Ditsong Pioneer Museum
Ditsong Pioneer Museum
A visit to the Pioneer Museum will recall the past and inspire your future. It is an escape to another century that has irrevocably passed. The annual New Year’s Festival celebrates only a little of today but a lot from the past.
The Pioneer Museum is an open air museum set in a restored 3 hectare Victorian settler farmstead in Silverton, Pretoria. The stories of the Pioneer Museum and 1848 house, and of the people who lived on the farm Hartebeestpoort, are enacted against the background of the pioneer years in South Africa.
The restored Pioneer’s House, is the central focus point of this open air museum. It was built of clay and local materials, with a thatched roof and earthen floors, and is furnished in the traditional 19th century rural style. The house is surrounded by a traditional herb and vegetable garden, orchard, furnished wagon house and vineyard.
Well-trained guides in period clothing present adult programmes and curriculum-based and outcomes-based educational programmes. Various demonstrations are held, which include: Bread baking in the “bakoond”, coffee roasting and candle-making. The Museum is dedicated to provide information on living history through hands-on activities and experiences
Visit the Farmer’s Market, bright an early every Saturday morning, where freshly baked goodies can be purchased. Bring the family and make use of the picnic and braai facilities. The two lapas and the hall can also be rented for family celebrations and work-related functions.
Author: Ronel Moodie