The last time I visited the City’s Environmental Heritage Resources Information Centre here on Wale Street was when it was undergoing repairs following storm damage. I am pleased to see that the map room now has new shelving and enhanced protection for the valuable documents entrusted to the City's care. It was also a pleasure to meet the interns who have been placed in this office to assist with the scanning and classification of historical documents. My wish for them is to grow and learn through this experience,’ said Alderman Theresa Uys.
‘I was especially pleased to meet Khanyiswa Mahambehlala, who came through the Corporate Services internship programme and has since secured a permanent position with the City. As the City of Hope, we welcome every opportunity to place interns within the organisation, and I thank our Human Resources Department for facilitating these opportunities across our workforce of more than 33 000 employees,’ said Alderman Uys.
Four interns joined Environmental Management earlier this year to support the digitisation of historical documents:
- Sinazo Dyonase (28) from Nyanga
- Yusrah Alcock (28) from Athlone
- Ziyanda Mngati (30) from Mfuleni
- Loenora Hendricks (42) from Bishop Lavis
Working alongside recently appointed clerk Khanyiswa Mahambehlala, the interns catalogue historical material, capture information on the City's heritage databases, digitise historical Property Valuation Records known as the ‘Yellow Pages’, and assist with scanning historical building plans and archival documents.
The visit also highlighted significant investment in technology to accelerate the preservation of Cape Town's documentary heritage.
The City has recently acquired two specialised scanners to support the digitisation programme. A Bookeye 5 book scanner is being used to digitise fragile historical books, bound volumes and the City's extensive collection of newspaper clippings dating back to the late nineteenth century. A second scanner, the ROWE large-format roller scanner, enables the high-quality digitisation of historical building plans, maps and oversized archival documents.
‘Cape Town has a rich heritage. Part of this heritage is a remarkable collection of historical maps, surveys, plans and photographs that form part of the Environmental Heritage Resources Information Centre. Our map collection includes the work of William Barclay Snow (1862), Alexander Wilson (1878) and Walter Thom (1898). While access to many original documents is necessarily restricted because of their age, size and fragile condition, many of our historical maps are already available to the public through the CityMap Viewer,’ said Willem Hutten, the City’s Senior Heritage Professional at EHRIC.
The City is also developing an eHeritage Information Management System, which is expected to be fully accessible to the public by July 2027. Through eHeritage, additional heritage information, including old photographs, research reports, building plans, declaration notices and other historical records, will become available to both City staff and members of the public.
The Environmental Heritage Resources Information Centre serves as the custodian of one of Cape Town's most significant documentary collections, including original surveys, historical maps, mayoral minutes, building plans and newspaper archives that collectively tell the story of the city's development over more than 160 years.
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