Maria Susanna Furstenberg
(Photo on veranda)
Hercules McCarthy`s first wife Susanna Cecilia Stoffelina Elizabeth TERBLANCHE died in 1909 in Marico. He had five children with her.
He then got married to Maria Jacoba Elizabeth van Heerden. She died in 1808 in the Womaranstad area. He had no children with her.
His third wife was not known to me. I took a trip in January 2005 and visited my aunt Lettie Swaters. She is my father’s only sister staying in the old age home in Makwassie.
She assisted me with some data. She also introduced me to one of the daughters of Maria. The daughter could not remember a great deal but referred me to another family member Louwrence van Heerden staying in Potchefstroom. Here I struck gold. He is a retired business man. A Lot of what I know comes from information he shared with me. Maria Susanna Furstenburg married Hercules McCarthy in Womaranstad. She stayed on the farm Doringbult. She was previously married to Phillipus Stephanus Botes who passed away in 1919.
Their children were:
- Phillipus Stephanus
- Hansie
- Petrus Jacobus
- Elizabeth Maria
- Maria Catharina
Hercules had no children with Maria. These facts were given to me by Ivy daughter of Maria Catharina. I later found her death certificate.
I could establish the following:
- Maria Susanna Furstenberg was born in 17 June 1879
- She was 80 years old when she passed away on 1 July 1959
- She was staying in Hendrik Potgieter street, Klerksdorp
- She was married previously to a J Botes who passed away in 1919
- Their children were:
- Elizabeth (Bettie) van Bergen(Botes)
- Johannes Botes
- Petrus Botes
- Maria Catharina Erasmus(Botes)
- Ivy Haupt (Botes)
They moved after their marriage to the Kalahari, to a place called Genesa, a long way past Kuruman. Her husband farmed with oxen and they stayed in a neat house built out of galvanized sheeting.Lettie Swaters still remember driving with a Dasota to his farm when she was 9 years old in 1929.Maria used to bake bread, made with home made yeast. The bread had a sour taste, and my Aunt Lettie loved it.
After selling their farm in Genesa he bought a plot 5 km outside Klerksdorp on the way to Ventersdorp, the place was called Ebenaezer. Maria and her husband Hercules stayed on this plot for a while. Louwrence van Heerden still remember going with his grandfather shopping, riding with a horse and car. Hercules used to make fresh butter. His name was even written on the wrapping. The butter would be exchanged in Klerksdorp for groceries. His grandfather would treat him and buy him niccerballs.
He later rented the plot out and bought a house in Wolmaranstad, 17 Brandstraat, plot no 82. Here he also grew oats that he would sell. He used to buy groceries at the Three Musketeers shop in Wolmaranstad.
They had a fixed routine. When Louwrence visited, the old people would get up at 04h30. They would make a fire in the Union stove. He would cook maize meal porridge, put stampmielies on the stove for lunch. Then Oupa Hercules will read from the bible, they would sing. Afterwards they sat together on the veranda. He was a very religious man. Her husband loved watching the people go past his house, sipping coffee and eating rusks, Maria would comment” Word jy dan besimpeld” Sometimes he would sigh and say “Ag ja, Here” and she would echo his words.
Louwrence remembered, one day he stood up from the veranda, walked to the gate, opened it and closed it. Maria asked him what he was doing. There was nobody at the gate. He said that Rita a sister of Louwrence came to greet. Later they found out that she died in hospital.
Louwrence also remember that they had a double bed made from wrought iron with big brass globes. The mattress was a “Bulsak” and Oupa Hercules used to hide a bag with money underneath the mattress. When they were too old to look after themselves, they moved to Klerksdorp and stayed with Danie and Tiek Erasmus. Maria and her husband draw up a testament on 21 January 1958 in Wolmaranstad. Their son Daniel was appointed as their Executor.
The children listed as begunstigdes were:
- James Daniel Christoffel McCarthy
- Daniel Johannes Jacobus Philipus McCarthy
- Hercules Jacobus McCarthy
- Gert Hendrik Rautenbach McCarthy
- Hester Jacoba Venter(McCarthy)
- Maria Catharina Erasmus(Botes)
- Ivy Haupt(Botes)
Oupa Hercules in the back row on the right hand side looked just like Jan Smuts with his red complexion. Maria died of a heart attack. Her husband died a year later. Her estate was to be liquidated, it came out that although it seemed that they were married in community of property, all the fixed assets were registered in her husbands name. The master instructed the attorney to close her estate. Due to this fact I have included her etstate in both her documents and her husbands Hercules and the details are discussed under Hercules document.
Both were buried in Klerksdorp.
- Historical Timeline:
- 1870 – (3) Hercules Jacobus MCCARTHY was born on 28 Mar 1870. He was christened on 12 Jun 1870 in Humansdorp.
- 1897 – Maria Johanna Furstenberg was born.
- 1918 – Hercules second wife Maria Jacoba Elizabeth McCarthy died on 20 September 1918 on the farm Heuningkrantz Wolmaranstad
- district at the age of 45.
- 1919 – Maria Johanna Furstenberg first husband Van Heerden passed away.Hercules signed and gave the attorneys the authority to liquidate the estate of his wife Maria`s esttate. The
- document was signed in Makwassie.
- 1920 – Hercules Jacobus inherited Maria JE Venters farm. His signature appears on her death Notice dated the 22 nd August 1920
- 1924 – Hercules Jacobus married Maria Johanna Furstenberg on the 19 th of February 1924.
- 1929 – Hercules with his new wife Maria Johanna (Furstenberg) moved after their marriage to the Kalahari, to a place called Genesa, a
- long way past Kuruman.
- 1948 – Transport of stand 82, Brand straat Wolmaranstad registered on 24 November 1948 on the name of Hercules McCarthy.
- 1958 – Hercules and Maria draw up a testament on 21 January 1958 in Wolmaranstad. Their son Daniel was appointed as their
- Executor.
- 1959 – Maria Johanna McCarthy (Furstenberg) passed away on the 1 st of July 1959 at Hendrik Potgieter street, Klerksdorp at the age
- of 80 years.On the 6 July 1959 Hercules signed his wifes estate papers.
- 1960 – Hercules died on the 24 May 1960 at Odendaalsrus and was buried in Klerksdorp.