The picturesque and historical town of Tulbagh in the Western Cape Province of South Africa is situated in one of the most stunningly scenic and fertile valleys in the country.
Tulbagh is one of the most northerly towns in the magnificent Breede River Valley, which stretches from the Karoo in the north to McGregor in the south and from Montagu in the east to Gouda in the west. The name of this valley is taken from the Breede River which is the main water source for the Breede River Valley.
Tulbagh is surrounded by the Witsenberg mountain range on the east side of the valley, the Obiqua mountains to the west and the soaring Winterhoek at the northern end which tower 2077 meters above sea level and are snow-capped in the winter months.
The warm climate in the area of the Tulbagh valley and the fertile soil offer the most ideal conditions for the growing of grapes and Tulbagh wines are amongst the best that the Cape has to offer.
Tulbagh made headlines when, in 1969, a destructive earthquake that measured 6.5 on the Richter scale damaged many of the historic buildings and destroyed a large part of the town. After the earthquake the government initiated extensive renovations resulting in Tulbagh now boasting a very impressive collection of CapeDutch style buildings. In fact Tulbagh has the largest amount of original Cape-Dutch, Edwardian and Victorian National monuments to be found in one street in South Africa and has become a major tourist attraction.
Visiting “De Oude Drostdy” when in Tulbagh is highly recommended. This typical Cape-Dutch style home was designed by Louis Michel Thibault, built in 1804 and today is a national monument and a cultural-historical museum. The Building overlooks the Drostdy-Hof wine cellar and De Oude Drostdy serves not only as a museum but as an excellent venue for wine tasting where visitors can sip their wine by candlelight in the underground historic slave quarters.
A variety of accommodation is available in Tulbagh as well as in the surrounding areas and towns of the magnificent Western Cape Province Winelands.
Image Credit: Dale Clendennen – FB South Africa My Best
I am searching for the birth records of my grandfather Pieter Ebenezer Hager born November 3, 1877 in Tulbagh Cape Province. I need a Birth or Baptismal Certificate. His Father Johann Carl Maximilian Hager born July 20 1844 and Mother Sara Elizabeth Anna van Ellewee born 1846. Thank you.
A wine cellar is a storage room for wine in bottles or barrels, or more rarely in carboys, amphorae or plastic containers. In an active wine cellar, important factors such as temperature and humidity are maintained by a climate control system. In contrast, passive wine cellars are not climate-controlled, and are usually built underground to reduce temperature swings. An aboveground wine cellar is often called a wine room, while a small wine cellar (less than 500 bottles) is sometimes termed a wine closet. The household department responsible for the storage, care and service of wine in a great mediaeval house was termed the buttery.