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in a sea of sand that eventually became the traffic island down the centre of the

Heerengracht. There were many who protested about the destruction of the bay, the
“glorious muddle” of the planned building layouts on the new land, and the further

uglification of Cape Town: among them were architect John Parker, Professor Pearce of
Witwatersrand School of Architecture, and artist Gwelo Goodman. Perhaps because of

this, a professional team comprising local and international architects / town planners was
appointed to assist with the planning and design of the new land. The results of their work

were eventually published in 1947 in The Cape Town Foreshore Plan document.

The march of change could not be stayed and in August 1937 the Pier’s occupants were

given notice to vacate it by the end of March 1938, and the last concert took place on

Sunday 27 March. On the evening of Thursday 31 March a final dance and fireworks
display took place.

THE PASSING OF THE PIER
OLD MEMORIES REVIVED LAST NIGHT

Two thousand people taking a belated and sentimental interest in the Pier on the
eve of its destruction, paid for admission to the “Passing of the Pier” concert last night.
The obsequies were carried out with due and fitting ceremony.
Mr. Pickerill was there with all his players; the Mayor, Mr. C. W. Foster, making
an effective entrance at the side of the bandstand in what, in its day, was the most looked-
at car in Britain, made a short and equally effective valedictory speech; the concert was
broadcast; the South-Easter, despoiler of so many Sunday afternoon concerts, forgot to
blow.
Last night’s programme might have been drawn up a quarter of a century ago, so
redolent was it of the days when the Pier was a civic amenity and not (in the opinion of
harbour engineers and a few City Councillors) the white elephant it has apparently
become.
AN OLD SINGER

The march “Lorraine”, favourite piece of the East Lancs Regiment when the Pier
was in its heyday, was followed by a trumpet solo by Mr. George Dimmack and songs by
Mr. Walter Price, who required no introduction to Cape Town audiences round about
1913.
Messers. Ellie Marx and Walter Swanson conducted Moskowski’s “Serenata” and
“Salut d’Amour” respectively, and Mr. I. Chosack recalled memories of long ago with a
xylophone solo. Mr. Harry Stevens, paying his first (and last) visit to a Pier concert, was