Page 19 - SODURBA Vistors Guide 2025

Whaling History
The industry in Durban started in 1907 when the Norwegian Consul in Durban, Jacob Egeland, went back to Norway and, with fellow Norwegian Johan
Bryde, raised money to start a whaling operation in Durban. Durban was once a busy centre of the whaling industry. Thousands of migrating whales were caught in the seas nearby and towed back
here to be processed into a number of products which were highly prized by consumers, both
local and overseas. The whaling season in Durban lasted from March to September because
whales would migrate northward past Durban
at the start of the Antarctic winter and pass by on their way south again. In 1922 Jacob Egeland ended his partnership with Johan Bryde and started the Union Whaling and Fishing Company with his cousin Abraham Larsen, turning it into the biggest and most advanced whaling station in the world. Thankfully Whaling in Durban stopped in 1975 and a vision was born for the Bluff Whaling Station.
VISION:
• Whale Route – Guided Tours
• Whale Festival Venue
• Educational Space for Nature conservation and
research initiatives
• Museum relating to the Whaling Station and
Whaling industry.
• Protection of a Heritage Site
• Protection and Maintenance of our International
Whale Heritage Certification
• Local, National and International tourism attraction.
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