Preserving Genadendal’s rich cultural history

Writer & Photographer Tweet Gainsborough-Waring

Born and bred in the picturesque Overberg town of Genadendal, Dr Isaac Balie remembers playing on the banks of the river, skinny-dipping at Stroomdrift’s pool, playing traditional country games like kennetjie, marbles and vrot patat. All of which left an indelible mark on his memory.

As a result, this former curator and director of the Genadendal Mission Museum grew up with a love of the town’s culture and traditions, along with a burning desire to save them for future generations. It was a goal that saw Isaac, even as a young lad, frittering around under beds and in dusty attics, always on the hunt for artefacts that were integral to the daily lives of those who lived in the town.

Dr Isaac Balie in the museum with a mock-up of his latest book on the history of Genadendal.

After school he studied teaching, got married and returned to his home town to teach at the Emil Weder High School, ultimately being promoted to principal. Throughout his teaching career, his passion to preserve the culture and history of his home town always burnt bright. He knew the Moravian church had precious artefacts stored in the attics of its precinct, but it was those sourced from the community – used, chipped or cracked – that were of most value to him, as these carried with them the essence of life as it had been. “We had what we had, and that was enough,” he said.

He had noted with sorrow that antique collectors and auctioneers would visit the town in search of saleable pieces, and of course if you had nothing to eat that day, the sale of a chair or washbasin for fifty bucks was very appealing. In 1963 he started working with the Moravian bishop to expand the collection in order to start a museum.

A retired Dr Balie welcomes visitors to the Genadendal Mission Museum complex.

All the while Isaac was furthering his studies in the subject at Stellenbosch University, where he graduated with a doctorate in social and cultural history. Now all he had to do was to put his knowledge and qualifications to good use in creating a museum.

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