Escombe ‘hinterland’ a place to escape coastal heat
Durban — Today’s picture history of Durban takes in Escombe and its Main Road, which still serves as an arterial link to neighbouring suburbs which began as townships for people fleeing the humidity of the coast.
Escombe was named after English lawyer Harry Escombe who settled in the Colony of Natal in 1860 and briefly served as the prime minister of the colony in 1897 before dying two years later.
During the late 19th century, Durban residents wishing to escape the heat and humidity of the coast began to establish townships, consisting of homes and farms, inland.
Neighbouring townships Malvern, Northdene and Moseley also blossomed.
The opening of the Pinetown to Botha’s Hill railway line in March 1879 contributed to this “emigration”.
Malvern, Escombe, Northdene and Moseley were combined in 1924 to form the town of Malvern and in 1952, when Queen Elizabeth II was crowned, it was renamed Queensburgh.
Escombe, the man, was initially considered a moderate about Indian immigration into nearby areas, but he later became one of the strongest opponents of Indian immigration into the Colony of Natal, instituting policies that affected the demographics until the end of apartheid.
The urban area has grown extensively and the 2011 census divided Queensburgh into eight “sub places”: Buffels Bosch, Burlington Greenfields, Escombe, Malvern, Northdene, Queensmead Industrial, Shallcross and Shallcross Ext 2.
Independent on Saturday