William Andrews, SV/PROG

According to William's grandson, Albert Francis Andrews, his name was William John but the second name John is not recorded anywhere else. 1820 Settler records state that he came with William Smith's party at the age of 17 although he gave his age as 19 in 1819 in CO48 papers. This party came out in the 'Northampton' and settled at Stony Vale along the road to Trompeters Drift. (The CO 48 papers are records of the Colonial Office consisting of original correspondence relating to the Cape of Good Hope including reports and papers of the Commissions of Eastern Enquiry, 1825 to 1834. (The Relief of Distressed Settlers) The records are kept at Kew Gardens.)

In a Bible dated MDCCCLX (1860) is written : Balfour 3rd July 1815 W Andrews came he..... To whom this Bible belonged is a mystery.

By 1831 William had taken possession of the farm Endwell between Adelaide and Fort Beaufort. From the National Archives records we see a reference to him as owner: DEPOT KAB TYPE Map REFERENCE M1/3450 DESCRIPTION Incompleted diagram of the farms Koedoes Kloof (BJ Prinsloo), Rusmoorkus and Endwell (W Andrews) in the district of Somerset. STARTING 1831 ENDING 1831 REMARKS Drawing. See M1/3445 to M1/3454

The following extract in Cape Frontier Times 1851 1 Jan-March could refer to William Andrews: Extract of a letter dated Fort Beaufort, 12th Jan 1851:- "I suppose you have heard that Mr. W. GILBERT's splendid house and tower, with all the valuable furniture it contained, except what was carried off by plunderers, has been burned to the ground. Charles and Richard BLAKEWAY's houses have shared the same fate, but their furniture had been removed. Mr. BLAKEWAY is as yet unharmed. Poor ANDREWS had built a new house, his being burnt down last war. It was just finished, but had not been inhabited, and is now reduced to ashes. The NILANDs had taken the precaution to take off their thatch and burn it, so their houses have escaped but their outbuildings are burnt. We are expecting today the arrival of a number of Burghers from Somerset and other districts, which I hope will be the means of preventing further destruction in this neighbourhood."

(Endwell, the Andrews' farm, was situated between the Blakeway's farm, Longnor Park, to the east and the Niland's farm, Mount Pleasant, to the west.)

In 1878 both Williams, father and son were living on the farm, Endwell. In the 1878 Voters Roll Eastern Cape (September) are two entries: William Andrews, Residence: Endwell, Cornetcy:Koonap, Electoral Division: Fort Beaufort, E Cape. One is for William snr and one for William jnr.

Family legend has it that the owner drank the farm away at the Kroomie Hotel. It is also family tradition that his daughter, Susannah Andrews who never married, had life rights to the farm which eventually was inhabited by her nephew, a Painter. Susannah's niece, Emily Hannah Pedlar, daughter of her sister Margaret, married Charles Lowther Painter. Charles is very likely the 'nephew' referred to.

To piece the story together of how the farm changed hands from the Andrews to the Painters is speculative but not difficult. William snr lived on the farm his whole life so he isn't the one who lost it. That must have been his son. The Painters must have bought it and Susan as an aunt was allowed to live there till her death. The farm is still in the Painter family. On the farm is a graveyard in which some of the Andrews family are buried. Andrews Forest, a state forest, behind the farm Endwell on the slopes of Kroomieberg is supposedly named after the Andrews family.

According to his death notice William died aged 79 years 2 days, a widower. His occupation was a farmer. His Death Notice was signed by his daughter Elizabeth Vice.

An obituary notice in The Fort Beaufort Advocate and General Advertiser of 9 December 1881 reports: Died at Endwell on the 29th day of November 1881, William Andrews, aged 80 years and 2 days, after a long and painful illness which he bore with Christian fortitude. Deceased was one of the British Settlers of 1820. (His age was 79 and not 80).

In 1882 (after his death) all his children took out mortgage bonds and William jnr took out another in 1894. Why? Was it an attempt to hold on to the farm?