John Forbes Ainslie

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Occupation: Doctor

John married Katherine Mary Jay on 8 Aug 1967. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Forbes married Bertha Mary Howse AttwellEast London, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Bertha (daughter of George Edward Attwell and Edith Anne Howse) was born on 1 Dec 1876 in Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa; was christened on 21 Jan 1877 in St Bartholomew's Church, Alice, Eastern Cape, South Africa; died on 16 Dec 1931 in Millbank, Fort Beaufort, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Occupation: Mill Owner and farmer

Notes:

Died:
Mill Bank

William married Mary Ann Pringle on 29 Apr 1848 in Glen Thorn farm, Mancazana Valley, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Mary (daughter of John Pringle, 1820 Settler and Susan Stretch) was born in 1827; died on 8 Feb 1907. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

George + Edith Anne Howse. Edith (daughter of James Edward Howse and Mary Parr Pye) was born on 20 Jan 1855 in Wright's Cottage, Grahamstown, Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Name: Edith Ann Hawse

Notes:

in Mr Hall's house, high Street, Grahamstown, Cape, South Africa

Baptisted by Mr Shaw on the day before he left for England
Birth was attended by Dr A. Senior
Named after the second name of granma Pye

Notes:

from Ivan Mitford-barberton and Violet White's book, Some frontier Families:
The Ainslie family who came to South Africa in 1833 were from Jedburgh, Scotland. WILLIAM AINSLIE had married Jessie, the sister of Thomas Pringle, the poet, so the family was divided when the Pringles immigrated to South Africa with the 1820 Settlers. The Ainslie family was growing up and living was hard in Scotland, so William and Jessie decided to immigrate to South Africa with their three sons and two daughters.
From London they embarked on the brig Maria and were within sight of Algoa Bay when they encountered a severe storm which drove them off course and it was ten days before they landed in Port Elizabeth in June 1833. There being no railways or telegraph, it took some weeks to get news through to the Pringles, who sent wagons to take them to Clifton in the Bedford district, the home of old Robert Pringle, father of Mrs. William Ainslie.
The Ainslies moved to "Glen Thorn" (where Eric Pringle now lives) and were comfortably settled when the 1835 Frontier War broke out. Except for losing their cattle which was swept off in a raid, the farm houses were not damaged in any way. Most of the fighting was down in the Albany and Uitenhage districts.
After the war, William Ainslie started up a brewery on the Pringles' farm "Glen Thorn" and, although there was a regular demand for beer and ale by the thirsty soldiers stationed at Fort Beaufort, the thirty mile transport by ox-wagon was a great handicap.
In 1839 William Ainslie bought an undeveloped farm, "Spring Grove" where the family established themselves, building their houses and planting crops.
Then in 1846 the War of the Axe started. The young Ainslies joined the Burgher forces mustering at Fort Hare and Fort Beaufort. Commandos came in from Graaff-Reinet, Somerset, Cradock, Colesberg and other districts. By the middle of June a strong force under Sir Andries Stockenström commenced operations by clearing the enemy out of the Amatola mountains, but when they reached Klipplaat, the burghers were disbanded.
William Ainslie, the eldest son, married his cousin Mary Anne Pringle, and settled on his farm "Cavers", named after a Scottish border estate.
In 1850 the disastrous "Bont Oorlog" started, so called because the Hottentots rebelled and joined forces against the whites. The three brothers, William, Robert and George, fought all through this war.
While at "Spring Grove" the rebel leader, Uithalder, arrived with a commando of Hottentots and Xhosas. The Ainslies' Hottentots had joined Uithalder the evening before on condition that the Ainslies were allowed to live in peace. As there were a number of women and children they were allowed to take two wagons and their personal possessions. The unruly rebels were so busy looting everything that the Ainslies managed to smuggle their guns and ammunition into the wagons, wrapped up in bedding. Here the Ainslies were much more fortunate that the Nourse family, who were turned out of their house without even a horse to ride.
Their personal servant had been shot and all cattle, horses and personal possessions carried off. With heavy hearts the Ainslies started off in the direction of Dods Pringle's camp, but were met by Dods and a relief party who had set out to find what had happened to them. When the women and children had been safely settled, William Ainslie and about twenty volunteers returned to "Spring Grove" in the hope of catching the rebels. The once flourishing farm was in a state of complete desolation. Not a pig or a fowl was left, and all their possessions had been carried off. At the Nourses' farm they found the same desolation, with one white man shot dead in the front of the house. They then followed the spoor of the Nourse family but met a partrol under William Monkhouse Bowker who told them that the Nourses had reached the laager in safety. The Ainslies were also with William Monkhouse Bowker's commando when they rescued the isolated Winterberg families. William Ainslie was sent with a few men to relieve a party at De Waal's Kloof. They had been besieged for many days and were in a desperate state. They had plastered their thatch over and it was stuck full of fire-brands thrown on by the enemy. One man had been shot and they had buried him in the house.
Dods Pringle's and Walter Currie's commandos converged on Balfour, where a fierce battle was fought. The rebels were holding positions along the river but the burghers attacked as it was getting light and took them completely by surprise. The enemy lost 300 men, to 17 burghers. From Balfour the commandos approached Fort Armstrong, which was occupied by the rebels. General Somerset had arranged to meet them there at sunrise, but was three hours late.
When he finally arrived on the scene the burghers stormed the position, meeting with no resistance except some desultory firing from the river bed. Some of the rebels had barricaded themselves in the tower and only surrendered when they realised that there was no escape. That was the end of the Kat River rebels, but fighting continued in other areas for some time.
William Ainslie returned to his farm to harvest his mealies. Xhosas raided the district from time to time, sweeping off cattle and sheep. Ainslie then rejoined General Somerset's forces and was made a captain in the Fingo levy. In one skirmish with the enemy, William was wounded in the groin, and on another occasion, his brother Robert was shot through the foot. The Pringles, Ainslies and Hocklys were often in the fighting, trying to recover stolen stock. They patrolled the area from Blinkwater to Koonap and the Waterkloof, saw much service and had several narrow escapes.

William married Jessie Pringle on 4 Sep 1817. Jessie (daughter of Robert Pringle, 1820 Settler and Catherine Haitlie) was born in 1795 in Roxburghshire, Scotland; died on 4 Jul 1880 in 'Spring Grove', Bedford District, Eastern Cape, South Africa; was buried in 'Spring Grove', Bedford District, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Settler ID: 651
• Name: John Pringle 1820
• Occupation: an Agriculturist
• Residence: Glen Thorn farm, Mancazana Valley, Eastern Cape, South Africa
• Settler: 15 Feb 1820, Gravesend, Kent, England

Notes:

His tombstone indicates his birth as being 21 April 1791 (Tessa King and Cemetery Recording CD from the GSSA ) - Pringles of the Valleys has his dob as 21 April 1787.

John and his brother Thomas started their farm in Eildon which they were allocated as part of the 1820 Settlers scheme. As Grant's party from Scotland decided to go to America rather than South Africa, and the sinking of the Aboena due to fire with loss of almost all the emigrant settler passengers, a lot of the surrounding farm land was not taken up by those potential settlers. The Pringles therefore had the opportunity to acquire more land to expand their farming enterprises. John did not get on with his younger brother, and went to assist Robert Hart in running the Somerset Government farm, and to learn the 'tricks' of farming in South Africa from Robert Hart. It was while he was there, that he met Susan Parr nee Stretch, a recent widow, and sister of Charles Lennox Stretch who had married Robert Hart's eldest daughter, Anna.


Herald, date unknown.
Settler family angry as home consigned rubble history
by Andrew Unsworth

Glenthorn, an 1820 Settler farmhouse in the Eastern Cape which belonged to the PRINGLE family for more than 150 years, is destined for demolition.

The loss of the home seven years ago upset surviving members of the prominent family, but it could disappear forever as the new owner cannot afford to keep it standing.

The National Monuments Council regards the house as historic but can do little to save it as it was never declared a national monument - a step that can be taken only with the owner's consent.

The farm was established north of Adelaide, Eastern Cape in 1824 by John PRINGLE, one of four brothers who led the 1820 British settlers, on land granted to him by Lord Charles SOMERSET. His brother, Thomas, went on to tackle the colonial authorities over the settlers' plight by founding a newspaper in Cape Town. His name is still linked to the freedom of the press in South Africa.

Built in 1841, the house was burnt to the ground and rebuilt three times in the frontier wars between the settlers and Xhosas. It was spared only after two women related to a chief were allowed to settle on the farm. Although it was altered and extended over the years, it remained in the PRINGLE family until it was sold by Errol PRINGLE seven years ago to settle debts.

The controversial sale left bitter divisions. One of Errol's brothers, Crighton PRINGLE of Bedford, said talk of the home in which he grew up opened old wounds and he was not prepared to discuss it. Another brother, Denzil PRINGLE of Grahamstown, was resigned to the house's fate. "One has to forget the past, but I would love to see it kept as a national monument."

The present owner, Louw DE BEER, lives on an adjoining farm, 'Marshall Vale', also once owned by a branch of the PRINGLE family. He has spent thousands on restoring the turn-of-the-century farm house, but the older homestead on Glenthorn has stood abandoned. "It's been vandalised and would cost too much to restore," he said. "I use and maintain the outbuildings, but the house has no economic use in a remote area like this. "One is sad to do it but there is really no choice."

The farm is in the heart of "settler country", nestling in a valley of the Winterberg mountains. Today, the house stands in what was once a magnificent garden. Its large rooms are long empty, save for stray sheep droppings, and the billiards room is marked only by a rectangle cut in the floor for the table. Pages of the family history, 'The Pringles of the Valley', lie scattered in what was once the study of Eric PRINGLE, its author and the father of the last owner.

The outbuildings served as a fort in the Frontier Wars and the window openings are angled to facilitate defensive gunfire. Nearby is a chapel built in 1840 by John PRINGLE and surrounded by the graves of generations of PRINGLEs. It's a national monument.

The demise of an old farmhouse is nothing new on the platteland. Ironically, the relics of pre-colonial human settlements have been protected by law since 1911, but buildings put up since 1652 were not, unless they were declared monuments. A relatively unknown clause of the National Monuments Act has, since 1986, extended some protection to any building more than 50 years old. But the National Monuments Council says the law is so wide that it is dependent on local authorities to refer sensitive cases to it. Many do, but the "50-year clause" has never really been applied and many suburban renovators are breaking the law.

Brian JACKSON, Eastern Cape head of the National Monuments Council, was horrified to hear of Glenthorn's planned demolition, but was not prepared to comment until he had seen the house. His intervention is all that stands between Glenthorn and the demolisher's hammer.



Settler:
Pringle's party on the Brilliant

John married Susan Stretch on 26 Mar 1822 in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. Susan (daughter of James St. Leger Stretch and Catherine Devenish) was born in 1791 in Ireland; died on 11 Jan 1879 in Adelaide, Eastern Cape, South Africa; was buried in Glen Thorn Cemetery (Presbyterian) on Glen Thorn farm, Mancazana Valley, Eastern Cape, South Africa. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Name: Susan or Susanna Stretch

Notes:

Conflicting dates: Ivan Mitford-Barberton in Some Frontier Families, under Stretch has Susan's years as 1798 - 1879 yet,under Hart, has her mother Anna's birth year as 1805.

DEATH NOTICE
Filed 17 March 1879 6/9/376 6523
Name of Deceased: Susan STRETCH
PRINGLE
Place of Birth: Ireland
Names of Parents: STRETCH
Age of Deceased:
Widow of the late John PRINGLE
Date of Death: 11 January 1879
Place of Death: 'Mill Bank',
Fort Beaufort
Names of Children and whether Major or Minor:
Robert Pears PRINGLE
James Stretch PRINGLE
Catherine PRINGLE
Isabella PRINGLE
Mary Anne PRINGLE
Ellen Stretch PRINGLE
Whether the deceased left any property movable or immovable? Wearing apparell and a few presents in Cash.
Signed by William Ainslie, Snr.

Susan Parr b. bet 1813-1816 London; d.9 Jul 1882 Battlesden Farm, Alice District. Married James Attwell on 27 Mar 1832.
She was d.o. Edward Parr [b. bet 1792-1795 England; d. abt 1818 England] and Susan Stretch [b.1796 Ireland; d. 11 Jan 1879 Adelaide, Cape, age 88].
Buried in Glenthorn Prebyterian Cem. Mancazana.
Susan was d.o.James St Ledger Stretch [b.1769 Knock Duff, County Cork, Ireland; d.23 Apr 1821 South Arica; buried Millbank, near Fort Beufort] and Catherine Devenish [b. 7 Aug 1767 Knock Duff, County Cork; d.31 May 1845 Adelaide, Cape aged 79] Buried Millbank, near Fort Beaufort.
Susan Stretch married a second time on 26 Mar 1822, after the death of Edward Parr, to John Pringle [b.31 Apr 1787; d.7 Apr 1864.

Notes:

Microfilm #1886513
Matrimonial Court Minutes and Special Marriage Licenses: 1821 - 1884
Albany/Grahamstown, Cape, South Africa
Item 7
Entry #11
Husband: John PRINGLE, 33, England
Wife: Susanna STRETCH, 30, Widow of the late Edward Parr,
1 child - left in England with her Mother
Date: 3/26/1822

Other Events and Attributes:

• 1820 Lineage: Yes
• Marriage Banns: 30 Jun 1852, Wesleyn Chapel, Port Elizabeth, Cape, South Africa; by Rev Inolbilson

James married Mary Parr Pye on 30 Jun 1852 in Eastern Cape, South Africa. Mary died on 3 Aug 1875. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Marriage Banns: 30 Jun 1852

Notes:

Marriage Banns:
by Rev John Wilson- Wesleyan Minister