“Understand the past is to appreciate the present”, says the newly appointed Hout Bay Museum curator, Mr. Jonathan (Jonty) Dreyer, “and that is the motto of Hout Bay Museum.”

It was so ironic when this son of the Hout Bay soil started to work on his first day as the permanent curator that Pitch Black conducted an interview for an educational programme for SABC 1 to be broadcast on 24 January 2007.

The programme called “What is your story”, deals with those individuals that have contributed positively to the development of Hout Bay and its people.

Jonty, a church, business and community leader, said, “Preserving Hout Bay’s rich history, must depict all sectors and races in Hout Bay, all the people of the Republic of Hout Bay.”

He continues, “it should be transformed and on par with the current political situation in our country.”

For him the museum should educate those not familiar with the country’s history. “Chris Hani, one of the heroes of the struggle against Apartheid, gave his life for the new South Africa and people need to know why.”

“Hout Bay’s rich Khoi (referred to as the Hottentots by the Dutch colonialists) history, the first inhabitants of the area owned Hout Bay. The original name of the area should be researched and the name Hout Bay given by the Dutch colonialist Jan van Riebeeck is not original.”

He also appeals to Government to assist with a process of identifying and declaring Heritage sites such as the original Khoi Cave at the main entrance to the harbour.

He ends with relieve on his appointment, “My role as curator in the community is to make the Hout Bay museum accessible for the whole of Hout Bay and the world.”