One of Fransfontein’s stalwarts, Cornelius Bowe, sadly died on 7 March 2025 at the age of 82. A senior traditional councillor and vice captain of the Swartbooi Traditional Authority, Bowe was a well-respected, kind and much-loved member of the Fransfontein community.
His family history is intricately linked to Fransfontein’s development. His great, great grandfather, Harry Bowe, arrived on board a ship from Britain at Walvis Bay in 1884.
During his wanderings in search of a suitable farming area, Harry visited Fransfontein where he met the Swartbooi chief, Cornelius Swartbooi.
The people were busy digging a trench to reach the eye of the fountain around which the settlement developed but did not have the equipment to break through the hard rock. Harry Bowe provided dynamite, shovels and picks brought all the way from Walvis Bay.
Bowe tended his garden on the outskirts of Fransfontein settlement with passion, cultivating maize, pumpkins, tomatoes and other crops for many years.
The garden came into the possession of his family after his adopted father, Albert, was given an ultimatum to accept cash or the piece of land when the Odendaal Plan was implemented in the late 1960s/early 1970s.
It now forms part of the Fransfontein Community Garden.
Padlangs wishes his family and friends strength to deal with the loss of someone as exemplary as Bowe.
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