Jeffrey’s Bay History

Regarding the origin of the name of the town, there are a few speculations. One is that Captain Jeffrey’s sailed South Africa’s east coast in the 1840s for trading purposes. When his crew members were struck by scurvy, he landed his ship on the primitive coast, now the main beach of Jeffrey’s Bay. Ten years later, he bought erven 1, 2, 9 and 10 for 79, and built their home on the corner of Woltemade and Jeffrey’s Streets. When the prominent Reilly family arrived in the area in 1928, they reportedly used the original timber from Captain Jeffrey’s ship to build their home, even preserving the 150-year old barometer.

There were other people called Jeffrey’s in that area of South Africa at that time, one been a prominent trader that based himself in the Eastern Cape in the 1850s and the other a whale hunter from St Helena, who used Jeffery’s Bay as a harbour and trading post.

The Reillys bought the land that Country Feeling now occupies and built the old Wimpy Bar during the 1960s. This building was demolished in 1964, and the Reilly’s constructed a double-story building, which they used as a tea garden, with residential flats and a gift shop sharing the same property.

In the 1850s the best know hotel in Jeffrey’s Bay history was constructed, first called the Jeffrey’s Bay Hotel and in 1937 renamed The Savoy, it was demolition in 1968 along with a part of Jeffrey’s Bay history.

The legendary John Whitmore, also know as the father of South African surfing, was travelling the Garden Route of South Africa during the 1950s on a business trip and came across what is considered to be one of the best surfing waves in the world, the rest is history. Today thousands of surfers from across the globe make the pilgrimage to Jeffrey’s Bay to pit them against the best right hand point break in the world and to pay homage to this awe inspiring wave. Jeffrey’s Bay also hosts the international Billabong Pro competition which is the half way point to determine the next world surfing champion.