The Blue House @ 11 Landdros Mare Street

The Blue House

11 Meulstraat / Mill Street, Montagu

The History of the Blue House

The house was built circa 1886, in a double story Karoo, Cape Georgian style, with simple unadorned parapet. There is keystone work around the sash windows and doors, and on the corners. The house has a metal roof. The upper storey was not originally lived in, but was probably used as storage space. The front verandah was a later addition.

The original erf extended all the way from the river in Middel Street to the present corner of Berg Street (also known as Mount Street). There was a windmill between the two streets, which supplied the dairy cows with their water.

*An early photo of the area around the Keisie River, showing the windmill between Middel Street and Berg (Mount) Street*
Photo courtesy of the Montagu Museum Archives

The property was the dairy farm of the Van Zyl family, and when the house was built for them, it was the first double storey in Montagu West, an area of the town that is also known as “Die Oudam” (The Old Dam).

*A later photo of the same area around the Keisie River, showing the pedestrian bridge that has survived, in a few iterations, to the present day*
Photo courtesy of the Montagu Museum Archives

During the 1918 Spanish Flu Epidemic the house was used as a temporary hospital for the sick and many patients died in the house, giving rise to the belief that the house was haunted. This led to the house standing empty for quite some time.

Finally some enterprising ladies of the night turned it into the local house of ill repute. The legend goes that it was run by twin sisters who entertained their clientele both at the same time. The house became known locally as “Poesieshoek” (“Pussy Corner“). That name is still in use today.

*The person on the left is **not** one of the ladies of the night…*

In the 1940s the De Lange family acquired the house and did some restoration work on it. The front section functioned as a local convenience store selling bread, milk, cigarettes etc. They were open for long hours and allowed their customers to run a credit tab, which had to be paid in full at month end. It was the last small convenience shop in Montagu West, and subsequently closed down prior to 2006, when the present owner purchased the property. He has been responsible for its restoration.

The house has seen many colour changes between 1970 and 1980: pink, grey, light blue and then, finally, in 2017 the very striking colour “Santorini Blue”, making it a much photographed and talked about landmark in the town.