Fascinating Titbits
It is strange how in landlocked Bredasdorp, the presence of the ocean is so palpable. More than 250 vessels have been lost on this coast and the town’s Shipwreck Museum is a fitting tribute to those who perished beneath the waves. Indeed, the ceiling beams of the museum itself are of timbers salvaged from ships’ hulls, masts and yards.
The place is crammed with figureheads, anchors, furniture, cannons and other artefacts that washed ashore or were derived from wrecks – fragments of Europe and Asia that have found their final resting place in an Overberg dorp.
As you pick through the tales of heroism and horror you come upon fascinating titbits, such as the strange story surrounding the French ship, Le Souvenance from the East Indies which sank off Quoin Point in 1871.
There were no survivors, but the French consul received the following official report: “Amongst the wreckage we found the body of a man, which, like a wild animal was covered from its feet to its head in hair, no longer than that of a cow.” It was ascertained only much later that the poor castaway was, in fact, an orangutan.
By Justin Fox
Bredasdorp was established as a town in 1838 and gained municipal status in 1917. Bredasdorp was named after Michiel van Breda, the first Ma...
When headed to the Overberg, you’ll find a graveyard of ships and floral riches beyond compare along a coastline patrolled by great white ...