Wlotzkasbaken was named after Paul Wlotzka - a sturdy Prussian coachman to German Senator Pridas’ survey party which capitulated to the invading South African Forces in 1915. Pridas’ party was appointed by the arbitrator, King Alphonso of Spain, to delimit the disputed boundary line between Walvis Bay, under British rule, and the former German South West Africa. As a German, Wlotzka was very fortunate to be able to join this party, probably due to his intimate knowledge of the coastal area. Paul Wlotzka then became a merchant, delivering mail and general necessities to surveyors working north of Swakopmund, using a four-wheel-horse cart, probably up to Cape Cross.
To store water and food for his horses halfway between Swakopmund and the Omaruru mouth, today Henties Bay, Wlotzka erected a little shed made of self fabricated clay bricks about 200 meters from where the beacon is. The exact date is unfortunately unknown. Unfortunately Mr Dougal Bassinghtwaight a later lessee of the plot was forced by the PUDB for unknown reasons to brake down the ruins of Wlotzkas shed and only the rest of the foundations can still be seen today. He obviously spent time fishing near his shed, and brag in the pubs of Swakopmund about the good fishing spot below the beacon of mile 20.
And the locality Wlotzka’s Baken was born.
Others followed suit to fish at the beacon and soon the first campers, like Risser from Osona and Gebser from Maltahöhe, came to stay in tents and makeshift accommodation over the Christmas holidays. In 1936 Risser erected a makeshift hut on today’s plot 45, and in 1938 Dr Waldemar Leitner built the first proper wooden chalet on plot 74.
There was an interval in happenings at Wlotzkasbaken during the Second World War due to the interment of men. It was only after World War II that the SA Administration roughly surveyed and allocated 24 plots to the first part time inhabitants of Wlotzkasbaken. These allocations were done by Mr L.A. Steyn from the Directory of Lands, and signed by a certain Mr Sonnekus. The levy was 5 Pounds and payable at the Magistrate’s Office in Swakopmund. Demand for plots grew and in 1955 Mr Drinkhuth from the Government surveyed 87 erven, numbering them in a rather unorthodox way, reserving plots 95 to 87 for Government use.
The only permanent residents in those days were Claude “Taddy” and wife Annemarie Wecke, grandparents of Peter Mathews. Taddy acted as unofficial mayor of Wlotzkasbaken, allocating plots to prospective lessees and showing them where to erect their dwellings. (See the Wecke story). Mr Wecke was officially appointed by the Administration in 1959 as caretaker to help the police and magistrate with rural sanitary implementations (memorandum BO 41/46). From that date he received a salary of R30.00 per month and was allowed to open a shop on his plot. From 1950 until his official appointment Mr Wecke fulfilled his duties without remuneration. In 1974 his monthly salary was increased to R 100.00, but due to old age he retired in 1975 and passed away in 1976.
The main road from Swakopmund to the north was directly adjacent to plots 5, 13 and 18 to 34 (re old map of 1955), which was unacceptable to the road ordinance of those days. Thus a new road further to the east was constructed in 1958. More space was gained and another 23 plots were surveyed between the old and the new road. Wlotzkasbaken now had 107 plots.
Until 1960 Wlotzkasbaken was administered by the Lands Department and applicants for plots had to have a police clearance with no criminal record. In 1960 the Peri Urban Development Board (further shortly PUDB) was established, which took over the administration of all small towns and villages in the territory. (SWA Administration letter dd 24-8-1972: As from 1 July 1972 Wlotzkasbaken was proclaimed as Peri Urban areaby Mr Franzen in terms of proclamation 45 of 1972. (“Wlotzkasbaken is met ingang 1 Julie 1972 as Buitestedelike Gebied verklaar. Die beheer berus dus nou by die Raad vir Buitestedelike Ontwikkeling.)
As from 1955 plots were leased for a period of five years. The one-year lease contracts came into effect shortly before independence in 1988. Unitl 1960 the annual lease payable was 6 Pounds (N$12), increased by Peri Urban in 1960 to R120, and then again to R150 in 1988.
At an unofficial meeting with the administration on the 10th of April 1964 the homeowners were represented by S.A.Engels, T.Demasius, A.Kiesewetter, D.Mathews, and H.Wilhelm
In a letter dated 20th October 1965 the S.W.A.Administration informed the homeowners that they did away with a waiting list of prospective buyers and that tenants could sell their houses from then on themselves.
1972 Wlotzkas unofficial committee consisted of the following members. H.J. von Hase, D. Mathews, J.H. Visser and W.G.L. Engling.
In 1975 on the 1st of October Adolf Syvertsen was made temporary caretaker with a monthly salary of R200.00. The tanks were leased to him at R 1 per annum and water was supplied at 70 cent per 200 liter.
In 1985 the beach near the beacon was demarcated with rocks to zone off a safer beach area with no vehicles allowed in the zone. It is not known who faced the bill. In 1989 Wolfi Zimmer arranged with Salz Gossow to rearrange the rocks to make the area smaller. Cost involved R 450.00 and paid by the homeowners. Over the coming years most of the rocks disappeared below the sand and only a few can still be seen. This year also saw the introduction of the first official water tanker, a 2 cubic meter unit, purchased by PUDB in Cape Town. (See water story) As Wlotzka developed and more pressure was put on the PUDB, they decided in 1985 that a committee consisting of tenants should be formed so that mutual matters should be discussed on a regular base. So on the 28th of December under the supervision of Mr Blaauw at 8 hours 30, just before the fishing competition started, the first official committee of the Wlotzkabakens Homeowners Association was elected and consisted of S.Engels (chairman), H.Hatz and W.Zimmer. The members were appointed for five years in an advisory capacity.
After demanding a balance sheet for the expenses of Wlotzkasbaken in 1986 it waslearned with dismay that R 5000.00 were spent to resurvey the area and cram 490 erven into Wlotzkasbaken. The Professor from Cape Town who was responsible for the scheme, allocated the job to his students and never saw Wlotzkasbaken in reality. Peri Urban memorandum 17/2W1 dd 21/11/1986. Make available: 490 residential plots 1 plot for administrative purposes 1 Business plot 5 open spaces Giving Wlotzka a village status was discussed but abandoned because the outlay was not according to standards and that there were enough empty erven available in Swakopmund and Henties Bay. In this year consent was given to aero plane owners to develop the old road north east of Wlotzka into a landing strip, Expenses and maintenance at own costs. Road names in memory of old inhabitants was also discussed but never materialized. Ronnie Rabie on plot 10 became the first owner ever to get directly connected to the water pipeline.
December 1986 also saw the founders meeting of Wlotzkabaken “Plot-Renting” Association. Present: J.Powell, M.Hatz, A.Herrle, Mrs.E.Stier, H.Hatz, K.Mc Namara, W.Zimmer, S.Engels, apology K.Eisenberg who also was the first secretary. From the 15th of December 1986 to the 3rd 0f January 1978, Nature conservation erected a tent on the open space and gave lectures and showed films on the coasts ecology. Since the first effort to divide Wlotzkasbaken into 400 erven failed, PU handed out another contract to the consulting firm Plan Medewerker to subdivide the erven to such an extent that a village status could be achieved. This again failed due to costs to develop sewerage and water supply.
In 1987 the first recorded financial statements were drawn up by Maelger & Mai, Otjiwarongo, (Manfred Mai). Voluntary subscription fee was R50 and paid by 74 homeowners, additional donations were made by Kopp and Blohm, R50 each. Surplus cash in bank account R 3931.56.
Again on the 10th of march a letter was received from PU stating that there would be a detailed investigation into declaring Wlotzkasbaken a township and the implementation thereof would be finished by April 1st 1989. The committee replied that the residents are not in favour as already outlined at previous occasions.
The 1988 Financial Report from Maelger & Mai states that only 5 residents paid subs. Subsequently a circular was sent to every ‘plot renter’, reprimanding them to pay the R50 subs per annum, “to enable us to improve facilities over and above those supplied by the State”. At the AGM the problem of free roaming dogs who became a hassle to many occupants was discussed and dog owners were reprimanded to control their pets more efficiently. Christmas 1988 also saw the first recorded arrival of Father Christmas by parachute at Zimmers home. The lease period changed from 5 to 2 years and the yearly rent was R 150.00.
In 1989 a letter from the Administrator General was received stating that the current status quo regarding the administration of Wlotzkasbaken would remain and no village development would be considered. No division of erven would be considered and no addition of permanent structures to existing buildings would be allowed. Property rights would only be considered once Wlotzka is proclaimed a village. The Advisory Committee received a donation of R 100.00 from PUDB towards their beach cleaning operation during the holiday season. Wolfi Zimmer arranged with Salz Gossow that their front-end loader should re arrange the black rocks at the swimming area, to make it smaller. The annual financial report showed cash in Bank R 8595.71 and a further R 250.00 was collected during the “Martepfahl” fishing competition.
1990 Independence year. At the AGM it was decided against security operations in Wlotzkasbaken, although a spate of burglaries had taken place. Main reason being that not everybody would contribute towards the expenses. Advisory committee consisted of H.Hatz, K.mc Namara, J.Powell, Wolfi Zimmer and Secretary Doris Zimmer. The financial report showed a surplus of R 16 459.42 in the bank. The members were also notified that a vehicle for waterman Mr Oosthuizen, for him to travel from Henties to Wlotzka, was bought for R 6000 by Wolfi Zimmer and that every homeowner should contribute R 60 towards this expense.
In mid 1992 a company applied for erecting a Marina at Blackrock Bay south of Wlotzkasbaken. Fortunately for the bay the project never got off the ground. During August a company called Marine Life Namibia applie for a site south of Wlotzka to put up a fish farm. Fortunately they were convinced that Henties Bay was a much better proposition but again this project died in its planning stage. During September Wlotzkasbaken was declared a village in the Government Gazette 479. Since there were too little permanent residents, this decision was reversed and Wlotzkas status was lowered to a settlement. In November PUDB asked the engineering company Bührmann & Partners to investigate the water supply to Wlotzka and to make recommendations on how to improve on the current situation. All thre proposals were far too costly and thus rejected. No financial statements were issued in that year.
Over the weekend 5 to 7 November 1993 members of the community erected 5 new water tanks and a new garage for our water lorry. Total costs N$ 44065.00. This year the Marterpfahl Fishing Competition showed a profit of N$ 4328.84. At the AGM the community members were officially informed that Wlotzka was a Settlement and the Advisory Council was abolished, however the committee changed it’s name to The Homeowners Association of Wlotzkasbaken. All assets, liabilities, rights and obligations would be transferred to the Erongo Regional Council who then would be responsible for the management of the settlement. Financial report showed a retained income of N$ 43342.51. The state was also requested to remove the dilapidated toilets on the beach, but the foundations were forgotten and can still be seen today. For the first time a Moto Cross event was hosted just north of the settlement and Father Christmas arrived at the Marterpfal as he still does today.
The first action of the ERC in January 1994 was to inform the residents of Wlotzka by letter that Permanent residents will be identified and registered as voters in Wlotzkasbaken and that the settlement should be open to all Namibians irrespective of their color, race or origin. On first of April the Ministry proposed that the current lease system should be abolished and that the erven would be rented out according to their size on a monthly base, payable yearly in advance. This was rejected by the homeowners. In April 1994 a meeting was arranged at the house of Wolfi Zimmer with Dr Libertine Amathila, then minister of Local Government and Housing, representatives of her ministry and the Homeowners Committee, after a copy of the following letter by the ERC to the ministry was received. a)”There are virtually no permanent residents living at Wlotskasbaken for the place to be proclaimed a settlement area. In fact it is only a holiday place for people living outside the Erongo Region.
b) There are 107 even or site rentals leased out on PTO basis of which 71 are occupied by Windhoek residents. Four of the erven / sites are occupied by South African citizens –
absentee landlords, listed as follows: Erven 35,55,71, and 98. It can be concluded that these people only use Wlotzkasbaken to exploit the Namibian fishing industry. Since they are only paying N$ 300.00 per annum on site rentals, they do not even contribute to the Namibian economy in terms of paying for hotels / bungalow accommodation etc. When visiting they may travel with all the necessary material, including food, in order not to spend any money in Namibia. There is no stipulation in a lease agreement on foreigners occupying sites on a PTO basis and we would like to be advised within a legal framework. Wlotzkasbaken is an exclusively white-only area, which is a disturbing factor in a Democratic Independent Country. To strike a balance, my council, at it’s meeting held on Friday 2 December 1993 resolved and recommended that:- - The Ministry of Regional and Local Government and Housing should demarcate more erven, or rather subdivide bigger erven into smaller units, to open up the area for all Namibians to enjoy or benefit from the privileges of their independence. - A solution is found on the question of lease agreements granted to people living outside Namibia, absentee landlords. After some facts about Wlotzka were explained to the minister she sounded positive regarding the future of the settlement, but that was the end of the story. Year end the SWABOU account was closed and moved to Standard Bank. Retained income N$ 69180.15.
May 1995 a circular was received from the ERC stating the following message: Please note that an application for the extension of lease period (yearly Basis) is the responsibility of all lessees and cannot be requested from this office. If the extension of lease is not requested by the lessee upon expiry it will be an automatic cancellation. The case was handed over to H.Diekmann and Ass. Who subsequently handled all applications. The same year a letter from Mr E.Wannemacher was received requesting that water was supplied from Wlotzkasbaken to his intended fishing lodge at mile 17. Like other intended projects before this one also never got off the ground. End of November the first analogue telephone boxes were installed by Telekom. The annual AGM saw the presence of Ms Gases and Mr Goethje from the ERC. S. Engels and J. Powell resigned from the committee and the following members were elected. K. mc Namara, W. Zimmer, E. Demasius, H. Diekmann, And P. Heckmair. Mrs. D. Zimmer vacated the post of secretary and was followed up by A. Schidlowski. Retained income N$ 89515.00 and Marterpfahl profit N$ 8525.00 . 1996 the first auditors namely Delloitte $ Touche were employed for the first time. At the AGM W. Zimmer resigned from the committee and J. Traut was elected in his place. P. Heckmair and clan organized the Marterpfahl party and fishing competition for the first time.
In July 1997 the ERC informed the committee that our request to obtain a lease agreement for the area where the garage is situated could not be considered due to plans to adjust the current town layout. In August 1997 the first official house was erected by the ERC for their employees who were responsible for water supply and rubbish removal in the future. A tractor with water trailer was supplied as well as a three wheeled Work Horse for the rubbish removal. Gerson Katambo was employed from September and during the holidays. In November 1997 improvements were made to the water tanks over a weekend by the following home owners. M.Trümper, W.Zimmer, R.Boehme, M.Ihms, I.Kiesewetter, F.Schidlowski and P.Heckmair.Gerson Katambo was employed on a permanent basis. Again a new development was planned at the Black Rocks by Mr Bergendahl of Eco Solutions and again like all before it failed. The Marterpfahl function showed a handsome income of N$ 50965.81.
In 2006 improvements were done to the refuse dump. Fencing material was donated by Peter Mathews and Gerdi Heussen and helpers extended the existing fence so that no debris would create an eye saw for wlotzka baken.
Wlotzkasbaken or Wlotzka's Baken (German: Wlotzka's beacon, often shortened to Wlotzka or Wlotzkas) is a holiday settlement on Namibia's Atlantic coast, situated approximately halfway between Swakopmund and Henties Bay. The area around the village lies within the Dorob National Park and features extensive lichen colonies. Founded as a holiday angling spot in the 1930s, Wlotzkasbaken developed into a settlement of unusual design and administration. Without any fences or boundary walls, privacy is achieved only by the distance between the houses. Titles in the village are held by the Regional Council and only leased to the residents. A legal battle ensued about how to expand the resort without disadvantaging lessees who built houses on land they do not own.
As the expansion of Wlotzkasbaken stopped in the 1970s when recreational developments were exclusively for Whites, it currently still has no residents of previously disadvantaged population groups. The place is named after a trigonometrical beacon, the only one that remained from a land survey along the Skeleton Coast in the 1930s. Paul Wlotzka, a member of the surveying team, chose this place to erect a storage structure to support his frequent horse cart rides between Swakopmund and Henties Bay. He soon discovered that the coastal waters boast an abundance of fish which he caught and sold.
His bragging about the find soon lured more anglers who pitched temporary structures during holidays since approximately 1936. In 1955, 87 erven were surveyed and leased to holiday makers. Later this number was increased to 110. Wlotzkasbaken was proclaimed a peri-urban area in 1972, and a village in 1992. A Government Notice from 1993 converted it back to a settlement area, denying the establishment of a Village Council for self-governance. The place is thus still under the direct jurisdiction of the Regional Council of the Erongo Region, a situation that has been described as a "burden".
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