Sandstone Estates (Pty) Ltd is a large commercial agricultural enterprise covering over , located on the border with Lesotho in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

's Eastern Free State province, close to the Maluti Mountains. The nearest town is

Ficksburg Ficksburg is a town situated at the foot of the 1,750 meter high Imperani Mountain in Free State province, South Africa. The town was founded by General Johan Fick in 1867 who won the territory in the Basotho Wars. He laid out many erven and ...

, away on the R26. It is a hub of transport preservation.

History

The farm was built up by the Wille family from the 1830s, who were originally

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

missionaries. Today it is part of an international agri-business that produces wheat, soya beans, maize and sunflowers. It has been 100% organic since 2005. As steam enthusiasts, in the mid-1990s, the Sandstone owners were approached by Alan Clarke of Transnet Heritage Foundation, who realised the foundation did not have the resources to rescue the collapsing Midmar Museum in KwaZulu-Natal. The collection formed the basis of what became the Sandstone Heritage collection. Today, the main collection is still based around the railway transport of Southern Africa, but also covers an extensive global road transport and military vehicle collection. The "Stars of Sandstone" 10-day event held in March, April or May attracts thousands of visitors, 70% of whom are from overseas. Beira Ry BR7 (4-4-0) SAR Class NG6 a

Agricultural machinery

Old tractors which had been on the farm for many years were retained, and added to by donated items. Today the collection runs to over 300 tractors, all were slowly restored to operation.

Railways

The 2ft Narrow gauge railway runs from Grootdraai in the south, and then northwards to the main farm and main depot at Hoekfontein, onwards via Mooihoek to Vailima Siding.Today the collection of narrow gauge locomotives and rolling stock is one of the most numerous in the world. During the 1990s Sandstone took occupancy of the old

South African Railways Transnet Freight Rail is a South African rail transport company, formerly known as Spoornet. It was part of the South African Railways and Harbours Administration, a state-controlled organisation that employed hundreds of thousands of people ...

workshops at

, located alongside the

Transnet Freight Rail Transnet Freight Rail is a South African rail transport company, formerly known as Spoornet. It was part of the South African Railways and Harbours Administration, a state-controlled organisation that employed hundreds of thousands of people ...

Bethlehem Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital o ...

to Bloemfontein line. As well as acting as a collection and restoration point, it also acted as a training college for local young people, who were trained through the restoration process. This facility is now closed and returned to Transnet. Sandstone operated a major locomotive refurbishment programme at its Bloemfontein workshops. This was located in the old Steam Depot which was the home of constant Steam activity for many decades. It is now closed. Sandstone has 24 working 2ft Narrow Gauge locomotives. A number of 3'6" gauge locomotives are also on permanent display at Sandstone.

Military

Sandstone formed a joint-venture with the South African Army's Armour Museum in Bloemfontein, which led to the development of a significant collection of vintage military vehicles. The collection is built around educating visitors on the history of South African military engineering since

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The School of Armour plays an important role in the semi-annual "Stars of Sandstone" event, with daily displays and convoys of military vehicles.

References

External links