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Name: HILL, Clifford Arthur DSO & Bar

image of individualimage of individual

Nee: cousin of Harold Dold Hill

Birth Date: 4.8.1876 Grahamstown, South Africa

Death Date: 20.7.1960 Kilima Farm, Machakos, buried in All Souls Cathedral, Machakos

First Date: 1904

Profession: Settler, Kilima, Machakos

Married: In Salem, Eastern Cape, S. Africa 28 Feb 1923 Clarissa Mary Reay Shaw b. 1 Mar 1898 Grahamstown, d. 1992 Isle of Wight

Children: Charlotte (m. Ian Macleod of Agricultural Dept.)

Book Reference: North, Red 31, Hut, Red 22, Gazette, Gillett, SE, HBEA, KFA, Joelson, Percival, Roosevelt, Debrett, Red 25, Hut, EAMR, Playne, Land, EAHB 1906, AJ, Gazette, DSO, PercivalP, North, Leader14, Barnes, Chandler, Red Book 1912

General Information:

Gazette - 4/11/1914 - Appt. - EAMR - To be Lieutenant - C. Hill
SE - C.A. Hill - Aug 1907
KFA - 'In 1904 the cousins Harold and Clifford Hill, who had come from SA, caught 12 ostrich chicks on the Kapiti Plains and reared them at Limuru. The following year, with Mr Perceval [sic], they bought 80 birds from a German syndicate and put them on a train at Voi to take them to Limuru. The train, however, proved so uncongenial that 10 birds died and the rest were taken out at Kiu and walked to Limuru - a difficult safari, one would imagine.'  
Roosevelt - He and his cousin Harold were descended from the English colonists who came to SA in 1820; they had never been in England, neither had Tarlton.
Playne - The breeding of ostriches is not lost sight of in the Machakos District. Messrs C.A. and H.D. Hill carry on the industry on the Katelembo Farm, Wami Farm, and Kilima Farm, totalling 10,000 acres. The property is well watered by a river and several springs, and is situated some 15 miles from Kapiti Station and some 4 miles from the Machakos boma. Mr C.A. Hill came to BEA in 1904 and Mr H.D. Hill in 1905 from the Transvaal Civil Service, both having been born and brought up on ostrich farms. They now have about 150 full-grown birds and chicks. Some 400 birds have been incubated, but a great many have been sold. The birds are herded in troops of from 30 to 50. Messrs Hill have been selling feathers since 1905. ……
Land - 1908 - C.A. Hill - Agricultural, 640 acres, Rua Raka and Ngara Rivers, 9-5-04, Homestead, Registered 3-6-08 Land - 1908 - C.A. and H.D. Hill - Grazing, 3064 acres and 3952 acres, Kapiti Plains, 17-5-07, Registered 10-6-08
Land 1909 - C.A. & H.D. Hill - Grazing and agricultural, 20 acres - Machakos - 26/3/08 - Leasehold for 99 years from 1/4/08 - Registered 7/7/09
Land - 1910 - Clifford A. and Harold D. Hill - Agricultural, 9.922 acres - Machakos - 5/8/09 - Leasehold for 10 years from 1/7/10 - Registered 3/12/10
Land - 1912 - C.A. and H.D. Hill - Grazing and agricultural, 2678.4 acres - Machakos - 19/5/08 - Leasehold for 99 years from 1/12/11 - Registered 19/1/12
Agricultural Journal 1908 - Brands Allotted and Registered - June 1908 - C. and H. Hill, Kapiti Plains - Machakos BH Gazette - 11/8/1915 - Appt. - EAMR - To be Captain - Lieut. Clifford Hill
PercivalP - " Clifford was a tremendous personality. I reckon he was the best hunter and bush fighter I have ever known. He went right through the Boer War and I saw a lot of him in the Kaiser's War when he won the DSO - and you don't get that for nothing! I met him again in uniform, as imperturbable as ever on the Abyssinian border during the last war …." PercivalP - " The Hills were satisfied with the country as being suitable for ostriches and put in for 5,000 acres of land; I took up 5,000 acres adjoining them and Sir Alfred Pease had another 5,000 acres. Sir Alfred did try to farm, and took a partner, but lost money and sold out. I think the dear old gentleman was always more interested in the game than in serious farming."
Barnes - All Souls Cathedral, Machakos - Clifford Hill, Kilima, 1876-1960
Red Book 1912 - C.A. Hill - Machakos
Red Book 1912 - Member of the Land Board - C.A. Hill
Gazette - 29/10/1919 - Register of Voters - Ukamba Area - Clifford Arthur Hill - Settler, Machakos
HBEA 1912 has C.A. Hill as Hon. Sec. Ulu District Association.
EAMR - Photo of a Group of Officers
Gazette - 4/7/1917 - Birthday Honours - DSO - Major C. Hill, EA Mounted Rifles
Gazette 6 Dec 1938 Ukamba Voters List

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