27/10/2026
When I sell farmland I am often asked about the small pockets of land that become available and the water rights that go with them. This well researched post goes some way in explaining how these pockets came into being.
HOW THEY ACQUIRED LAND IN THE LATE 1880s
Land Act No. 37 of 1882 - The purchaser applied for a specified piece of land not greater than 500 acres and not less than eighty. The application was brought before a local board which assessed the value. If accepted, the applicant received a licence from the government for five years at a licence rent, calculated at 5% of the value. The purchaser had to personally reside on the land within six months of purchase, for at least three years, and had to cultivate at least one-twentieth within two years. After the five years, if all was complied with, he received a quitrent grant equal to the licence paid, and he could redeem the quitrent by a 20 years' purchase. The land was not transferable in the five years, unless a title to the land had been provided during that period. This was considered the better option to take up a small acreage.
In the 1880s a Karoo farm and buildings on about 2,000 morgen cost £400, with £300 needed for buying stock, and about £85 per annum for irrigation and water storage. The standard size of a Cape farm at the time was between 1,000 and 3,000 morgen (a morgen being about 2 acres).
Land Act No. 15 of 1887 - All Crown land was put up for public auction, previously advertised by the Surveyor-General. The sale was held at the office of the Civil Commissioner in the district in which the land was situated. It was put up at a reserve price and knocked down to the highest bidder. After six months, one-tenth of the price had to be paid, and another tenth after 12 months. The remainder of the price was mortgaged to the government at 4%. The purchaser had to pay off the mortgage in fixed proportions and could pay in extra from time to time of no less than £50.
Land Act No. 26 of 1891 - Land was put up for lease by public auction for periods varying from one to five years. The Act was amended to allow lessees to purchase the leased land during the lease. Many men who had leased land spent capital on reservoirs and other improvements and were often outbid at the end of their leases. The amendment allowed them to be offered the option of purchase based upon the value of their leases.
Prior to 1897, the government set aside a number of smallholdings to be sold on easy terms on the Cape Flats. A number of Germans took up the offer. They farmed fruit and vegetables.
The earliest title deeds did not make reference to the reservation of mineral rights to the government. From 1813 to 1856 the reservation to the Crown was explicit on precious stones, gold, and silver. No mention was made of coal, iron, or other minerals. In 1860 an Act provided that no land known to contain valuable minerals would be considered wasteland of the Crown for purposes of sale. In 1881 a clause appeared for the first time referring to all ores, metals, minerals, and precious stones. The purchaser would not have rights to any such deposits discovered at any time on the granted land. The right of mining and searching was reserved for the government or any person authorised by the government. Compensation for any damages resulting from the search or working of mines would be settled by mutual agreement or, failing that, by appointed appraisers.
At the time, the following districts were recommended as best suited for farming:
British Bechuanaland and Griqualand West – cattle farming
Transvaal and Western Cape – grains
Part of the Eastern Cape and Cape Peninsula – fruit and vegetable farming
Cape Peninsula, and the part between the Karoo and coast – vines
Karoo and Eastern/Western Cape – sheep farming
Thorn Veldt (presumably Oudtshoorn area) – ostrich and goat farming
Western Cape – mules
Between Steynsburg and Aliwal North – horses
Most of the country – dairy farming
For people who don't know history, yes these laws were applicable to the Cape Colony at the time.
Photo: Piet MEIRING's farm in Beaufort West. He was already farming there in the 1870s.
Copyright 2026 South African Researcher – Family History & Heritage. Please don’t steal my articles and present it as your own work. Unscrupulous people and thieves do that. If you’d like to share my work, please use the post's share option. These posts are from my personal collection of 40+ years that I've researched and post as original content here (no AI).
