The Slave Tree memorial is located on Spin Street, just around the corner from the Slave Lodge and opposite the Slavery Monument. The Slave Tree reminds visitors of the place where this ancient ‘Slave Tree’ stood. Under this large, old fir tree, auctions of enslaved people were held. They were displayed on a table under the tree from the old Supreme Court building across the street (the current Slave Lodge Museum) to be sold. On November 9, 1916, the city council had the tree, which was more than 250 years old, cut down. The commemorative plaque for this tree was unveiled on December 1, 1996, on Emancipation Day. Every year, on the night of 30 November, an intergenerational community holds a commemorative event to commemorate the abolition of slavery at the Cape (see ‘Cape Town Walk in the Night’).

Sources

• Cornell, Carohn. (1998/9). Whatever became of Cape slavery in Western Cape museums? Kronos 25. 259-279.