Roots and Foundations
The beginning
Thornton is in the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, (10 kilometres) east of the city centre, sitting close to the border delineating the Northern and Southern Suburbs. There are many trees lining the roads of Thornton, and there are many green spaces with wild flowers. Thornton is a mainly residential suburb with an abundance of trees. It is bordered by the Elsieskraal River, Pinelands, Viking Way, and the M7 Jakes Gerwel Drive. Many of the streets in Thornton are named after Viking themes, such as Thor Circle, Odin Drive and Viking Way. Others are named after trees, such as Poplar Avenue and Sipres.
As far as the history of Thornton is concerned, no one knows the true reason for naming the suburb, Thornton. In my falconry mind I believe the town was called after Colonel Thomas Thornton. Colonel Thornton(1751/2–1823) was an English sportsman, known for his assiduity in hunting and other outdoor pursuits, and in betting. Succeeding to his father’s estate, Thornton became a keen sportsman, and revived falconry.
Colonel Thomas Thornton of Thornville Royal (1757- 1823) was one of those larger than life humans that drive some people to madness while delighting others. The short version: Colonel Thornton was the last modern WESTERN master of the Gyr until Ronald Stevens in Ireland and the westerners’ of my generation who hunt the Big Sage. Rich, profligate, arrogant and funny, he squandered a fortune, lived long, drank “like a hero”, dressed his mistress as a jockey, put her on his horses and bet on her in the races, then horsewhipped a cur who insulted her in the stands. He loved gyrs and greyhounds, and died old and content in Paris, having spent all his money.
He wrote two good books, his _Northern Tour_, about a French “expedition”, (Expedition? He traveled with nearly the baggage of Emperor Frederic; a contemporary journalist described his caravan: “Fourteen servants with hawks on their wrists, ten hunters, a pack of stag hounds and lap-dog beagles, and a brace of wolves formed the advance guard. Two brace of pointers, and thrice as many greyhounds in rich buff and blue sheets, with armorial bearings, followed in their train.”) But the point of all his endeavours were, that he was among the last westerners to pursue the kite, with a cast of Gyr falcons.
Opposite our house was a huge open field (+- 10 hectares) with the Elsieskraal river passing through on the far side where we used row in our homemade canoes. These open laid spaces the foundation for my natural exploration of nature
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