Alf Roberts

One such reminder is on the Crocodile River, and is known to be Alf Roberts' trade store. Today its site is marked by a couple of mounds and...more

De Laportes Windmill

De Laporte's Windmill is situated approximately 7 kilometres from Skukuza on the Naphe Road to Pretoriuskop. It too, (perhaps surprisingly) ...more

Dukes Windmill

Perhaps as an acknowledgement of the importance of water, Duke's windmill, was also named after one of Kruger National Park's earliest range...more

Early Stone Age

Using clues left behind over the millennia, we can trace our history in southern Africa from the very beginnings of human development, some ...more

Engelhard Dam

The Engelhard Dam is a large concrete weir in the Letaba River, east of the Letaba Restcamp, and is named for an American millionaire busine...more

Game Conservation History

In the 19th century, it was assumed that blacks were the exterminators of wildlife in the Transvaal. This was a curious assumption as visito...more

Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park

The Kruger National Park is the largest game reserve in South Africa. It is roughly the same size as Israel or Wales, and covers some 20,000...more

Harold Trollope

Malelane Restcamp has a hut named for Harold Trollope, a big game hunter and one of the original owners of the Camelthorn Reserve, who was a...more

Harry Wolhuter

One of Kruger Park's most famous stories is the 1904 saga of Harry Wolhuter (one of the Park's first rangers). Wolhuter was riding on horseb...more

Iron Age

The next period of pre-history is the Iron Age, the name derived from the fact that the people of this era developed the ability to make wea...more

James Stevenson-Hamilton

James Stevenson-Hamilton (October 2 1867 - December 10 1957) born in Scotland was the eldest of nine children. He married Hilda Cholmondeley...more

JH Orpen

JH Orpen, a surveyor and member of the National Parks Board helped sponsor boreholes for the park. His wife Eileen bought up seven farms imm...more

Joao Albasini

Albasini was born 1 May 1813, in Lisbon, Portugal. He came to Lourenço Marques in 1831 and became a slave trader and Elephant hunter. The r...more

Joe Ludorf

Plaques were clearly a popular means of commemoration, as can be attested by the Joe Ludorf plaque (at Napi Kop). Ludorf was a staunch natio...more

Kruger Memorial

Naturally, Paul Kruger is, himself, memorialised at the Park, both with the Kruger Monument (at the Kruger Gate), and the Kruger memorial ta...more

Kruger Park History - Forefathers of Kruger

An overview of some of Kruger National Park's forefathers including Paul Kruger who first proclaimed the National Park while he was presiden...more

Kruger Park Proclamation

The First World War delayed further progress on this matter but ironically, an antagonist initiated the first move. In March 1916, SH Coetze...more

Late Stone Age

During the Later Stone Age, from about 40,000 years ago, a wide range of bone and wooden tools was increasingly in use and plants were used...more

Leonard Henry Ledeboer

Another place of recent historical interest is Ranger Ledeboer's quarters. Leonard Henry Ledeboer came from Holland as a young man in 1888. ...more

Makahane

A completely different way of life is represented by the ruins of Makahane, northeast of Punda Maria, next to the Levuvhu River, and the dwe...more

Makuleke Community Land Claims

Land claims, and the Makuleke (a Tsonga speaking tribe): In 1912 several Makuleke villages in the northern part of Singwidzi Game Reserve, (...more

Masorini

This site is situated some 11km from the Phalaborwa Gate, on the road to Letaba. As the letters PI-NE appear on the trigonometric beacon, it...more

Middle Stone Age

The Stone Age spans a lengthy period - from about 2 million years ago, to 1 800 years ago, and gets its name from the use made of simple sto...more

Mine Workers

With the help of the government's taxes, the 'runners' and many of the chiefs, WNLA managed to set up a more efficient system of recruiting...more

Modernisation of Kruger Park

In 1991, Robbie Robinson became Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the South African National Parks Board. Robinson began the transition of th...more

Prospectors Graves

Skukuza Restcamp is also home to some Prospector's graves. Many of the graves from the gold rush days are unnamed. Most face east to west bu...more

Rabelais Gate

The Original hut at Rabelais' gate is still preserved. This was the original entrance gate to the central region, on to the old Orpen road t...more

Rock Art

The age of rock art has been determined by using the radiocarbon method to date charcoal (carbon) from the layers from which painted and eng...more

Sardellis Store

Sardelli's store is another such ruin. Sardelli was a trader who ran a shack in the Lebombo near the Zenga-Zenga Mountain. He brewed and sol...more

Sir Percy FitzPatrick

Percy FitzPatrick was born in King William's Town 24 July 1862 (and died at Amanzi (Uitenhage) 24 January 1931). He was the eldest son of Ja...more

Stols Nek

An early family to be associated with the area were the Stols'. They were famous hunters and wagon makers from the White River area, during ...more

Struben Cottage

The historical Struben Family Cottage in Skukuza is named for the Struben brothers, Fred and Harry. They arrived in South Africa from German...more

The Future

What is the next step for the new SANParks? The Former Chief Executive, Mr Mavuso Msimang: “...our corporate plan, which was developed and...more

Thomas Hart

The somewhat rough and ready times of the Trade Route, are also remembered at Thomas Hart's grave. Hart was a 'stationmaster' on trade route...more

Thulamela

At sites such as Thulamela, in the north of the Park, evidence of this bustling trade still exists in the form of glass beads, Chinese porce...more

Transvaal Republic

De Cuiper was just the first of a long line of “modern” visitors to the area, but it was from other quarters that most of the new visito...more

Von Wielligh Baobab

There is an historical Baobab tree near the confluence of the Olifants and Letaba Rivers. The Von Wielligh Baobab tree can be found about 8k...more

W.A. Campbell

An example of this is Council member W.A. Campbell, who once owned the Mala Mala farm on the Game Reserve border. He donated an amount of...more

William Lloyd

Another casualty of the times was William Lloyd, Ranger at Satara in 1920. Satara was so remote in those days it could only be reached on fo...more
Kruger National Park - South African Safari