Successful genealogy day at the Roodepoort Museum

By Penny Evans

On 22 January 2011 the West Gauteng Branch, in conjunction with the Roodepoort Museum, held a successful Genealogy Day in the foyer of the Promusica Theatre.

Guides took small groups of visitors on a tour of the museum which had exhibits and photographs of the early days of gold mining in the vicinity of Roodepoort. The museum has a section converted into an mid 1800's Highveld farmhouse, the kitchen, lounge and bedrooms furnished according to the style of the day. In addition various rooms depict the decor of the Victorian era and even that of the 1920's and 1930's. A wonderful worthwhile visit.

Above:  Ann Smart, curator: Roodepoort Museum

Exhibitors arrived early to set up their tables. Although the day got off to a slow start, by mid morning many visitors had arrived. The exhibitors were kept busy answering questions, giving advice and handing out information sheets. Visitors eagerly waited while the databases were checked for any infomation on their ancestors. Some delighted visitors were inspired to join our branch. Members had the chance to socialize over a cup of coffee.

We would like to thank the following branches for their support:
Johannesburg branch;
Northern Transvaal branch representing the Barkhuizen and Diedericks families;
Isabel Groesbeek (right above), a knowledgeable and experienced researcher;
Anne Smart, curator of the Roodepoort Museum and her staff;
Neels Coertse (left) for being available to take photographs of the family history information in Bibles;
Lucas Rinken for spending many exhausting hours searching his database;
Barbara Bouwer for sellind the CD's and enrolling members;
The members who helped set up tables and
The staff of the Civic Theatre.

Right:  Members paging through some of the genealogy books.

The planning and hard work of the committee made this a successful day. A very special thanks to John Stephens for his input and for supporting us on the day, despite his illness.