Gately House

Gately House is a Town House unique in South Africa in that Virtually all that is displayed was acqired by the original owner's over the years. It was built by Mr. John Gately in 1876 and was lived in by his family until the death of his last surviving child, Margaret, in 1966

Margaret Gately, hoping for its preservation, generously donated the the entire contents of the house to the museum and, through the persistent efforts of the Border Historical Society and the East London Museum Board of Trustees, together with the assistance of the Municipality, this house was saved from demolition and retained as East London's Town House. The property was originally granted to Charles Vix, a surgeon with the British German Legion, who arrived in East London in 1856. The small cottage at the back would have been built by Vix in the 1850s and as such is one of the oldest buildings in East London. The house was called Park Gates, after the imposing cast iron gates on the edge of the property, once one of the two entrances to Queens Park.

When it was first built it was a typical example of Victorian Colonial Architecture, rectangular in shape with a wooden decorative bargeboard trime

East London Museum	Wandering Albatross displaying, Prince Edward Island	East London Museum	East London Museum