Kind regards Nikki Sedgefield GILFILLAN, Douglas Flemmer, J.P., Solicitor, Notary, Conveyancer, and Sworn Translator ; b. 1865 at Cradock, C.C. ; s. of E. Gilfillan. Educ. Cradock ; m. 1890, y.d. of late L.de JONGH, of Cape Town ; 4 children. Articled in Cape Town ; admitted to practise in C.C. 1886. Came to Transvaal 1889, and remained in Barberton till 1892, subsequently to Johannesburg. A member of Reform Committee 1896 ; Captain in I.L.H. during late War. Add. Baumann & Gilfillan, Fox St., Johannesburg, Transvaal. No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 9.0.930 / Virus Database: 2634.1.1/5432 - Release Date: 12/02/12 09:34:00

Thank you so much for this Nikki, Here are some extracts from the 'The Story of the South African Flemmers' by Steve Herbert, a copy which is on our website. www.flemmerfamily.co.za There are a couple of good photo's of him and his medals too. He was born in Cradock on the 26th June 1865, the first child of Edward and Charlotte (Flemmer) and was baptized at St. Peter's Anglican Church. He went to the Cradock Boys' High School were he proved to be exceptionally bright, matriculating at the age of 15. It had been decided that he would follow his father into law. No university degree was required for admission as an attorney, but lengthy articles were served and exams written. Douglas was sent off to Cape Town to the legal firm of Reid and Nephew where he successfully completed his articles. He could not be admitted as an attorney until he turned 21 in 1886. While in Cape Town he played rugby for the Villager first team and lived at a boarding house at Moullie Point run by the widow of Lourens de Jongh. Mrs. de Jongh had two daughters and it was not long before Douglas had fallen in love with the younger one, Sophia (Sophy). There was no question in those days of them marrying then. Douglas was far too young, and had no means of supporting her. It must have been very difficult for this young couple when he went back to his father's practice in Cradock in 1886. They kept up a lengthy correspondence over the years and married four years later in Pretoria. The Transvaal was booming and encouraged by Sophy's brother Jim, Douglas left Cradock in 1888 for Pretoria where Jim had a legal practice. Because the Transvaal was then a Republic Douglas had to qualify to practice in Barberton which he did at Jim's office, passing his law exams in Dutch and qualifying as a sworn translator. He arrived in Barberton in 1889 when the boom was nearly over. The small prospectors had not found their fortunes, the speculators had won or lost badly and people with the real money were as ever, getting on with making more. There was plenty of legal work to do and Douglas bought a half interest in the legal practice of Henry Calderwood. He was a very good correspondent, keeping in touch with his mother and father in Cradock, and with Sophy and his brothers and business associates. The Gilfillan family is very fortunate to have a collection of letters Douglas wrote while he was in Barberton. They give a vivid picture of his thriving practice and the losses he made through an ill judged speculation. There are hunting trips and visits to the Swazi King on behalf of a client. Of course he missed Sophy, as is evident from these letters. The couple had not seen each other for eighteen long months when they were married in Pretoria on 10th April 1890. Although Douglas was a magnificent shot he only hunted for the pot. It was during his time in Barberton that he realized that if the wildlife wasn't protected it would be wiped out. He was a founder of the Transvaal Protection Society and was involved with its successor the Wildlife Protection Society most of his life. War broke out in October 1899, and Douglas left immediately for Pietermaritzburg where he played a prominent part, with 10 other Reform Committee members, in the formation of the Imperial Light Horse. As a lieutenant with the ILH he is quoted in several books on the Boer War and the regiment - he certainly saw a lot of action. I quote from the book Colonial Officers in the Boer War - Gilfillan, D F. South African War 1899-1900. Relief of Ladysmith, including action at Colenso, operations of 17-24 Jan 00, and action at Spion Kop, operations of 5-7 Feb 00 and action at Vaal Krantz, operations on the Tugela Heights (14-27 Feb 00) and action at Pieter's Hill. Relief of Mafeking. Served with the Imp Lt Horse. Queen's Medal with 4 clasps. (Photo available) Extract from G.F. Gibson's history of the ILH: 'The test for riding was rigorous enough to gladden the heart and satisfy the requirements of the most exacting Regular Cavalry Riding Master. This responsible task was undertaken by Lt Douglas Gilfillan.' there is a story of his legendary marksmanship. He had gone springbok hunting in the Karoo with a new five-cartridge rifle. At a distance of 400 yards he shot five running buck with five shots. Astonished local farmers, no mean shots themselves Douglas had a life long love of the veld and the wide open spaces. He was also a very competent botanist. The South African Botanical Annals show a number of plants to his credit and record that he identified a number of species on a farm in the Karroo Like his father before him, Douglas had a great interest in education, and for forty years was on the governing board of Jeppe Boys' High School - Jeppe Park was renamed Gilfillan Park in recognition of his services. With the children grown up Elgin was sold and Douglas and Sophy moved to Parktown before settling in Linden, where they created a beautiful garden complete with a small golf course. Sophy died on the 8th January 1939, and Douglas went to live with his son Noel, who had by then followed his father into the legal practice. When war broke out Noel immediately joined up and Douglas with Richard Bowman, by then old men had to shoulder the responsibility of managing the practice. (Bowman & Gilfillan) Douglas was 80 when the war ended and still went to his office every day. There is an amazing story told when he set out with a ranger named Edwards to hunt down a wounded lion in 1944: Suddenly the lion charged them and took them by surprise. The lion knocked Edwards over and started to savage him on the ground. Douglas Gilfillan, now nearly eighty years of age, calmly turned to the lion, put his rifle on a vital spot, and fired. The force of the shot blew the lion right over to the other side of Edwards and killed it instantly. The men congratulated Douglas on his bravery but he laughed it off and turned to see how badly Edwards had been mauled. Douglas died on the 5th of September 1948 at the home of his son Angus He was a born story-teller and people of every generation enjoyed listening to his stories. As a matter of fact, on the day he died, he had been having Sunday lunch with his son Angus, and had just told a most amusing story, when he sat back, put his hands together, and died so quietly few realised his spirit had gone Kind regards Fay -----Original Message----- From: south-africa-eastern-cape-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:south-africa-eastern-cape-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Nikki Sent: 02 December 2012 11:23 PM To: south-africa-eastern-cape@rootsweb.com; south-africa@rootsweb.com; Craig Hilton-Taylor Subject: [ZA-EC] GILFILLAN Douglas Flemmer. South African Who's Who 1912 Kind regards Nikki Sedgefield GILFILLAN, Douglas Flemmer, J.P., Solicitor, Notary, Conveyancer, and Sworn Translator ; b. 1865 at Cradock, C.C. ; s. of E. Gilfillan. Educ. Cradock ; m. 1890, y.d. of late L.de JONGH, of Cape Town ; 4 children. Articled in Cape Town ; admitted to practise in C.C. 1886. Came to Transvaal 1889, and remained in Barberton till 1892, subsequently to Johannesburg. A member of Reform Committee 1896 ; Captain in I.L.H. during late War. Add. Baumann & Gilfillan, Fox St., Johannesburg, Transvaal. No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 9.0.930 / Virus Database: 2634.1.1/5432 - Release Date: 12/02/12 09:34:00 ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to SOUTH-AFRICA-EASTERN-CAPE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message