A young Nelson Mandela is pictured in this photograph, standing in the back row, fifth from the right.
(Image: © Nelson Mandela Foundation)Dec 21, 2007 – The Nelson Mandela Foundation has learnt the identities of some of the people in a photograph of Mr Nelson Mandela taken during his days as a student.
The photograph shows Mr Mandela standing in the back row of a group of people with a number of other students from Healdtown, the Wesleyan College in Fort Beaufort, Eastern Cape. Mr Mandela was at the college in 1937 and 1938.
Mrs Ruth Muller, archival project officer at the Centre of Memory and Dialogue at the Nelson Mandela Foundation, now knows the identities of some of the people in the photograph.
Mr Nelson Mandela during his student days.
(Image: Nelson Mandela Foundation)At the centre of the photograph sits Ms Myrtle Workman, head of the girls’ hostel, and Rev Arthur Wellington, then head of Healdtown. To the right of Rev Wellington is Rev SM Mokitimi (head of the boys’ hostel, among other positions) and to his right is Ms Jane Methola, a pupil. Behind Rev Mokitimi is another pupil, Mr Gilbert Nzimeni.
The photograph had never been published before Heritage Day in September this year. When the Foundation put the picture up on its website, it had only a copy print. However, since then two original pictures (in the possession of families of pupils in the photo) have come to light – along with other photos taken during the same period. The Foundation hopes to be able to put these pictures onto the website early next year.
Several newspapers picked up the story about the photograph when the Foundation released what little information it had. The Herald and The Weekend Post in Port Elizabeth ran a story over two weekends. As a result, the families of Ms Workman, Ms Methola and Mr Nzimeni contacted the Foundation.
Bottom, from left to right: Ms. Myrtle Workman, Rev Arthur Wellington, Rev SM Mokitimi and Ms Jane Methola. Behind Rev Mokitimi is Mr Gilbert Nzimeni. No other people in the photograph have been identified yet.
(Image: Nelson Mandela Foundation)Mrs Muller is in contact with the families and hopes more information will emerge soon.
If you have any information about the photograph, please email the Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory at nmf@nelsonmandela.org.