The Prettiest Post Office
This was a description by the Department of Post and Telegraphs of the first post office building erected in Gordon’s Bay in 1939. At that time it considered Gordon’s Bay post office “one of the prettiest Post Offices in the Union – the pride of the people of Gordon’s Bay and an object of admiration to visitors from far and near”. But it had come a long way.
Gordon’s Bay was known as Vishoek in 1891 when a postal agency was established and given sub-office status in 1895. It is thought to have operated from a room at 131 Beach Road until a Colonel H Wicht bought the house and the sub-office seems to have become non-existent. However, a very enterprising young woman, Mrs Frances Eriksen, described as “a wayward, helter-skelter tomboy – the despair of her family”, volunteered to fetch the town’s post from the station at Sir Lowry’s Pass, riding there and back on horseback. Later the post was collected and carried by horse and cart, the driver blowing his bugle to announce its arrival. After her husband, Emil Eriksen, a Norwegian and one of the first permanent residents to establish a general store in the town, died in 1893 the enterprising Fanny, as she was known, continued running the business. She later married a Scot, Jack Robertson and the business became known as Robertson’s Magnet Store. After this first postal agency acquired postal and telegraph services, Mrs Robertson was appointed Post Mistress with a salary of ten shillings a month.
In 1920 when it became imperative that the postal services be upgraded, the Department submitted two proposals: either to rent a space for a post office from the local town council or to erect a standard government building. But neither proposal met with town council approval. They were reluctant to erect any new buildings and especially one near the tennis courts, which had been erected in front of Robertson’s Magnet Store. It was felt that, “it would spoil the look of the village”. After much debate, however, the council minutes noted in September 1920 that the postal services would proceed with plans for the building of a post office.
It took a while of consideration but then plans for the present post office were submitted in 1938 and the new building opened in 1939. It is interesting to note from The Post Office Journal in the State Library at Pretoria, that the name Gordon’s Bay had gone through many changes of spelling over the years: Gordonsbay in 1895, Gordon’s Bay in 1903, Gordonsbaai in 1913, back to Gordonsbay in 1927, Gordon’s Bay again in 1948, then bilingual in 1984 and finally only the English spelling Gordon’s Bay was retained in 1986. And that is the way it is likely to stay unless may be one day a suitable Khoi-San name is found?
So proudly it now stands besides the Police Station, overlooking the bay and sheltered by the ancient milkwoods, which thanks to Major Dougie van Riet, an early nature conservationist, were saved from extinction. Distinctive white tiles decorated with replicas of 18th century drawings adorn the façade of the once “prettiest post office” that now delivers a very satisfactory service to all the residents of Gordon’s Bay and its visitors.