By Samantha Hartshorne
Johannesburg - Northwards, a Sir Herbert Baker-designed home, is on the Parktown Ridge, overlooking Westcliff, Saxonwold and Forest Town.
Dr Neil Viljoen, who lives there, says the blazing vista of purple jacarandas in spring “puts Pretoria to shame”.
Northwards was built in 1904 for John Dale-Lace and his wife Jose (Josephine Brink). Dale-Lace was a diamond mogul who met Jose in London. Viljoen says she was a spirited woman who used zebras to pull her carriage and sent a bugler ahead of her when she travelled into central Joburg to signal her arrival.
Aspects of the house, like the double-storey ballroom, which has a small balcony and a first-floor landing area where the minstrels would play during dances, illustrate her outgoing personality. Viljoen said she was often frowned upon by other Joburg women but was headstrong and vivacious and wanted the ball-room furnished “lightly”, so the chairs could be pushed back to create room for dancing.
Viljoen conducts illustrated tours of his home, telling guests about the history, residents and character of Northwards. The Joburg home, which is a magnificent example of the Edwardian period and the early magnates’ way of life, is owned by a mining company.
The scale is striking and photos of the home in its early years show glorious manicured gardens and lengthy carriage paths leading to the courtyard and the double-doored entrance. At one time, according to Viljoen, there were 7 hectares of terraced gardens and a team of gardeners.
Twelve of the 52 rooms are in the basement – a network of storerooms and cellars once used by cooking staff of the Wits residence next door.
Viljoen has lived in the house, restoring it to its former beauty and conducting tours, for 26 years. It is also home to a number of tenants and is used for private functions.
The four distinct facades offer snapshots of the Arts and Crafts era, the style in which the house was built. This era lasted from 1850 to 1920 and a key tenet was that everything, from buildings to things, should be both useful and beautiful. Viljoen says Baker was determined that everything in the house should be handmade.
“He believed deeply that design affects society and he wanted a return to making things by hand. It was a protest against mid-Victorian architecture.” The result is a celebration of various design styles. The entrance area boasts both an Italian tiled floor and a Burmese teak floor, with a grand staircase.
The house, described by Viljoen as “an enormous structure”, has a number of chimneys and a blend of stone and plaster facades. “Baker would use several styles but always tie them together by using motifs and repeated shapes.” The arched doorways and square windows are examples of this.
Trademark features include the gently sloping base of the walls, the use of three arches, vaulting and steep roof lines.
The bay windows give Northwards its signature look.
The home has been carefully restored. Viljoen says he traced the original manor gates using an old photo and replicated the pillars.
He also raised the funds to buy back and restore the original Steinway piano. Wallpapering and curtains have been carefully duplicated to keep the early feel. Viljoen says the idea is not to replace items but to fix them, as the original elements are priceless.
Viljoen, retired now, has always been in education. He also has a comprehensive understanding of the many nearby National Monument buildings, including Baker’s own house, The View. As curator of Northwards and a lover of history and architectural times gone by, Viljoen tells visitors to the 112-year-old house that they are standing on “hallowed ground”.
Tickets for Viljoen’s tours can be bought on Computicket.
Saturday Star