A FARM WITH TRADITION FROM PIONEER DAYS
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/.Melrose nestles in a unique landscape on the edge of Khomas Hochland. The landscape varies from plains to hills and mountains. The farmhouse with nearby dam is approximately 2000 metres above sea level. The owner of Melrose was the renowned pioneer Frank James Bassingthwaighte (1820-1888). The cart and shipwright emigrated to Australia in 1841 from where he travelled with a whaler to Walvis Bay in 1842.
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He then explored the interior of the country and through his friendship with the Herero chiefs Kama Herero and Maherero as well as Nama-Chief Jonker Afrikaner - in combination with his cartwright"s skills and his ability to repair rifles - he came to wealth and was widely esteemed. In the course of time he purchased a sizeable amount of land. He garnered the trust of all tribes and throughout his life he was never involved in any tribal conflicts.
His adventurous life made him the First Permanent White South West African Settler - depicted in the books South West Pioneer, Lords of the Last Frontier and Unbeaten Tracks.Farm Melrose was sold in the fifth generation and at present is at the disposal of hunters and tourists from all over the world as a special gem.
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