--- title: "Carnarvon: A Karoo town with ears on the universe" description: "An Upper Karoo town with a turbulent past – and the promise of a bright scientific future." type: "NewsArticle" publisher: "Daily Maverick" site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za" section: "Escape in Northern Cape" author: "Chris Marais" author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/chris-marais/" canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-07-06-carnarvon-ears-on-the-universe/" published: "2022-07-06T20:00:15" updated: "2022-07-10T21:11:47" lang: "en-ZA" word_count: 723 --- # Carnarvon: A Karoo town with ears on the universe > An Upper Karoo town with a turbulent past – and the promise of a bright scientific future. By Chris Marais · Published 6 July 2022, 22:00 SAST · Updated 10 July 2022, 23:11 SAST ## Content The original name of Carnarvon was Harmsfontein, a Rhenish Mission station established for newly arrived Xhosa families in the mid-1800s. Nearby was another Rhenish outpost called Schietfontein (Shooting Fountain), named in remembrance of a skirmish between*trekboere* (roaming frontier farmers) and indigenous San Bushman clans. In 1874, Harmsfontein was renamed in honour of the erstwhile British Minister of Colonies, [Henry Howard Molyneux Herbert](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-Howard-Molyneux-Herbert-4th-earl-of-Carnarvon), the Earl of Carnarvon. ![Carnarvon – a hilltop view. Image: Chris Marais](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/U7FGFr6gMpM0f4vGI1LHw-kSjd4=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/carnarvon-6_resize.jpg) *Carnarvon – a hilltop view. Image: Chris Marais* ![Downtown Carnarvon – epitome of the quiet Karoo platteland. (Photo: Chris Marais)](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/g8otuC2hlBr4LiCa2k2mZYYWSo8=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/carnarvon-2_resize.jpg) *Downtown Carnarvon – epitome of the quiet Karoo platteland. Image: Chris Marais* The little Northern Cape village was primarily a supply depot for the fledgling sheep-farming community, whose members came to Carnarvon regularly to shop and attend church services. Many of the Victorian-era, Karoo-style homes in the centre of Carnarvon were initially built as townhouses for the district farmers. The first *trekboer* families eventually leased land from the Cape Colonial government and, because stones were the only building materials available, erected corbelled houses as their farm homes. These hardy dwellings gave great shelter, were cool in summer and kept the day’s heat inside during the winter. A Karoo corbelled house was made with rows of flat stones, each layer placed a little more inwards from ceiling height, until a dome-shaped building was achieved. The peak was then topped off by a flat stone, which could be removed to release smoke from the hearth. The windows were small with oblique frames so that an incoming arrow could be deflected. A number of these corbelled houses still stand in the Carnarvon area and some, like Stuurfontein and Osfontein, have been converted into charming guest accommodations. ![Victorian-era, Karoo-style houses in central Carnarvon. Image: Chris Marais](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/j4K0q2v3Jc17qieM8MLqDGWms_s=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/carnarvon-4_resize.jpg) *Victorian-era, Karoo-style houses in central Carnarvon. Image: Chris Marais* ![The Osfontein Corbelled Guest House outside Carnarvon. Image: Chris Marais](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/3UUI9J7U5IiXXw-J6PDIE3U1fWs=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/carnarvon-5_resize.jpg) *The Osfontein Corbelled Guest House outside Carnarvon. Image: Chris Marais* The town was, in the 20th century, also seen as an aviation springboard to the dry interior of the Karoo-Kalahari zone. Initially, there were no night flights to or from the local airfield because of a lack of landing lights. In times of emergency, local farmers would line the airstrip with their *bakkies* (pick-up trucks) and use headlights to guide pilots in. These days, however, new landing lights do their job. Carnarvon is one of the key Northern Cape settlements to encircle the enormous Square Kilometre Array complex of radio astronomy dishes, established on a series of farms bought since the early 2000s. Simply known as [SKA](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-08-17-eavesdropping-on-the-sky-the-backstory-of-meerkat-and-ska/), this project will eventually be made up of hundreds of receivers through Africa and across to Australia, all feeding torrents of data back into major computing centres and then being transmitted around the world to be used for pure and applied science by astronomers. Radio telescopes need near-perfect silence to eavesdrop on the deepest secrets of the universe. The vast, dry chunk of the Northern Cape that lies between Carnarvon, Williston, Vanwyksvlei and Brandvlei, encircled by protective hills and mountains, was deemed the most suitable. #### **What to do** Visit the Carnarvon Museum, part of which is a reconstructed corbelled house. A great view of Carnarvon can be seen from the old British blockhouse on top of a nearby koppie. The Appie van Heerden Nature Reserve just outside Carnarvon is worth a drive-through, especially if you want to see spectacular wind pumps at sunset. Visit the [SKA Radio Telescope](http://www.ska.ac.za/)s! ![Part of the enormous SKA radio astronomy complex outside Carnarvon. Image: Chris Marais](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/rUgnkmn7DnZODG2XZK4jHprefCw=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/carnarvon-3_resize.jpg) *Part of the enormous SKA radio astronomy complex outside Carnarvon. Image: Chris Marais* #### **Where to stay** [Lord Carnarvon Guest House](http://www.lordcarnarvonguesthouse.co.za/): Tel: 053 3823 268; Mobile: 082 720 4209. Stuurmansfontein Corbelled House: Tel: 053 3826 097; Mobile: 082 221 7500 or 072 352 8070. Osfontein Corbelled Guest House: Tel: 0533822 ask for 3513; Mobile: 072 310 7979. Eat at De Meerkat Restaurant: Tel: 053 382 4651 **DM/ML** ![“Karoo Roads”, “Karoo Roads II” and “Moving to the Platteland” by Chris Marais and Julienne du Toit book covers.](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/WtDV_O8o15x91U2jOehd-jSpNQA=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/book-offer_resize.png) *'Karoo Roads', 'Karoo Roads II’ and 'Moving to the Platteland' by Chris Marais and Julienne du Toit book covers.* *For an insider’s view on life in the Karoo, get the three-book special of*Karoo Roads I, Karoo Roads II*and*Moving to the Platteland – Life in Small Town South Africa *by Julienne du Toit and Chris Marais for only R720, including courier costs in South Africa. For more details, contact Julie at*[*julie@karoospace.co.za*](mailto:julie@karoospace.co.za)*;**to read more stories about the Karoo, go*[*here*](http://www.karoospace.co.za/)*;**for more information, go to*[*Northern Cape Tourism Authority.*](http://www.experiencenortherncape.com/) *In case you missed it, also read*[Colesberg — A historical frontier town with contemporary twists](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-06-29-colesberg-a-historical-frontier-town-with-contemporary-twists/) https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2022-06-29-colesberg-a-historical-frontier-town-with-contemporary-twists/