History of the Farm
Abrahamskraal offers a fascinating history. In the early 1900s, a little bit of gold was discovered on a nearby farm. Mr Struben, a British citizen, who was involved in gold mining at Pilgrims Rest bought Abrahamskraal in the hope that this area will become the next profitable goldfield.
Unfortunately, this dream never came true. He then employed William van der Bijl and his wife Debora to manage the farm for him. The beautiful gabled Cape Dutch farmhouse, which functions as a luxurious guest house today, was designed and built in 1912 by William. William and his wife Debora developed an interest in their respective fields, palaeontology, and botany during their stay on the farm. Both of them made an important contribution towards research in these fields.
In 1945 Dirk van Vuuren bought Abrahamskraal for sheep farming and since then it still belongs to the same family. In the year 2002, Johan and Hestie started renovating the old farmhouse after it was not in use for 30 years. Since then the farmhouse, as well as the farm cottage, serves as guesthouses. An old school building on the farm has also been transformed into a very popular wedding and function venue.
Today many travellers visit Abrahamskraal to enjoy the serenity of this beautiful Karoo farm.