De Doornkraal

Biography of Dr William Charles Hansell
(This is an un-edited version of a biography written by Leon Gordon on 20 November 1957)

Dr. William Charles Hansell was the first Worshipful Master of Lodge Frere, upon its foundation with a membership of nine Foundation members in the year 1879.  He was also W. M. the next year, 1880 – as well as for the third time in the year 1885.  Born in Brittany, France on the 19th October 1850, he was the son of the Rev. Peter Hansell.  The family consisted of four sons and seven daughters, and grew up mainly in Tauton, England.  One other son later emigrated to South Africa, namely Mr. Fred Money Hansell, who settled at Boshof in the Free State.

Our Dr Hansell was educated on the Continent, mainly France, and spoke French fluently.  He attended Guy’s Hospital and passed his examinations with distinction in 1870.  When the French-Prussian War broke out soon afterwards, he joined the Red Cross and did excellent service until cessation of hostilities when he returned to London to further his studies, eventually taking the diploma of the Royal College of Surgeons, England.  Then, like many a young doctor, in order to see a bit of the world, he become a Ship’s surgeon by joining the Union Line, (this was before the amalgamation of the Union and Castle Lines) plying between England and South Africa.

On one of these voyages to South Africa, he met a Miss Jane Blake, then 17 or 18 years of age.  She was returning to South Africa with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. J. Blake, respected residents of Oudtshoorn, Cape.  Mr. Blake had been on a business trip to England, and had taken his wife and daughter with him.  As the result of the ensuing romance, Dr. Hansell decided to settle for good in South Africa.  Accordingly he left the Shipping Line soon afterwards and went to Outshoorn to start a medical practice there.  This was in the year 1874.  The young couple became engaged and their marriage took place at Outshoorn on the 8th February 1877, the marriage certificate giving his age as 26 and hers as 20.

Then Dr. Hansell came to Riversdale, and as a keen Freemason he took a leading part in the steps resulting in the establishment of a Masonic Lodge at Riversdale, and became the first W. M. of LODGE FRERE, the name selected for the Lodge.  Shortly after the arrival, the death took place of Riversdale’s District Surgeon, Dr Reid, namely on the 26th of January 1879, and Dr. Hansell succeeded him in the post which he held up to the date of his death.  He also purchased Dr. Reid’s residence in Long Street, called “Sunnyside” and settled there with his family.  At that time the house faced the river.  This residence, almost opposite the Lodge, later became the property of Mr. H.M. van Rensburg, Mayor of Riversdale for a record number of years from 1913 to 1935.  He rebuilt and modernized the house with its front to Long Street.

In the year 1889, owing to the poor state of his health, Dr Hansell took a trip to England and came back having benefited greatly by his holiday. During their residence in Oudtshoorn a son, bearing the family name of Ryves, had been born there, and five additional children were born at Riversdale – three daughters Grace, Beatrice and Ada, born respectively in 1880, 1882 and 1884, followed by a second son Charles Vernon, born on 19 September 1890, and another daughter, Blanche Emily, born on 14th August 1893 who died on 29th January 1894.

Two sad events resulted in the successive loss of both sons.  The eldest boy, Ryves, at the age of seven had been sent to England for his education.  In his early teens he succumbed to an attack of diphtheria for which in those days there was no certain cure.  A tragic event robbed the family of the remaining boy. In those far off days, the Riversdale town sloot ran along the front erven of the Long Street houses in an open furrow: poor Charles Vernon, a little toddler of sixteen months tumbled into this open sloot and was found drowned, on the 2nd March 1892.  Barely two years later, death by drowning struck the family again: for Dr. Hansell himself was drowned in tragic circumstances on the nights of Wednesday, 11th July 1894, while Mrs. Hansell was in Cape Town on a visit.

That morning, Dr Hansell traveled to Heidelberg for a consultation about one of the patients of Dr Henry Graves Biggs (the two were great friends and Dr. Biggs, who died in 1913, succeeded Dr. Hansell as W. Master of Lodge Frere).  On his return home, Dr. Hansell found a note asking him to proceed at once to the home of a Mr. van Rensburg at Boontjieskloof to visit a patient there: this must have been a note from either Oom Helgard Boontjieskloof, or his brother Oom Attie.  Dr. Hasell left in his cart and horses just about dust accompanied by his coachman Jan Piet, a well-known coloured boy who later ran a farrier and blacksmith’s shop for many years at Riversdale.  Dr. Hansell took the reins, and arrived at the Narroo River, also known as the Klein Vette River, a few hundred yards beyond the residence of Mr. Koos Badenhorst, later M.L.A., when it was quite dark.  Normally only a small stream, the heavy winter rains had brought down much water, and there was a deep pool surrounded by dense bush on the left of the drift.

In the darkness Dr. Hansell apparently took the turn to the left too soon.  Jan Piet called out that they were going off the road into deep water and climbed along the disselboom and managed to turn the horses away from the deep pool.  The horses came to standstill but were unable to pull the cart out of the pond.  The boy urged his master to leave the cart as he had done, but Dr. Hansell told him to run for assistance as he thought he could manage the horses till help arrived.  Mr. Badenhorst and several neighbours with him immediately responded to the boy’s appeal, but when they arrived at the drift the cart and horses were no longer there!  A search revealed the cart and the drowned horses in deep water about ten yards from the drift, but no trace of Dr Hansell.  The cart and horses were dragged out and the search for Dr Hansell proceeded till after ten o’clock that night without success.  Then heavy rain fell and compelled the searchers to call a halt.

Search was resumed on Thursday morning under the direction of Mr. Benjamin Osler, C.C. and R. M. (the grandfather of Bennie Osler of Rugby fame) and a number of anxious friends, with the result that the body was found in deep water under the river bank.  Among the keenest searchers was Mr. Jan Borchards, the chemist, his brother, Mr. Meent Borchards (then and for many years after the Tyler of Lodge Frere who lived in the house alongside the Lodge in Long Street) and Mr. Walter Soul, the A.R.M. These three had gone out to the farm on the previous evening as soon as the news of the tragedy had reached Riversdale, to help in finding the missing doctor.

I can remember very distinctly – I was nine years old at the time – that the news of the finding of Dr. Hansell’s body reached our Boy’s School, just round the corner of Long and Keerom Streets, at recess time.  (The school, by the way, was the called the Boy’s Public School: Mr. Rosenouw was its renowned Principal; Cornelis Langenhoven has passed his matriculation there a few years previously, I think third in the Colony: and we ourselves lived in the house next door to the predikant afterwards occupied by Dr. Jacob William de Vos, the “father” and founder of Rugby Football in Riversdale.  The predikant then was the Rev. W.A. Joubert, father of Stevie Joubert, the 1906 Springbok, a contemporary of mine).  We school – boys all rushed over to the vicinity of Dr. Hansell’s residence, and joined the throng of adults gathered in front of Mr. Meent Borchards’ house.  For there, on the stoep, long beard and all, was Mr. Borchards just back from the scene of the tragedy giving a full account of events to the avid crowd.

Poor Mrs. Hansell was sent a telegram on Thursday morning, the 12th of the sad news by the Postmaster, Mr. Powell and traveling day and night she reached home by Friday night.  The Hansell girls had in the meantime been taken care of by Mrs. Meent Borchards and Mrs. Osler (who lived next door to us).

On the Saturday afternoon, the 14th, the funeral took place, with all shops and businesses closed.  Issue No. 101 of the South-Western Echo  of the 21st July 1894, gave a full and touching account.  After a Masonic ceremony in the Temple attended by Freemasons from the neighbouring towns as well as the local Brethren, the coffin was bourne by the Freemasons back to the house where it was laced on the hearse and the precession started by way of Long and Main Streets for St. Matthew’s Church, headed by the Riversdale Brass Band playing the Dead March in Saul.  Following the Band came the Freemasons headed by Dr Biggs and Rev. W.P.G Schierhout of Heidelberg and the carriage containing the bereaved Widow and children.  As the lengthy cortege turned up the Main Street, the bells of all the Churches and the Magistrate’s Office near by m(then at the bottom of Main Street) started tolling, and the Dutch account in the Echo stated that and estimated 1400 people attended the funeral – the largest that had been seen at Riversdale up to that date.

The pall bearers were Mr. B Osler, Magistrate; Mr. G Reitz, Mayor; Messrs. D. Versfeld and W.M. Morkel, Attorneys; Mr. A.R. Elliott, Bank Manager; 9the Bank and ban houses then being next to the Royal Hotel); and Mr. Jan Borchards, chemist; Mr. C.F. W. Rosenouw, Principal Royal Public School; and Mr. Walter Soul, A.R.M. At the Churchyard, the Masonic Brethren again took the coffin and carried it into the Church where the service was conducted by Rev. William George Anderson, Rector of St. Matthew’s from 1880 to 1924.  The Orator of Lodge Frer, Rev. Schierhout, delivered an eloquent address and the last Masonic rites were performed by the Brethren at the graveside.  After a closing hymn sung by all present, a most impressive address in the Dutch language was given by Rev. W.A. Joubert,  Riversdale’s lovable D.R. Minister from Jan 1893 to Nov 1897.  Several of the wreaths placed on the coffin and the remainder covered the resting place of the departed next to the grave of the infant son drowned two years previously.

Dr. Hansell had identified himself with most of the town activities.  He was for many years Churchwarden of St. Matthew’s and was a member of the Library Committee and the Park Committee.  An extremely cultured man he was highly respected by one and all.

Two sad echoes of the tragedy are reflected in issue No 102 of the South Western Echo dated 28th July 1894.  One is a letter of deepest thanks from the brother of the deceased, Mr. F.M. Hansell in business at Boshof O/F.S. dated 18th July 1894, who had been unable to attend the funeral.  The other is a note from the widow which reads as follows: “Mrs. Hansell, feeling unable to acknowledge separately the numerous letters, telegrams and wreaths sent thoughtfully on the occasion of her husband’s sad death, desires to take this opportunity to thank all the kind friend for the loving and tender sympathy to her and children”.

Mrs. Hansell and her three young daughters left Riversdale for good in the year 1897 to settle in Cape Town.  All three daughters eventually married and settled near each other in Sea Point. Grace, the eldest daughter, married Mr. Charles Serrurier, and lived in Sea Point doing much charitable work until her death in 1928.  Her husband and daughter, Miss Esme Grace Serrurier, still resides in Sea Point.

Beatrice married Mr. A. H. Hewitt (Whose uncle was Rector of St Matthew’s at Riversdale from 1875 to 1880) and they reside in Sea Point.  Their son, William Hansell Hewitt, classics master at Rhodes University, lives in Grahamstown.  The youngest daughter, Ada, (who was my contemporary and classmate in Miss Cummings’ Victoria Grove School about 1891 and 1892) married Mr. H. J. Leggatt and they live in Sea Point – no family. Their mother, Mrs. Hansell, died at Sea Pont in May 1946 in her 90th year and was buried at Maitland Cemetery, Cape Town.  Her lifelong friend, Mrs. Biggs, died some years later, aged 101 or 102.

I should like to add, in conclusion, that I have given this full account of our distinguished first Worshipful Master, as with the passing of more than sixty- three years since he passed away., there are now only two Lodge Frere Freemasons (initiated of course very many years after his death) who know firsthand of the circumstances attending his death, namely Wor. Bro. R Versfeld and myself.  I had the pleasure of meeting the surviving members of the Hansell family and they have asked me to convey their sincere thanks and appreciation to the Worshipful Master and Brethren of Lodge Frere for the Lodge’s kindly intention to frame this Biography of their father and to place it under his photograph in the Refectory of his beloved Lodge.