CAPE TOWN – Two hundred years of hospitality in the Muizenberg area were celebrated recently, when a historic local gem, Farmer Peck’s Inn, was recalled at a special gathering organised by the Muizenberg Historical Conservation Society, on Sunday 16 November, at which members of the Peck family, its original owners, were also present.
Guests were treated to vivid stories of the first hospitality establishment in the area, including its origins, founded by brothers Simon and Henry Peck in 1825 in a government-owned cottage next to what was then military barracks, now Muizenberg Park.
“They were colourful characters,” McDougall noted, “and court records show that they were convicted of selling liquor illegally a number of times before they received a liquor licence in 1828, explaining how their establishment became the most renowned stop between Wynberg and Simon’s Town for more than 30 years.”
From inn to Grand Hotel
After Henry Peck’s death in 1857 the inn changed hands several times before being purchased by Isidore Hirsch in 1883, just a year after the railway had reached Muizenberg. He recognised the potential and made significant improvements to the property, McDougall pointed out.
The establishment was electrified and renamed the Grand Hotel in 1902, operating under various owners until the 1960s, when declining visitor numbers and strict hotel rating requirements led to its closure. The Cinnabar apartment block now stands on the original site.
Family legacy lives on
The commemoration was made especially meaningful by the attendance of Shaheen Peck, a direct descendant of Henry Peck, who travelled from Johannesburg with his family for the celebration.
He shared stories of his ancestor Henry, who provided upholstery services to visiting horse-drawn cabs. Remarkably, upholstery has remained a family craft to this day.
“Few places celebrate a 200th anniversary, and fewer still have a connection to the present,” McDougall observed.
“The celebration highlighted not only Muizenberg’s rich hospitable history, but also the enduring connections between past and present in the coastal community,” McDougall said.
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