TOPIC:

Alfred Samuel Pike

Private, Mossel Bay Town Guard

- Queens South Africa Medal to Pte. A.S. Pike, Mossel Bay T.G.

Alfred Pike was born in Broughton, Hampshire in 1857 the son of Josiah Fox Pike and his wife Elizabeth. According to the 1861 England census Mr Pike was a Farm Steward by occupation, living with his family on Ranger Farm in the Parish of Eling, Hampshire. The family was, by Victorian standards, a small one with Alfred (4) joined in the house by only one sibling, his older sister Hellen (7).

The family were wealthy enough to keep a servant in the form of 18 year old Elizabeth Woods whilst playing host to Farmer’s daughter Emily Page (18) and Culvin Fox, a 47 year old Silversmith.

Ten years later at the time of the 1871 England census, a 14 year old Alfred was a Boarder in the house of Samuel Olding in Winchester Road, Romsey Extra, Hampshire. Mr Olding was a Schoolmaster so it can be assumed that Alfred was either under his tutelage or was a pupil at the school where he taught.

At some point towards the end of the 19th century Pike turned his attention southwards undertaking the journey to South Africa where he settled in the small hamlet of Mossel Bay on the Cape South Coast. The first indication we have of him here comes courtesy of the Baptismal Register of St. Peter’s Church in Mossel Bay where, on 15 January 1895, his daughter Sylvia Aileen had been baptised (she was born on 8 December 1894) – tellingly Pike’s occupation was given as Postmaster and it is that role that he spent his entire working life.

Having married Annie Eliza Buckley at some point he was called upon to defend her interests when her parents died in 1899. On 14 June of that year he sued Annie’s brother Edward and her sister Margaret in a case where “A declaration of rights declaring Annie Eliza Pike to be an heiress under the will of her parents” was brought before the courts. This had to do with money and the relief sought was “All monies found to be due to her.” The case was heard by Judge Sir H De Villiers who found in favour of Pike and ordered that the costs of the action be paid out of the Estate and that Pike’s wife be regarded as a rightful heiress.

But 1899 was a year that would be remembered by most for an entirely different and more sinister reason – it was the year in which war broke out between the two Boer Republics to the north of the Cape Colony and Great Britain and her Empire. What were the chances?
Here were two puny little countries pitted against the might of the world’s first super power. Initially the was went the way of the Boers, the number of Imperial troops on the ground were hopelessly inadequate for the task and, in addition, stern resistance was met with, something the British authorities hadn’t bargained on.

Slowly and inexorable the tide turned in the favour of the Imperial forces and the Boers were driven back. This forced them to adopt guerrilla style tactics of hit and run and, in search of supplies and men to assist with their effort, they infiltrated south of the Orange River and deep into what was Cape Colonial territory. Most small towns called out their menfolk to form a Town Guard whose purpose was exactly as the term described – to guard and protect the town and its inhabitants from marauding Boer forces. Mossel Bay was no exception and ere long a Town Guard was formed.

The Dundee Evening Telegraph reported on 28 August 1901 that,

“Scheepers Near Mossel Bay – Local Guard Mobilised

The Cape Town correspondent of the “Daily Express” telegraphs: - A part of Scheepers’ commando is reported to be in close proximity to Mossel Bay. The local Guard has been mobilised in preparation for an attack. Burghers residing in the Cape Peninsula have been warned to report themselves within a week under pain of arrest.”

The Liverpool Echo of 5 October 1901 reported that,

“In telegrams from Cape Colony it is stated that, in consequence of the enemy’s threatening movements, a party of bluejackets and a maxim have been landed at Mossel Bay, the Town Guard called out, the shops ordered to be closed, and the trenches to be manned.
Smuts’ commando, which is of considerable strength, has been joined by Botha’s small commando, and is supposed to be endeavouring to join Scheepers, who is reported to be ill and using a buggy. Scheepers was nearly captured on Wednesday, but the pursuing force lost an officer and two men killed and two wounded.”

According to the medal roll off which Pike’s Queens Medal was issued – “The Mossel Bay Town Guard was formed early in January 1901 and disbanded on 22 August 1902, and that the individuals named in this roll were called out for active military duty against the enemy.” A total of 58 medals seem to have been issued with many returned unclaimed.

The war over Pike returned to his duties as Postmaster. A list acquired from the Mossel Bay Museum indicates that he had assumed that role from 1893.

The MOSSELBAY ADVERTISER of 23 June 1908 carried an article as follows:

“We are very sorry to hear that our genial and obliging postmaster, Mr. Pike is leaving at the end of this month on a 2 months leave previous to retiring on pension. Mr Pike, who is over 50 years of age comes within the new scheme of Government retrenchment, but we should have thought that our good postmaster would have been the last to be included. A more hardworking, able courteous and obliging civil servant than Mr. Pike, cannot be found in the Government Service, and he has during the last 14 years of his Mossel Bay Postmastership, made friends only, while his postal superiors and subordinates simply worship him, as proves a private letter which he has received from the Postmaster General and we should have thought that more useless and less reliable gentry on the Civil Service list would have been retrenched before Mr. Pike. We sincerely trust that his pension will be as big as his kind heart is, to enable him to remain amongst us for many years to come. And what would become of our bathing poort without good old Pike, his towel and his horse.”

The “bathing poort” referred to above was mentioned once more in an article in the same publication many years later. On that occasion the writer was reminiscing about the Mossel Bay Post Office stating that,

“After the Government of the day had combined the two departments, the Post Office was established in lower Church Street. Mr Pike was the Postmaster there for a number of years. He retired on pension from that Post Office.

Mr Pike was of the hardy type. He and Mr Tom Phillips, the Tailor, used to go for their early morning dip in the Poort throughout the year.”

But all good things and men come to an end and on 1 March 1932, at the age of 74 years 8 months, Alfred Pike passed away in his house in High Street, Mossel Bay from a Cerebral Haemorrhage. He was survived by his wife Annie (whom he had married in Fort Beaufort) and his two children, Alfred Ernest and Sylvia Aileen. His estate bequeathed an amount of £1655.

The faithful Mossel Bay Advertiser of 17 July 1953 reported as follows:

“The death occurred at Great Brak River on Tuesday evening of Mrs. A.E. Pike formerly of Mossel Bay, at the age of 85 years. A short funeral service, conducted by Rev. Canon Robinson, of George, took place at Great Brak River on Thursday afternoon. The burial took place at Mossel Bay the same afternoon.”

Thank You Rory, again a great piece of research.....

Mike

Patience is its own reward! A chance browse through a Fort Beaufort Heritage facebook page revealed an 1882 photograph of the Fort Beaufort Postal Telegraph staff and, lo and behold, Pike is seated in the front row in the very middle.Always nice to put a face to a name.

Happy Fathers Day Rory...…

Is there a list of the names of all of the men in the photo???? I have a couple of people who were Postal Telegraph Staff and just wondering if they might be in your picture.....

Thanks

Mike

The photo is named Mike - here is the caption that accompanied it:

Fort Beaufort Telegraph Staff 1882
This group is notable in as much as it contains the first and second Post Masters General of the Union of South Africa . Top- Messrs Gardiner , Ewing, WP Herrison , Wilson , Hampson, Watt , Hendry
Middle - Messrs Murray , Menzies , WP Hoal (supt.) Mackintosh , Dawson
Bottom- Messrs Duxbury , Creighton, wallis , Pike , Trenam , F Herring , Dickason

Last year, Spink sold a QSA to D Mackintosh, GPO Staff, so that dashing gentleman in the second row might be him.