INTRODUCTION TO ‘OUR HERITAGE’
The history of Thika runs as far back as the late 1890s as far as records or
real life accounts reveal. It is a history of hardwork, industrialization,
failure and success rolled together.
The name Thika is thought to derive from ‘Guthika’ (means to bury). According
to Kikuyu lore, the greatest battle yet between the Kikuyu and Maasai was
fought at the fork where the River Thika and River Chania meet, the site of
present day Blue Posts Hotel. It is said that the Maasai during one of the great
droughts had come too far into Kikuyu Country to water their cattle at the two
rivers which were the lifeblood of Kikuyu, sparking the bloodiest conflict ever.
The battle was so intense that tens of hundreds of people from both communities
lost their lives, there weren’t too many people to go back home.
Today, behind the Blue Posts Hotel at the famous fork is a huge mound
overgrown with shrub and bush and over the years covered by silt from the two
rivers is what is considered the largest gravesite in the history of the Maasai
and Kikuyu conflicts.
Lately however, another explanation for the name Thika , this time from the
Maasai (who seem to have named everything in Kenya). According to them, Thika
derives from the Maasai word ‘Sika’ which means ‘rubbing something off an
edge’ similar to what the waters of the Chania and Thika rivers seem to do at
the falls where Blue Posts Hotel is located.
The two rivers, Blue Posts Hotel and Thika Town are intertwined in their
history and future.
In delving into Thika Towns past, we will tour its environs of Makuyu, Ruiru
, Juja and Donyo Sabuk. If possible, we will follow the trails of early settlers
to Nyeri, Embu, Meru and into the Aberdares.
Thika in the early part of the 20th Century had a vibrant settler population,
with strong Scandanavian presence, many Danes and Swedes. There were Irishmen,
Scots, Welsh, and Brits. History of Thika settlers would be incomplete without
mention of the Australians who played a crucial part in the development of the
region.
Not forgeting the Italians with Fiat, Ferrari, Versace, Pasta and Pizza,
Prisoners of War whose labour contributed greatly to roads and buildings.
The Building of the Kenya –Uganda railway also brought an influx of Indians,
former coolies and their families who chose to settle in Kenya rather than go
back to India after their contracts expired. Today, Thika still feels the force
of their business acumen as did the settlers in the 30’s right through to the
80s.
Finally, the Kikuyu played a crucial role in the development of Thika and its
environs in more ways than many would wish to accede. When I started researching
the history of Thika, there were worries that I might delve into the dark past
that characterized the colonial era and the subjugation of the Kikuyu by the
colonialist.
The publication of Caroline E rskine’s book ‘Britains Gulag’ and its
serialization in the local dailies has served to raise temperatures among the
Kikuyu. In this regard, it would be impossible sweep under the carpet the events
of the period and their various justifications.
I am personally the stereotypical Kikuyu (brown teeth, shifty eyes
with a penchant for roast meat) whose own heritage is one freedom fighter
grandfather and one home-guard grandfather. To me, you were either one or the
other or were inside the ‘concentration camps’ or ‘reserves’ as they were known
then. In the subsequent articles, we will not make any apologies for anyone nor
will we stoke the fires of anger and indignation whose embers still burn slowly
in many from the two sides.
We will bring you pictures of colonial architecture and furniture, reminisce
with the last remaining of the earliest settlers, the children of the first
Asian businessmen and the original trendsetters among the Kikuyu.
We wish to welcome you to journey with us every fortnight into Thikas’ past.
This being 2005, there has been a lot of movement by most other communities to
Central Province, who enrich the heritage of the original dwellers. We will
endeavor to capture as much of the flavor they brought with them and present
them to you in these pages.
In ending, should there be anyone from anywhere in the world with a story on
Thika or its environs that they would wish to share with us, we would be happy
to receive and upload them for the enjoyment and benefit of all.
Mor About 'Our Heritage'
Olga Brochner was nicknamed 'Wango' which is not a very flattering reference to a woman.
It implied she was a fire-breathing, no-nonsense person and the nickname was adopted from that
of a woman not unlike herself…
The history of Thika runs as far back as the late 1890s as far as records or
real life accounts reveal. It is a history of hardwork, industrialization,
failure and success rolled together.
The name Thika is thought to derive from ‘Guthika’ (means to bury)
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