The
Governor of the
Cape Colony,
Sir John Francis Cradock, gave the first farms in the Sundays River Valley to the leaders of the successful burger
commandos for their role in the victories in the border wars of 1811 and 1812. These farms were awarded to
Magistrate Cuyler (originally from the
United States) of
Uitenhage, who received
Geelhoutboom (
Yellowwood Tree, later Dunbrody);
Commandant Ignatius Muller, who received
Klaaskraal (Klaas'
Corral, situated just outside what is now Kirkwood) and
Field Cornet J. S. van Niekerk, who received
Gouwernements Belooning (Government's Reward). It is on the latter farm that Kirkwood would be established many decades later. In 1877 James Somers Kirkwood, an
auctioneer from Port Elizabeth, arrived to auction off
Gouwernements Belooning. When a flooded Sundays River prevented Kirkwood from reaching this farm he climbed a nearby hill (known today as
The Lookout) instead. From there he had a view of the entire valley and had a vision of the valley - which was overgrown by bushes at the time - being transformed into
irrigated fields with
fruit trees. He also envisioned this farm produce being delivered via river
barges to Port Elizabeth. Shortly afterwards, James himself purchased "Goewernements Belooning" as well as some other farms in the valley. He subsequently founded the
Sundays River Land and Irrigation Company as well as the village of
Bayville. Later, Kirkwood started to prepare the land for irrigation, but despite a very positive
prospectus and very good publicity, nobody was interested in buying stock in his venture. One of the reasons may be that it coincided with the big
diamond rush to
Kimberley. In consequence, his company eventually failed and was declared bankrupt. Kirkwood died in 1889, a financially and spiritually broken man. However, Kirkwood can be considered to have been ahead of his time as his vision became true in the next century when the Sundays River Irrigation Project and eventually the Orange River Water Project were built. His name also lives on in the town of Kirkwood that was founded in 1912 on his first farm,
Gouwernements Belooning. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Sundays River formed the eastern border of the then Cape Colony and was the area around Kirkwood consequently the scene of many armed conflicts -
Khoi against
Xhosa, Khoi and Xhosa together against the
Boers and British together and finally the Boers against the British during the
Second Anglo-Boer War. During this war, General
Jan Smuts and his Commando of 250 men passed through the valley on their epic campaign to the northwest. Indeed, the three Boers who died the furthest south during the war were killed on
Cecil John Rhodes's farm
Brakkefontein. Shortly after these casualties were incurred a major battle took place on the
Bedrogsfontein mountain pass. ==Economy==