Christopher family

The Christopher Family of Ladysmith

The first member of the family to arrive in Natal was Joseph Steer Christophers who came up from Grahamstown in 1847, where he had been connected with printing and publishing. He quickly became involved in various schemes to promote settlement of the new Colony and in an effort to encourage immigration, wrote a book ‘Natal and the Cape of Good Hope’(1848), which contained what is believed to be the first “Zooloo’’(sic) Dictionary. His endeavours in Natal failed lamentably and in 1850, much the poorer he left for England never to return. Joseph was the 11th child of John Christophers and Susanna Steer of Dartmouth, Devonshire, the ‘s’ dropped from the name in the 1850’s for some unknown reason.

Not much is known of John and his wife, except that Susanna, starting at the age of 33, had sixteen children in twenty three years. She was very plain, poor soul, he a rather pedantic looking, frail man. The misconception that John was connect to the law profession comes from a silver Waterloo Cup, dated January 28 1815, that was presented to him as a token of regard by a Dartmouth family for the faithful execution of a Trust.

Joseph is described in the census records as Merchant or Mercantile Agent. He was also an Emigration Agent for passengers to South Africa and a quick search of 1840′s English newspapers and will find his advertisements…his address being the East India Chambers, Leadenhall St, London.

Prior to coming to South Africa, Joseph had married Georgiana White and when Joseph returned to England, Georgiana and her infant daughter, Anna Susan was cared for by his brother Doctor William Christophers and he accompanied them back to England. Georgiana’s son Lucius William, was born in Pinner Middlesex, the family ultimately settled in the village of East Budleigh in Devon. In the 1871 census, Jospeh is…widower…lodger… living in Holborn, London and by 1891 he is listed as John Steer Christopher, widower…’An Inmate at Morden College Blackheath, an Institution for Decayed Merchants.’

When Lucius left Newton Abbot College, there were no funds left to provide him with further, Joseph, however used what influence he had and Lucius was taken on by the London and Westminster Bank with whom he took various banking exams before transferring to the Standard Bank. Emigrating to South Africa, his first position was as a clerk, then teller and finally rose to be the accountant. In 1887 he was sent to Ladysmith to establish and manage the first Standard Bank of the town.

In 1882 Lucius Christopher married Martha Mileman and they had three children, Vernon, who was tragically killed while serving with the Carbineers during the Bambata Rebellion in 1906. Their second son, Walter, was born in 1887 in the small stone cottage in Poort Road and also went to Hilton College, was admitted an Attorney in Pietermaritzburg and spent most of his life in Ladysmith, where he died. Their third child, Leila went to St. Anne’s Diocesan College and then to school in England and in 1924 married Richard Feetham, a distinguished advocate and one of the famous band of brilliant young men known as “Milner’s Kindergarten’’.

In 1890 Lucius left the Standard Bank and joined George Tatham in the firm of Walton & Tatham, which was described in the press notice advertising the new partnership as ‘Auctioneers, Surveyors, Valuators, Conveyancers, Accountants, Land, Estate, Financial and Commission Agents. The name ‘Christopher’ was not added to the firm name until 1955.

Lucius bought a site on Convent Hill, where he built a house and called it ‘Budleigh’ which, by an amusing turn of fate, was the name of the of his childhood in East Budleigh, is now called ‘Christophers’. ‘Budleigh’ had stables for horses and cows, a coach house, an earth closet and a ‘gas house’, which provided the carbide gas for lighting.

When hostilities were threatening before the outbreak of the Boer War, Lucius sent his wife and two younger children, twins Vernon and Walter John, to live with his sister in his old home in Devon where they stayed for several years. Just before the town was finally besieged Lucius, a supremely cautious man, stocked his cellars full of food and then removed all the securities and Deeds of the firm to the Standard Bank Pietermaritzburg for safe keeping. Imagine his horror when he was prevented from returning to Ladysmith. He did however succeed in getting a message to the town by Heliograph telling of the whereabouts of his stocks of food. The next generations of Christopher children, had many adventures and discoveries in the Budleigh cellars and emerged triumphant with endless empty bottles of jam, tins and odd bits of shrapnel!

Lucius was prominent amongst the few civilians allowed to return immediately after the Siege to help with the enormous task of relief work and rehabilitation. When the family returned from England, Walter was sent to Hilton College and Leila to St. Anne’s. Here she became the friend of Norma von Mengershaunsen, a daughter of the much loved doctor of Howick, and a younger sister of Ronie, who later was to marry Lucius.

In 1923 Martha Christopher died and several years later Lucius married Veronica Olga Caroline James (nee von Mengershausen) a widow with one son. ‘Ronie’ was a vital and fascinating person with an encyclopaedic knowledge of South African flora and gardening. She created at Budleigh one of the most beautiful gardens in Natal. Lucius Christopher served the town loyally and well for a great number of years and he was an excessively generous man, helping to educate countless children, unknown to most of them and to all but his immediate family.

At one time he was, amongst his many activities, Chairman of the Town Board. But it is for his

service to the Anglican Church in Natal and to All Saints’ Church in particular, that he will best be remembered. He was a foundation Governor of Cordwalles, the Diocesan Preparatory School for Boys. While a Governor of “Michaelhouse’’, he helped choose and buy the site of the school. He was on the Diocesan Board of Trustees and for many years a Church Warden of his All Saints’. It was largely due to his initiative and inspiration that after the Boer War the plan was made to extend All Saints’ to include the two lovely transepts and the sanctuary as a memorial to those who died in the Siege and Relief of the town.

Walter by this time had been admitted as an Attorney and had joined his father’s firm in 1913. He had been articled to F.S. Tatham, of Tatham, Wilkes & Co. As a student, Walter was a fine Rugby player and was in the Natal side in 1911 and 1912. When Walter and Norma married they bought the house next door to “Budleigh” and called it “Selborne’’ after the village in Hampshire. Here they lived for 52 full and useful years, serving the town and district faithfully. Their son Benjamin became the senior partner of the family firm of Christopher, Walton &Tatham. Lucius died in 1944 aged 88 and his son Walter in 1969 in his 82^nd year.

Benjamin married in 1947 to Eileen Rouillard, a grand–daughter of one of the founders of Rhodesia, Francis “Matebile’’ Thompson and they lived at “Budleigh” and had four children. He served with distinction in Natal Carbineers and the Argyle & Southerland Highlanders during the Second World War. He was lay-minister in the All Saints Anglican Church for at least 30 years, was a Town Councillor, school governor, president of the Rotary Club and a well-known and respected historian of the history of Natal and, in particular, the Anglo-Boer War. Eileen and others set up the first creches and feeding schemes in Steadville Location and devoted much of her life to the upliftment and education of the less-advantaged of our community.

Tony, one of 14 children, was educated at Cordwalles & Michaelhouse and at the Universities of Cape Town & Natal and qualified as attorney in 1973. After working for solicitors in London for some years, he joined the family firm in 1976 which is also the year in which he married Anne and is currently the senior partner of Christopher, Walton & Tatham Inc. He serves on several professional bodies including the Council of the Natal Law Society and has been involved in service to the community in various capacities including Cripple Care, Round Table, and Rotary. He also served on a number of school bodies and was the Chairman of the Board of St Anne’s Diocesan College and served on several boards of directors in companies and businesses in which he has interests, notably in the fields of property development, and a private game reserve. Anne and he have 2 children and have lived their entire married life in “Selborne” Ladysmith.

Thanks for this information go to family member Tony Christopher

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