EMBERTON'S LEGACY

A BEAUTIFUL MANOR HOUSE THAT SPEAKS A THOUSAND WORDS, WRITES KATRINE ANKER-NILSSEN

Many moons ago the Upper Highway area consisted of pioneering characters who possessed a strong sense of community. The Field family, after which Fields Hill is now named, farmed where Kloof now lies. Their neighbouring Gillitt family owned a piece of land further west, encompassing the area we now know as Gillitts.

Hillcrest was always a sought-after destination, and townsfolk from Durban would catch a train to the hills and spend a weekend enjoying the fresh country air and cooler climate. The quaint railway stations that dot the line to Pietermaritzburg are a testament to that time.

As the years passed, the popularity of the area continued to grow as families sent their children to many of the private schools available. With the influx of applicants for schooling, there came a desperate need for housing. From the late 1990s, developers started rolling out gated estates across the Upper Highway area.

Most of these estates come at a price that excludes young professionals and first-time home buyers,

TOP: The orginal Emberton manor house had beautiful copper gutters. ABOVE: The beautiful garden, with Clifton Gillitt (front) and Sheila and Tom Halsted. LEFT: The estate’s clubhouse today.

however the three-year-old Emberton Estate differs. Located on the original Emberton farm, last farmed by Russell and Barbara Halsted, the estate has managed to keep the farm’s legacy going through its beautiful manor house.

Russell has a big green suitcase with a wonderful collection of fascinating historical titbits – such as photos, letters and title deeds. “My mother was a great scribe and she recorded everything growing up,” he says.

William Gillitt senior came out from Emberton, Buckinghamshire and settled in Wyebank in 1849 – with his wife, five daughters and William junior. In 1870 William junior bought 500 acres further up the hill and named it Emberton, after his birthplace, building a house on the property. William junior died in 1899, when his son Cliff was only 11, but his mother continued to run the farm until she passed on in 1922. Two years later Cliff

and his wife Jane took over, and in 1946 Tom Halsted, a printer by trade, married Sheila – the only child of Cliff and Jane. Sheila and Tom took over in 1948.

“Over the years each generation that has lived in the manor house has made their own alterations to it,” says Russell – who took over in 1976. “I was born there in 1956, it was a combined dairy farm back in the days. I remember separating the milk and cream in the old stone milk shed and travelling with my grandfather Cliff in an old Chevy bakkie, taking the milk down to Pinetown.”

The home was very friendly and always open to all. “Even tramps were given food and clothes while being chatted to by Cliff,” says Russell. Cliff was also a commissioner of oaths and a Zulu linguist, and would often have to interpret legal documents sitting on the veranda. Jane’s 25-acre garden was her pride and joy, and quite a feature admired by passers-by. “She would pick bunches of flowers and leave them in an outside room for people to help themselves,” says Russell – adding that the dining-room was large and during the war years hosted many dances.

ABOVE: Jane Gillitt with her grandson Russell.

As property developers we don’t just make way for new, we will always appreciate and retain a legacy – keeping a great sense of community alive

“My parents were married there, and so were my two sisters; Yvonne and Lorraine.

“Rainy days were never a problem for us as we could ride bikes in the long passages and on the verandas surrounding the house,” says Russell – who also rode his bike to school every day; Highbury, just up the road.

In 2007 the farm was sold to developers and today, in the hands of the Collins Group, the Emberton Estate’s manor house is a wonderful reminder of old times. The pub and restaurant is located in the beautiful large dining-room. The little veranda next to the estate manager’s office faces east, and it was said that the old farmer built this so that he could have his morning tea and watch the sunrise over the port of Durban. The house played a significant role in the history of KZN – particularly during the second Anglo Boer War in 1901, when troops en route to liberate the besieged British soldiers in Ladysmith disembarked at the farm and overnighted in their tents, while the train was replenished with water for the steam engines and produce from the farm.

Such was the historical value of the home that the roof trusses were removed during the renovations and are currently housed at the national archive in Pietermaritzburg. The old stone milking sheds on the property were deconstructed and the rocks were then repurposed in the walls that flank the entrance to Emberton Estate.

The developers of the estate worked closely with Amafa in restoring the home to its former glory, a testament to Murray Collins’s vision and appreciation for the history of the property. When farming operations ceased it became a golf driving range and mashie course, and was a much-loved venue for local families to enjoy. It continues to serve the community today with one of the best restaurants in Hillcrest, Ray’s Kitchen, operating from the restored house.

“Valuing culture and keeping history alive is of huge importance to us,” says Murray Collins. “As property developers we don’t just make way for new, we will always appreciate and retain a legacy – keeping a great sense of community alive.” *

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