Message from the Chairman

In 1999 we were led to believe that disaster would strike at midnight and that Y2K would change everything.  It seems that the doomsayers were twenty years too early and that it was 2020 (not 2000) that would change the way we live.

Now we are firmly into 2021 and we are still not out of the woods.  Covid has changed the way we operate and forced us old troglodytes into the world of technology.  This may have some of us kicking and screaming but there have also been huge advantages.  At the NHT we have known for many years that recording history orally is an invaluable resource, and those histories have been stored in the best possible technological way.  (I am not going to attempt to explain that).

Technology has also made it possible for the Trustees to continue to meet every month and for us to communicate quickly with our members and Facebook supporters.  Editing and publishing our Digests has become easier and cheaper over the years through technology but we do miss face-to-face contact and I very much hope that this year’s AGM will not have to be another virtual meeting.

Without wanting to end this message on a sad note I do want to pay tribute to our past Treasurer, Herb Farrow, who was a staunch and stalwart member of the Society and a former Trustee of the Trust, Herb passed away recently and we extend our condolences to his wife Lorna and to his family.

I hope that our members are keeping well and safe.  Please take care.  This virus HAS changed the way the world operates.

In the meantime, here is news of NHT activities.

Mike

Books in the pipeline

Day by Day is having a complete update covering the period 1488 – 2021. This book is progressing very well and is still on track for a Jan 2022 publishing.

The Navy Band by Kenny Leibrandt. This book has unfortunately slowed down due to lockdown.

My War – 1939 to 1945 by Lt J N Barfield

Old Salts Yards by Charles Kingon

Ton Class Minesweepers by Bill Rice. It is reported that the book has progressed well, and we are looking forward to hearing of its final completion and a publishing date later this year.

Names and Badges of the RN and SAN ships and Shore Establishments including Sea Cadets by Arne Soderlund

SA Marines – Heritage is looking for a suitable author for this project.

The Trust has also been given the go ahead by Navy Office to produce a book for Navy 100 and this needs to be ready for publishing in early 2022 and is being compiled by Chris Bennett and Arne Soderlund

Naval Digests
The proposed digests below are in no particular order and will be published as and when ready:

Naval Digest 31: The Dave de Wet life story is the next Naval Digest and is progressing well and due for publication before June 2021.

Harbour Services 1861 / 2021 – by Glen Knox. The progress on this Digest is on hold at present.

WWII Memories including photographs.

Projects Pullen and White Dove, Drakensberg and Outeniqua visits to the Congo – Arne Soderlund

Convoy DN21

Voyage to the Ice – Outeniqua by Arne Soderlund, busy with the final proofread and discussions with the original author

A great deal of work still needs to be done on the above books and Naval Digests before being published.

NHT Office

The NHT office is situated in Court Road Simon`s Town below the Simon’s Town Museum and next to the Snookie Shellhole. The office is open for members to visit on Mondays and Thursdays between 0930 and 1200. If you in the area you are most welcome to pop in for a cup of tea or coffee. You will then be able to view the Heritage collection of books, paintings and Oral Histories in the Office. Please bring along your own mask. The office is run by Les Gale and he loves a chat especially about SAS President Pretorius. SA Marines and aircraft.

Tim Johnson Prints

The Trust has acquired a few sets of the Tim Johnson naval vessel prints which are available for purchase by the Society members. There are two packs,

The first being the collection of 6 vessels, Drakensberg, Outeniqua, Strike Craft, Protea, A River class Hunter and a submarine. This set of 5 prints sells for R450.

The second set is of 4 prints depicting the 4 Valour class frigates. This set sells for R300.

Each set is sold complete and cannot be split up for single prints. These print sets can be obtained from Glen Knox or by visiting the NHT Office.

NHT Library of Books

The Trust now has a library of 349 books which are available to members for reading at the NHT Office.  The full list of all the books is available on request. A request to all members when clearing out, please remember the Trust.  We are always on the lookout for Nautical themed books and in particular those with a South African theme.

We have duplicates of a few books and these are available to members for purchase.

These books are:

These books can be purchased through Glen Knox. The cost of postage will need to be added, unless picked up from the NHT Office in Simon`s Town or hand delivered within the Cape Town area. His contact details are glenknox090@gmail.com

Oral History Program

The Trusts Oral History program has continued even through the Lockdown with numerous proof readings continuing and even members writing their own Oral Histories.  There are now 215 completed Oral Histories in our archives. Heritage Society members are welcome to visit the office and read any of the Oral Histories on file. Since we started adding photos to each document they have become even more interesting.

Since the last Newsletter, the following Oral Histories have been completed:  
Capt Dick Shelver, LtCdr J Wessels (Isham), WO1 Len Fraser, WO1 Brian Gobey, WO2 Joe Steenekamp, LS W. Hurwitz, WO1 Laurence Markus, WO1 Andre (Miggie) Pretorius, Gerald Males, Jason Leer, Arnold Deysel, Hayden Dailey, SLt Lance Wooding and Lt Col John Yates

Many thanks to the above members for knuckling down and completing this important personal task in the Oral History Project. Unfortunately, some of the above had to be completed without the full proofread as some members have not provided any feedback in a year.

Those still outstanding and busy with proof reading and additions, include:

Cdr Tim Johnson, R Adm Alan Claydon-Fink, WO1 Roy Marks, Lt Cdr van Blerck (Being completed by his son Johann) Capt Preston Barnard, Capt Stan Slogrove, Eric Joyce, Capt Herman de Vries.

It is request that those still proof reading and adding comments and photos to have their documents completed soonest and returned to Glen Knox at glenknox090@gmail.com

Own writing has also caught on with Hanlu van der Poel, Glen Knox, Gerrit Rademeyer, Rob Shelly, and Chris Dooner are all busy with their own writing projects. Third Parties are also assisting with Oral History of Cdr Tony Rendell.

Although Lockdown is still strictly enforced in some areas we would really like to get the program running at full speed once again. The list of possible new recordings is growing as more and more retirements take place. We would encourage Society members to start writing their own Oral Histories, an hour or two each week is all it takes. However, if you would prefer a recording to be conducted as part of this Heritage project please get in contact with Glen Knox on his e mail glenknox090@gmail.com or through WhatsApp on 084 686 1384.

New Members for 2021

New members to the NHT Society are warmly welcomed and we trust you will all enjoy the publications produced and interacting with the Trust and Society members

The new members for December 2020, January and February 2021 are Hanno Teuteberg, R Vollmer, L Davies, BA Jacka, T Walker, Paul Du Plessis, T Solomon, Alf Nel and Digby Thompson

We would like to encourage all Society members to look at their own friends and other retired Naval and Defence personnel who are not yet members and if they are interested in SA Naval Heritage to please get them to join up with the NH Society. The Application form is on the SA Naval Heritage fb site also on our new web page.

The membership for the Naval Heritage Society now stands at 192.

If you are moving home or changing your email addresses please update your new addresses with Andre Wessels. Confirmation of your E Mail, postal address and cell numbers may be sent to the membership secretary at        nhtmembership@gmail.com

Naval Heritage Website

The Naval Heritage web page is now fully functioning and gets a regular tweak by the Web Master Nicholas Dunn.

We encourage all our Society members to log on and see the additional items on display. The link for the site is navalheritagetrust.co.za   Typing in SA Naval Heritage Trust will also link you to the page.

Books and Naval Digests can also be ordered through the web site.

SA Naval Heritage Society Facebook site

This site has continued to grow each month and has become very popular with over 5929 members at the end of February 2021. There have been many positive interactions on the site which have highlighted new and interesting items on the SAN.  Regular readers would have noticed that the daily Shipwreck Report is also being included, this makes for fascinating reading each day.

Are you a member of this site yet?  If not click on it and join in the discussions.

Naval Heritage Yearly Subs

Andre Wessels our Membership Sec will contact you via email when your subs are due. To all those who have submitted their subs, Many Thanks.

Please ensure you do not fall behind in your subs. The yearly cost is still R150 and will not be increased this year even though the cost of publications and postage has put a strain on the available funds.

Assegaai Submarine Project

Statement from the Chairman of the ASCCOM, R Adm Hanno Teuteberg SAN (Ret) 

Update on Proposed Submarine Museum.  A new committee has been established under the short title ASCCOM. Planning is still at an early stage. Currently negotiating with the SA Navy, Armscor Dockyard and other interested parties i.e. Naval Heritage Trust, STADCO. The intention is to move her to the western side of the Simon’s Town Jetty in a raised position. There are a number of interested parties in assisting with this task and volunteers are needed to assist with a variety of tasks that need to be done. Electrical, mechanical, tour guides, general dogs’ bodies will be needed to get this project off the ground. A number of retired SAN personnel are already involved in driving this worthwhile project. 

Once in her new position, tours as previously conducted will resume. When the project is sufficiently advanced, we will be calling for volunteers for the variety of tasks that will be required. Your interest and support for this project is highly appreciated.

If you are interested in assisting, please contact Capt (Ret) John Lamont at glentyne@yebo.co.za or   083 650 5695. Any assistance will be gratefully accepted.