The many lives of De Oude Kerk

De Oude Kerk, the old church on Main Street, began with a gift of land. Nicolaas Walters of the farm Twist donated a plot of 271 square yards, and other locals helped pay for the building. The cornerstone was laid on 8 August 1855.

The congregation struggled for money. Its first minister, Ds. Johannes Hauman, was only confirmed in 1881.

When a new church was built in 1915, the old building became a church hall. For much of the twentieth century it was used as a storeroom by a local building contractor.

On 29 October 1988, during the congregation's 125th anniversary, it reopened as the Riebeek Valley Museum. It was declared a national heritage site in 1991, and today it tells the story of farming life in the valley and of the forced removals from Oukloof.