Back to Richmond

Back to Richmond
While most of the AmaWasha had moved to Witbank, 60 men were persuaded by Lady Drummond Dunbar to remain at Richmond. Of course, they soon ran into trouble with the Sanitary Board over the issuing of licences, but this time they had an ally. Dunbar promised to protect them if they applied for passes, the legal requirement at the time for all blacks. They then became her "servants", giving up their pass exemption status, but continuing as washermen. The Sanitary Board immediately prosecuted them for trading without a licence. Dunbar and the land owners sprung into action - they challenged the Sanitary Board and "organised a public petition for the return of the AmaWasha and the cheaper laundry service which they provided". The battle that lasted six months and in July 1897 Dunbar eventually won; the AmaWasha were invited back to their old sites and by September there were no washermen in Witbank. Even better conditions awaited them - they found they had warm soapy water on tap, discharged from the Crystal and Palace Steam laundries. However, things would never be the same again. The guild was not as cohesive and missed the strong leadership of Kwaaiman, without whom their disciplined marches and meetings in town were not the same. "This loss of internal control manifested itself in the growing number of reports of theft, gambling, drinking and violence that came from the washing sites between 1897 and the outbreak of war [in 1899]." The council felt the need to intervene, using the only means left to it: to formulate new by-laws. But before the laws could be implemented, the South African War broke out and the majority of the AmaWasha left for their rural homes in KwaZulu-Natal. Others were employed by the British army, which took occupation of Johannesburg in May 1900. The British authorities set out to "enhance control and segregation by attempting to get all urban Africans to live in a single consolidated location".

While most of the AmaWasha had moved to Witbank, 60 men were persuaded by Lady Drummond Dunbar to remain at Richmond. Of course, they soon ran into trouble with the Sanitary Board over the issuing of licences, but this time they had an ally.

Dunbar promised to protect them if they applied for passes, the legal requirement at the time for all blacks. They then became her "servants", giving up their pass exemption status, but continuing as washermen.

The Sanitary Board immediately prosecuted them for trading without a licence. Dunbar and the land owners sprung into action - they challenged the Sanitary Board and "organised a public petition for the return of the AmaWasha and the cheaper laundry service which they provided".

The battle that lasted six months and in July 1897 Dunbar eventually won; the AmaWasha were invited back to their old sites and by September there were no washermen in Witbank.

Even better conditions awaited them - they found they had warm soapy water on tap, discharged from the Crystal and Palace Steam laundries. However, things would never be the same again. The guild was not as cohesive and missed the strong leadership of Kwaaiman, without whom their disciplined marches and meetings in town were not the same.

"This loss of internal control manifested itself in the growing number of reports of theft, gambling, drinking and violence that came from the washing sites between 1897 and the outbreak of war [in 1899]."

The council felt the need to intervene, using the only means left to it: to formulate new by-laws. But before the laws could be implemented, the South African War broke out and the majority of the AmaWasha left for their rural homes in KwaZulu-Natal. Others were employed by the British army, which took occupation of Johannesburg in May 1900.

The British authorities set out to "enhance control and segregation by attempting to get all urban Africans to live in a single consolidated location".