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Claas Jansz b4 Willem c2 Nicolaas d1 Willem e6 Willem f5 Nicolaas Jacobus
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Nicolaas Jacobus born 1855

Nicolaas Jacobus was the fifth child of Willem and Maria Sophia Sussana Spammer. According to an inscription in a family Bible (Bible of his second wife) he was born on 7 Jul 1855. His Death Notice⁽¹⁾ mentions that he was born at Montague. The same Death Notice states that his father had the second name of Francois, which is not correct. The family use to live in the Cold Bokkeveld (north of Ceres) it is more likely that he was born there or in the Karoo since the family use to trek there in winter with their sheep. He was baptised at the Ceres NG Church on 14 October 1855, see baptism Record (12k).⁽²⁾ In the record of his baptism he is recorded under "Jansen" and they have totally omitted "van Rensburg" when mentioning whom his father was.

His family must have moved to the Victoria West area before he was four, since a sister was baptised there in 1859. The family lived as Trekboer's there without owning any land. They were thus unattached, and yet attached to the land.

The Extremes of the Karoo

Between 1875 -1877 a severe drought was experienced in the Carnarvon area.⁽³⁾ This would have set back a young man hoping to build up some stock to establish himself as a farmer, and a prospective husband. The Karoo is a place where you sweated, thirsted and starved. For man and beast it was the survival of the fittest. Many a person took on the appearance of the Karoo, dry, parched like a human dessert, with dry cracked skin covering little flesh but lots of bone. With quivering heat, blazing sun, bleating sheep and suffocating dust, one has to contend with. Looking at the animals one beholds the glazed eyes of sheep with nostrils encrusted with dust. You either had great frosts, great heat, or great droughts. If you were not baking you were freezing.⁽⁴⁾ During the day the canvassed wagon and tent were like an oven. At night they experienced freezing conditions being only protected by the canvas. See photo of a Trekboer home (48k), one with wagon and tent the other a matjies house. They came under the Midland Province and the census of 1875 gives an indication of the demographics of region.⁽⁵⁾

Carnarvon use top be know as Zak river and the missionaries established a mission station here, see picture of the mission station soon after it was established (63k).

Marriage to Magdalena Maria Bruyns 1881

On the 25 March 1880 Nicolaas Jacobus became a member of the Carnarvon NG Church, see photo of minister W.P. de Villiers and Carnarvon Church (65k)⁽⁶⁾ There use to be a Rhenish Mission here called Schietfontein from the early 1800's, see drawing by Lichtenstein of Kicherer's Mission station at Sak river(62k) A year later he married Magdalena Maria Bruyns, at the same church, on 21 February 1881. He was then twenty five and a stock farmer, and she only seventeen. The Marriage Register (34k)⁽⁷⁾ contains both their signatures, it also states that he came from the farm Leeuwkranz and she from Van Wyksvlei. Her parents were Christian Jacobus Theodorus Bruyns and Maria Dorothea Jooste.

There were numerous intermarriage between the van Rensburg and Bruyns families. Nicolaas younger brother Petrus (f6), married his wife's younger sister f1g2 Elizabeth Gertruida Bruyns. Whereas Nicolaas older sister Anna (f4), married his wife's uncle f5 Andries Marthinus Bruyns. And his younger sister Wilhelmina (f7) married another uncle of his wife's f10 Johannes Willem Bruyns. According to research done by the writer, Nicolaas wife's grandmother was called Latea van die Kaap. This supports his daughter-in-law (writer's grandmother, who mentioned to the writer) who was told that the Bruyns family had a trace of mix blood. There must have been some miscegenation back earlier. Latea was a very pretty girl since in a rhyme it refers to this. "Dan volgt Latea nimmer schuins De Deelgenoot van Christian Bruins" Later Latea was baptised in Stellenbosch as an adult in 1843 and she took on the name Elizabeth Gertyda Markunes.⁽⁸⁾

Seven Children born to this Marriage

Seven children were born to Nicolaas and Magdalena, according to the baptismal records at Carnarvon:

g1 Willem Francois Jacobus =16 Apr 1882 from farm Celeryfontein (witnesses Maria Sophia Sussana Spammer, Martha Johanna Jooste, Thomas Jacobus Fraser). Born 28 Jan 1882 He married at Carnarvon on 25 Nov 1912 to Dinah Johanna Smit (She, is Townspeople)

g2 Christian Jacobus =30 Sept 1883 from farm Blauwkrantz (witnesses Maria Dorothea Bruiyns, Petrus Johannes Janse van Rensburg) Born 22 July 1883

g3 Maria Dorothea (Mieta) =1 March 1885 from farm Middelfontein (witnesses Andries Gerhardus Visser, Martha Engela Elizabeth Rossouw, they owned the farm Blaauwkrantz and were the parents of the poet A.G Visser). Born 4 Jan 1885 She gets married at Klerksdorp to Hendrik Nicolaas Pieters. She died 16 Aug 1955

g4 Maria Sophia Susanna (Sannie) =13 May 1888 from Van Wyksvlei, (witnesses Jacob Jacobus Kruger, Elizabeth Gertruida Bruyns) She gets married at Carnarvon on 8 Aug 1910 to Marthinus Francois Wynand Petrus Moller (She is from VanWyksvlei and he from Kaffersnek). But I was told that she was married to Petrus Nicolaas Wolmarans at Klerksdorp. She died 2 Jan 1953

g5 Nicolaas Jacobus =20 Nov 1892 from farm Kalkgat (witnesses Andries Marthinus Bruyns, Francina Sussana Johanna Bruyns). Born 4 Oct 1892. He married at NG Church Potchefstroom 23 June 1925 to Johanna Elisabeth Kuhn. He died 10 Sept 1970

g6 Magdalena Johanna Maria (Lenie) =19 August 1894, born 1 June 1894. She married at Klerksdorp 16 May 1915 to Simon Cornelius Wolmarans. Became member of N.H. Church Potchefstroom 6 June 1920 She died 30 June 1970

g7 Petrus Jacobus (Piet) Born 28 April 1894 (from Mother's death notice, I think it is incorrect, the year is more likely 1896). He became member of N.H. church Potchefstroom 31 March 1917 Married Gloudina Maria van der Merwe born 3 Nov 1894, she became member of N.H. Church Potchefstroom 5 Oct 1918 (was he married first to Aletta Elizabeth Johanna Erasmus? a child born to them Gert Jacobus baptised 30 June 1916 N.H. Church Klerksdorp (witnesses Willem Francois J.v.R and H.S.M.J.v.R)

The other occasions that they would go to town was for 'Nagmaal' the quarterly communion service. See photo of such a gathering notice the wagons and tents (48k). Notice the following pencil drawing of a family outspan (50k).

Where they Lived and Attitude to Land

The father of Nicolaas never owned land. Like so many others he must have thought that there will be enough land too trek to, for him and his children. Between 1860-1890 there was no need to worry about property. ⁽⁹⁾ An indication where the family lived is obtained from the record and referral to farms, we don't know when his father died:

March 1880 - Leeukranz

Feb 1881 - Leeukranz

Apr 1882 - Celeryfontein

Sept 1882 - Phesantfontein ( present day Loxton)

Sept 1883 - Blauwkrantz March

1885 - Middelfontein (part of Eselsfontein)

May 1888 - Van Wyksvlei Nov 1892 - Kalkgat

Dependent on land and yet landless they wandered wherever they could get grazing. At this time there were still enough crown land, and other farmers did not mind them farming on their land during good times. Many of these trekboers, see photo of a trekboer group (42k), would congregate at fountains in the Karree mountains or in riverbeds where they would have access to water. ⁽¹⁰⁾ The problem was, even if you had good grazing it was not of much use unless you had water. The animals quickly trampled any vegetation into dust which was surrounding a water hole. Whenever they trekked the children had to attend to the flocks and during the droughts they would be hauling or carrying water to the house, or the animals, from morning to evening. ⁽¹¹⁾ When they were able to have social gathering, they enjoyed dancing, many a face would have rivulets of mud streaking down their cheeks from the dust and sweat.

A description of the inhabitants is given in a report from 1887 "The population consists chiefly of a very low type of Dutch Boer and a people known as Bastards .... Both Boers and Bastards lead a nomadic life dwelling in tents and wagons and moving from one place to another in search of pasturage and water for their flocks". ⁽¹²⁾ When water was scares, they would wash seldom. Fires were often made of twigs and dry manure, and thus they were impregnated with a peculiar smell from these fires. The time was fast approaching when bywoners (this included every white on a farm apart from the owner), were no longer welcome. Crown land started to diminish, and every land owner needed their land. Bywoner started to be viewed as someone who have an attachment to the land but can't afford it. (Carnegie Report into the Poor White Problem in South Africa). See photo of a trekboer.

Farming Practices

Farming with fat tail sheep from which they got lard to make soap and candles. The skins were used for velshoes, jackets and leather trousers. Goats were an integral part of farming here, they were able to live where sheep could not, breeding much more prolific than sheep, up to five kids a time. Goats were able to be milked. The "kapater' castrated goat, played a vital role as a 'voorbok' the one who would lead the sheep to the kraal or across a river. Kraals were made of thick hedge of thorny bush or blocks cut out of old dung and then stacked like bricks. Donkeys also played a vital role in the Karoo, being slow yet economical, it served as the poor man's slave.

Socio-Economic Position - Poor Whites

Nicolaas does not appear in the Victoria West (it included Carnarvon) Voters List⁽¹³⁾ this is for the years 1872, 1876, 1882, 1889, and 1895. A person could only qualify to vote if you occupied a house worth 25 pounds. Being a trekboer he would not have qualified. In 1892 the qualification rose to 75 pounds. ⁽¹⁴⁾ It is interesting that the farmers of Prieska in 1888 complained for being taken off Voters Roll, since they had no fix house.⁽¹⁵⁾ The 1880's there were severe droughts, it was like 'picked to the bone' country and this led to greater poverty. The number of electors for the Victoria West -Cararvon subdistrict for 1880/81 - 167 electors, 1882/83 - 282 electors, 1884/85 - 438 electors. In 1883 there were for all of Victoria West 1,775 electors and 522 voted.

There are no record of him in Victoria West Divisional Council Rates for 1886-89, 1895, 1897 nor 1898, 1899. This is consistent with what we know of him, if he had no fixed land he would not have paid tax.

According to the Census record for 1891, in the Carnarvon area, the number of housing and what they were constructed of were and in brackets the number of inhabitants: bricks and stone 665 (4,235), mud and wattle 132 (650), and tents and wagons 98 (445). There were 499 whites as heads of families

If they lived in a mud or brick house. Dung floors had to be washed and smeared twice a week since the dust was an attraction for flies and fleas. Others used ox blood to make the floor shine as if it was polished. They build with mud and dung. Some folks would try with inventive methods to get rid of the flies, by dipping cloth in milk and then letting the flies sit on it, then slowly sliding a bag over the cloth and catching the flies in the process.

Trek to Transvaal in late 1890's and death of Wife

The family must have trekked to the Transvaal in the late eighteen hundreds, (There was a bad drought in 1897, the average rainfall is 7.64 inches that year only 2.24 inches) since Nicolaas's wife died at the house of Johannes Lotter, at Elsburg (on the East Rand) on the 22 July 1899, no cause of death is given. Her status is given as farmer's wife. The Notice erroneously states that she was a daughter of a de Bruin, it should have read Bruyns. The Notice also omits the names of two of the children g4 and g6. In the front of the Bible (50k) of the son Christian g2 it is recorded that his father gave the Bible to him on 10 July 1901 in Johannesburg as a birthday present for his birthday which is on 22 July. During the Anglo-Boer War the children were placed in concentration camp, I do not know what happened to Nicolaas whether he took up arms or whether he was interned or not. His son Nicolaas as a little boy was selling newspapers after the war in Johannesburg. The next record of him is at Klerksdorp since his wife's Death Notice was issued at Klerksdorp on the 15 February 1904 and he signs as the surviving spouse.

Second Marriage to Gertruida Magaretha Le Roux 1908

When he returned to Carnarvon we do not know but on 24 Aug 1908 at the age of fifty two he persuaded the twenty four year old Gertruida Magaretha Le Roux to marry him, the wedding was a Civil Marriage, see entry (63k).⁽¹⁶⁾ One can only speculate why they had a civil marriage and not a church one, was it due to the age difference? Or was there some obstacle from the church or minister? In the marriage entry, his occupation is given as sheep farmer and his place of residence Kaffersnek, Carnarvon Commonage. Where he was farming confirms that he was a Trekboer without owning land. She was from Snymansput, Carnarvon Commonage (Commonage refers, I think, to land that use to belong to the blacks from Carnarvon, or crown land, where they leasing it?). Both their signatures are included.

When they got married, his second wife maintained that all he had was children and a 'oorlosekoppie' drinking cup without a handle (as told to me by her two daughters to a later marriage with Wynand Carel Scholtz he died 1943, they had a child named Wynand Carel Scholtz) , she was born in Calvinia 1884, her parents were Jacobus Christoffel le Roux en Gertruida Margaritha le Roux. She passed away Saturday, 21 April 1951 in the Hospital at Potchefstroom.⁽¹⁷⁾

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