A Splash Of England At The Klip

At the turn of the previous century, a delightful fragment of rural England rooted itself among the willows on the banks of the Klip River, south of Johannesburg. Welcome to Henley on Klip, where you can expect a few pleasant surprises.

- Mia Louw

Driving from Johannes­ burg to Henley on Klip, your 50km south­bound journey ends with the R59 dipping down to Henley Drive. Passing the industrial warehouses of Midvaal, the last thing you’d expect to encounter is a pocket of rural Oxfordshire beside the highway.

Henley on Klip was founded in 1904 by Horace Kent, an advocate and property developer who was reminded of Henley­on­Thames in England when he first saw the willows dangling in the Klip River on the farm Slangfontein. Since its founding days, the village has been an escape from the bustle of Johannesburg. Shortly after Kent’s arrival from England in 1898, he partnered with The Small Farms Company and bought 410 morgen (351ha) here for £5000, and a further 781 morgen (670ha) later. Settlers Syndicate also bought 500 morgen (428ha) to the north, the section now known as Highbury.

Following consultation with the Department of Agriculture, The Small Farms Company planted 20 000 apple trees in the area, which was known to be suited to apple farming. A weir, built to dam up the river and to create a suitable facility for regatta events, was completed in 1905. This served, furthermore, to link the two halves of the village.

“The Small Farms Company used to charter a train to transport guests from Johannesburg, and on Empire Day in 1906 a special contingent of visitors were invited to inspect the Kidson Weir,” writes Koos van Eck in his book, A River Runs Through: A History of Henley on Klip.