History and Heritage: Socio-economic profiles of six former American Board Mission Stations in southern KwaZulu-Natal

Abstract

This paper is based on a questionnaire that a team of researchers at the University of KwZulu-Natal (Howard Campus) in collaboration with community activists conducted between February 2007 and May 2008 in six former American Board Mission Stations; namely, Adams, Amahlongwa, Ifafa, Mfume, Umthwalume and Umzumbe in southern KwaZulu-Natal. The research questionnaire sought in the first instance to establish socio-economic profiles of these mission stations. We think such a profile would allow us to answer the following two questions. First, what is to be done with the old infrastructure and memory of the activities of the American Board Mission? Second, how residents of the identified mission stations feel about the possibility of their church structures becoming heritage sites?