Township museum preserves history

January 27, 2012 | Filed underPopular News,Previous news | Posted by editor
Love for history … Johannes Mofihli Moshao has opened his own museum for the community of Grassland.
The first museum in Grassland, Bloemfontein will be officially opened next Saturday with the aim of educating communities about the rich history of the country.
Mofihli Moshao Museum Services will open its doors in Grassland Phase 2 on February 4, treating visitors to the diversity and culture on display.
The museum was established by Johannes Mofihli Moshao because of his desire to provide the Grassland community with the cultural inheritance which he is now preserving in his museum.
He plans to pass it on to the next generation. Moshao emphasised that the museum belongs to the community and should remain a hub where history, culture, and tradition can be captured.
He began building the museum with his bare hands, using recycled materials and other materials people no longer used. Moshao went door-to-door asking for cement bricks and sand and began building his museum. This painstaking process took eight years to complete with construction workers helping from time to time.
“I would sometimes get cement and then have to wait for bricks and that’s why the process took so long to complete.”
Initially he had over 50 construction workers who came to help, but the majority of them left after being offered better paying jobs elsewhere.
“Most of my employees were from surrounding areas while others were from Lesotho coming into the country seeking employment.”
Moshao has received over R1-million in donations from over 140 different companies since he began building the museum and was able to pay his staff with that money.
Eight years’ worth of donations has seen the museum standing proud and able to safely accommodate the artefacts of South Africa’s heritage.
He began collecting artefacts from people’s houses. He went from house to house asking for coins that were used in the past. This process was laborious because people had to trust him enough to allow him into their homes and collect the artefacts.
Most people are unaware of the importance of these old items, their value, and the history they possess.
“Bloemfontein has a hidden history that has never been told and this museum will be able to tell that story
in artefacts.”
He also asked for ‘dom passes’, which held a lot of history within them. The museum also displays the coins and notes used during apartheid.
It was also not easy getting hold of such items of value as people sometimes discarded them or stored them incorrectly.
The museum also has gramophones, cameras, old phones, coins, old South African flags, slates, and cupboards from the 1800s.
“My approach was important because I was dealing with human beings. For an example, I would scratch in an old granny’s suitcases and ask for the items which I can use inside the museum.”
He believes that the museum will forge social cohesion in the democracy, adding that white South Africans will now be able to come into the township and learn more about black people’s lives. The museum intends to encourage children in suburban schools to go into the township and learn a way of life that is different to theirs.
“The museum also has gramophones, cameras, old phones, coins, old South African flags, slates, and cupboards from the 1800s.”
“This is where social cohesion comes in where white people learn how black people live their lives and how they spend their weekends.  I want them to use the museum as a centre where they can donate things to be used by township children. This can be old clothing. The only condition is that they must meet the beneficiary of their donation.”
He is convinced that the museum will help attract more tourists to the province and trigger the development of the area.
Grassland 2, commonly referred to as Bergman Square, is a neighbourhood of RDP houses, where unemployment is high.
Moshao hopes that the museum will encourage more people to build guest houses and shops in the area.
This will in turn create an opportunity for people in the surrounding community to find jobs and sustain themselves.
“My museum is going to include libraries, a curio shop, and a restaurant and this will create employment.”
The libraries already have books that he collected. Youth and learners will use the libraries and learn about visual history, while the curio shop will sell souvenirs to international visitors.
“We will use the Internet and websites to ensure that people from other countries are informed about the museum.”
“He began collecting artefacts from people’s houses. He went from house to house asking for coins that were used in the past.”
The Bloemfontein National Museum has offered the museum some artefacts and also provided the historical background to them.
What Moshao needs now is a tour guide, four women who can cook for the restaurant, a person to run the curio shop, a receptionist, a cleaner and two security guards. He also needs CCTV cameras, a computer, and a projector.
Moshao has never earned a salary for over eight years and he believes it was his faith in God that has kept him strong and able to thrive.
He is also collecting donations of second-hand clothing, shoes, furniture, and linen to distribute to the needy in the area. For more information contact Moshao at 073 142 1892.
  •  
  •  
  •