• General Notes

  Johan Krebs was b in Germany and died 1846 leaving JJ to remarry Frans Karel te WATER on 7th December, 1848 in G-R. This man was quite a prominent individual in Cape affairs.
  Besides being a doctor he was also:- from ...graaffreinet.co.za
  
  Lived in Te Water House it was built by Dr Krebbs an emigrant from Germany and when he died Mr. F.K. Te Water married the wealthy widow Krebbs.
  ALSO: "Te Water House" or "Huis te Water" was originally built by Sir Andries Stockenström when he became Commissioner-General of the Eastern Province of the Cape Colony. Dr. Georg Krebs came to Graaff-Reinet in 1835 and bought the house for 4500 Prussian Thalers. He died in 1846 and left the house to his wife Jacomina. Jacomina married Frans te Water, in community of property, and when she died in 1851, he inherited the house, which he named "Te Water House" or "Huis te Water".
  
  Frans Karl Te Water was born in Brussels. For health reasons he sailed for the Cape of Good Hope at the age of 18 to become a private tutor for a family in the Bedford district. Not happy there he was returning home via Graaff Reinet when he noticed an advertisement for the post of Town Clerk an was duly appointed. He subsequently became well set up as an auctioneer and general agent: In the 1860’s the town suffered a severe depression. F.k.Te Water was Chairman of the Municipal Board in 1865. His uncompromising and resolute decisions did much for the survival of the town. Later he represented Graaff Reinet on the Cape Legislative Council in 1869.  The Te Water family occupied this house for almost a hundred years and two of his daughters Mrs Keegan and Mrs Goldman fondly known as “Aunt J” and “Aunt T” are remembered to this day. On one occasion “Aunt J” showed her disapproval of a municipal decision to chop down an oak tree alongside her house. On the appointed morning she took a chair and sat in front of the tree and nothing or nobody could budge her. The tree was not chopped down.
  Received from Brian Margetson the following:
  Article written by Esmé Bull as seen in a volume of:-
  The Swiss at the Cape of Good Hope, 1652-1971 By Adolphe Linder
  THE TE WATER FAMILY OF GRAAFF-REINET.
  Over several generations the te Water family have contributed much to the cultural and political development of G-R. Frans Karel te Water came from Holland in the early 1840's to act as a tutor to some Botha children in the Bedford district. By 1848 he could no longer tolerate the isolation and lack of intellectual stimulus and decided to return to Holland. Instead he applied for the vacant post of Town Clerk in G-R and was appointed on 6th September, 1848. In December he married Jacomina van Rensburg, widow of Dr. Johannes Georg Heinrich Krebs and moved into the house left by Krebs to his widow and small daughter Anna Cecilia Maria. [b 1843]. Jacomina died in January 1851 and the house bcame the property of little Anna. Frans later bought the house from his step-daughter and it remained in the family as "te Water House" until 1966. Anna Krebs was reared by Frans te Water and in 1863 married Edward Wedel du Toit.
  In April 1852 Frans married Carolina Theodora, daughter of T.N.G. Muller, a well-to-do merchant and the first man to represent G-R in the Cape parliament. In 1854 Frans resigned his position as Town Clerk to go into business as a financial agent and auctioneer. However, he continued to serve G-R as municipal councillor for over thirty years including several terms as mayor. He represented G-R in the Cape parliament from 1869 to 1884 and his son Thomas N.G., elected in 1893, served until 1900, twice as a cabinet minister. Frans was well educated, capable and energetic and strove to promote cultural interests among the inhabitants of G-R. Literature, botany and education were his special interests and when his son Thomas started a medical practice in G-R he added drama, music and debating to the list. Thomas married Josephine (Minnie) Currie of 1820 Settler stock and a niece of Sir Walter Currie.
  Frans' children were educated locally and in Europe and the youngest Jacoba (Jacie) was one of the first girls to be enrolled at the S.A. College where she matriculated in 1887. Te Waters have distinguished themselves in several fields including medicine, law, diplomacy, engineering and the arts.
  A younger brother Jacobus Cornelius te Water joined Frans in 1850 and tried his hand at many ventures. At the time of his marriage in 1861 his occupation was given as 'auctioneer'. In 1868 he acted as messenger to the Magistrate's court nad between 1872 and 1875 was Veld Kornet for G-R. According to the te Water papers in the Cape arcihives he also dealt in uncut diamonds and books. However, he did not share his brother's business acumen and was saved from insolvency in 1876 when Frans paid his debts in return for his good furniture and silver.
  The exact date of the brothers arrival is difficult to establish. Frans was recruited by Mr. I. Heugh who returned from a visit to Europe on the ship "Imam of Muscat" in February 1842. Frans may well have been on the same ship as an unlisted steerage passenger or he may have followed later. It is probable that he arrived in 1842 which agrees with a family legend that he left Holland at the age of 18. Frans visited his family in Holland in 1850 and returned on the "Amicitie" which arrived on 29th June, 1850 and listed 'te Water 2' among her pasengers. Possibly the '2' refers to Frans and his brother as, had his wife accompanied him she would have been listed with the Mesdames or with her husband as Mr. & Mrs te Water. Jacobus was certainly in G-R in 1854 when Frans booked passages to Holland for his family and for his brother.
  

Details of Frans' family with Jacomina Jacoba Janse van Rensburg