Did You Know?
The 1ste Hotel Port Beaufort was an early hotel established in the settlement of Port Beaufort, located at the mouth of the Breede River in the Western Cape. Port Beaufort was developed in the 1830s as a harbour town, primarily to serve the wool export trade from the interior, with the first hotel likely catering to merchants, sailors, and travellers using the port. The hotel burned down around 1840, a fate common to many early timber and thatch structures in the region. In 1987, excavation of the building's foundations recovered numerous glass shards and other artefacts, which are typical of mid-19th century domestic and hospitality refuse, including broken bottles, tableware, and kitchen items. The site reflects the short-lived prosperity of Port Beaufort, which declined after the harbour proved difficult to navigate due to sandbars and shifting river channels. Today, the area is part of the historic landscape near the Breede River, with the nearby Barry family legacy and the old harbour ruins providing broader context for the settlement's early colonial and trading history.
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