Beneath the Big Hole

One of Kimberley's greatest mining rescue stories was recognised on this day in 1909.

Twelve De Beers employees—six Black miners and six white miners—received the prestigious Edward Medal for outstanding bravery after rescuing six African miners trapped by a dangerous mud rush in the Kimberley Mine. For almost 40 hours, the rescuers worked in extremely hazardous conditions. Lying on narrow planks suspended above unstable mud, they carefully reached the trapped miners, knowing that another collapse could easily claim their own lives.

Their courage saved lives at enormous personal risk. The Edward Medal, instituted by King Edward VII in 1907, was one of Britain's highest civilian awards for acts of bravery in mines and industry. Receiving it elevated these Kimberley rescuers to the ranks of the bravest civilian heroes of their generation. Their actions remain a powerful reminder that the history of Kimberley's diamond mines is not only about engineering and wealth, but also about the courage, teamwork and humanity of the men who worked underground.

Did You Know?

The Edward Medal was one of the British Empire's rarest civilian gallantry awards. It recognised exceptional acts of courage by people working in dangerous industries such as mining.