1969 Tanzania Safari

[William Cormack]

I expect the hunting photos soon from Tanzania. My dad had two huge cases full of photos he took during his hunting safaris and they had all these images of villages he drove through and it is amazing to look at them now and see how the old Africa was compared to now.

 

[William Cormack]

I came across this documentary of a Safari Col. John Glenn made in Tanzania, and on the bottom they listed keith Cormack and two other PH's as members in this safari and thought I should share. If I get a link to the actual documentary video I will post it.

 

[Wheels]

Thank you for the pics. Its the first time I have seen pictures of the house and parts of the farm. I have some pictures my brother is digging up at home that are very interesting. His hunting safaris in Sudan, Zambia, kenya and Zimbabwe. I am current in the US for college but as soon as I get the photos I will post them.

Your welcome. It is fun to dig back through these. Brings back many fond memories.

Thank you for sharing photos of your father, uncle and aunt. Do you have any photos of your grandparents?

Neat bit of history that your father hunted with John Glenn for the show.

Look forward to seeing some of your fathers hunting photos.

 

[Wheels]

The Chimala Hotel/Farm

Chimala Mission Hospital now owns the site of the old Chimala Hotel that the Cormack's owned. It is on the south side of the old Great North Road and the land runs up a little ways onto the slopes of the rift escarpment to the south. There is also a primary school, secondary school and bible college on the site, with around 700-800 students. Most living on the grounds.

Major Cormack and his wife sold the hotel along with apx. 400 acres around 1962 and went back to Scotland. This photo is the main building with bar and dining area and lounge. This photo is probably 5-8 years after it was last used as a hotel and was primarily used as storage at the time. The area has grown up in this photo. In its day, the hotel grounds were well manicured under some majestic and large riverine trees. Very scenic and beautiful. In the day you walked up to sable, buffalo, eland, roan, kudu, etc. euro mounts on the front veranda. I presume most were supplied by Keith. This hotel is where Keith based his hunting, onto what is now the Ruaha National Park and the Usangu Game Reserve. Kudu, bushbuck, bushpig, duiker, dik-dik, baboon, leopard, hyena, jackal, and Klipspringer were even present on the hotel grounds. Lions were present monthly.

There was an amazing fruit garden and vegetable garden to supply the hotel. Most fruit trees from all over the world will grow in this climate. (due to altitude, a temperate climate in the tropics) The Cormack's had a large assortment of different fruits.

These main buildings have been torn down for 20-30 years. Housing for the hotel was mainly rondavels. Parts of the rondavels are still visible today as walls of houses of the people that work at the hospital.. Unfortunately I have no photos of the rondavels.

I believe the Cormack's lived in this house, but stand to be corrected if someone knows better.

The Cormac's had the only European owned hotel/dining/ petro station between Iringa and Mbeya at one time. Most vehicles coming down the road filled up at the station.

The story goes that people would walk into the hotel and ask for a drink. Major Cormack would say that we only serve drinks with a meal. If you want a drink, you have to buy a meal. A true Scott.

Major Cormack was an Olympic marathon runner for the UK. He finished 14th in the 1906 games. I believe he was the first British subject to ever finish the Olympic marathon race. See results here.

http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1906/ATH/mens-marathon.html

Everyone that traveled the Cape Town to Cairo road between apx. 1930-1962 passed by or stopped at the hotel for a meal, petro or a bed. In it's day it was well known. Major Cormack was well know throughout East Africa at the time.


William, Hopefully this will help fill in a little history of your family for you.

All the best.

 

[Nyati]

Thank you all for contributing to this very interesting thread.

 

[Wheels]

This photo reminded me of something I haven't thought of in decades.

Those are two kapok trees directly behind the house. There was a row of 8-10. When the pods broke open and the kapok flew, we called it Tanzania snow.

If you can't tell, I am having fun reminiscing!

 

[William Cormack]

I read a little bit about it in Ian's Book but this info is very interesting. Thank you for sharing.

 

[HuntingGold]

I have enjoyed this thread. Thanks to all for sharing the information and memories.

 

[enzo vecchio]

Would there be any relation to the late Gordon Cormack the PH from Zim/SA

 

[Wheels]

Would there be any relation to the late Gordon Cormack the PH from Zim/SA

Sorry, but I don't know the answer. Hopefully William will.

The Cormack's did indeed move from South Africa to purchase the farms in Tanganyika. Cormack may have been a civil servant in SA. It is possible he had other family there.



As additional information.

After WWI, Deutsch Ostafrika was split into four parts. Rwanda and Burundi went to the Belgium's. The small portion that lay south of the Ruvuma River went to the Portuguese. What became Tanganyika, became a League of Nations mandated protectorate, overseen by the British. (Later the U.N. until independence in 1961.)

The only land that could be held with "fee simple" title (owned) was land that had been owned, "fee simple", by the Germans. The farms that the Cormack's bought were old German farms. I believe all other land could only be held with a 99 year lease. After independence, all farm land that I am familiar with , became 99 year leasehold land.

If I have misspoken and there are Tanzanian's out there that know better, please correct me on this.

 

[sestoppelman]

Not sure how I missed this thread but I did! Great stuff! Thanks to all the contributors to it. Amazing.

Just ordered a copy of the Ruwaha book on ebay.

 

[CAustin]

Thanks for sharing the additional pictures @Wheels .
Was this the hospital your father worked in back in the day?

 

[BC.Pat]

Amazing look back thru time, thank you for sharing !

 

[MBIZI SAFARIS]

Yes good old times..... thanks for sharing !

 

[Wheels]

Nice to read these stories. I lived in Chimala, on and off, from 1984-2007. Did a lot of hunting in the Usangu area as a child and as an adult. As someone in the above posts "thought" is true, they have outlawed hunting in Usangu now. But there is still an "old" hunter in Chimala that remembers about everything about everybody. He is a beluchi named Sheklon. I don't remember his last name???

Last week at DSC, I found out that Sheklon passed away a few months ago. He was a hunter with a lifetime of stories in the bush. Sheklon wasn't a PH or well known, just a regular guy who loved to hunt. As far as I know he only had one rifle. A 60ish year old BRNO in 8x68s. The stock was chocolate from the worn in human oil and dirt. The last bluing on the rifle was lost sometime well into the last century. The action was smooth as glass, although the bolt had some play. There were countless dents and scars along with some pitting on the metal. The rifle never saw a scope. It was a buffalo machine and every size mammal fell to it. I couldn't venture to guess the countless animals it has slain.

I am reminded of the saying, "Beware the man with one rifle. He probably knows how to use it." This certainly applied to Sheklon.

We have lost another small part of our hunting legacy and community.

Tu ta onana tenna Mzee.

 

[crudeoildude]

God I love history what an amazing glimpse into the past thank you all so very much hope to see more

 

[son of the novice]

Tim,

In those days it was not uncommon for hunters to hunt multiple places in Tanzania. The area around Arusha has Whitebeard Wildebeest, Grants/Roberts/Thompson Gazelle, Gernuk, lesser kudu, etc. that aren't found in the Ruaha area.

The Mbeya airstrip was grass back then but it would handle the East African Airways DC3's.

The George that your friends father remembers would not have been George Rushby. Rushby would have moved to SA by then, and possibly have died. Below are a couple of books about Rushby. Rushby also killed the maneaters of Njombe (1500 people killed) right after WWII. He is mentioned in one or two of Capsticks books. He was also a big time ivory hunter prior to becoming a game warden.

No More the Tusker by GG Rushby published by WH Allen, London 1965
The Hunter is Death by TV Bulpin published by Nelson, Cape Town 1962

Eric Balson would have been the game warden in Mbeya at the time your friend hunted. Your friend may have met him if he went through Mbeya. I would be surprised if Balson didn't stop by the camp at sometime during the safari. Bwana Balson wrote two books published by Safari Press:

On Safari with Bwana Game
More Safaris with Bwana Game

If your friend met Balson he might want to read his books. For awhile Balson guided the visiting VIP's of Tanzania including Prince Bernard of the Netherlands and Marshall Tito of Yugoslavia. The first book tells how the second largest elephant (by ivory) was taken.

If you can, ask your friends father how old Keith Cormac would have been. I would guess Keith was born in the early 30's but I may be wrong. As a kid I don't know if I could judge adults ages very well.

Also ask your friend if he has photos of Keith. I don't have any. I am not sure if I could even tell you what he looked like if you showed me a photo now.

I am certainly looking forward to more photos and a narrative if he can provide it.


For the rest of you that have commented on my story about Keith Cormac, thanks. I am blessed to have briefly lived in "the good old days".

All the best.

I will round up my father's pic am sure there are of Eric and a good couple of others

 

[Wheels]

I will round up my father's pic am sure there are of Eric and a good couple of others

Would be great if you can add some more photos to the thread!

 

[Tucketed]

Thank you gentlemen for letting me live a little of the older days in Africa. It’s a great read!

 

[son of the novice]

A couple of those pics , I believe this was that hunt