End of an era as Meikles family sells historic hotel to Dubai firm

At the end of it, in addition to the cattle, John Meikle got a big cheque from Rhodes for his service.

Says John: “Tom (Thomas Meikle) brought some of the looted cattle for me and we were fortunate in not losing any from lung sickness.”

And so the Meikles had their capital to expand their business. “Headquarters were established in Fort Victoria and from there the brothers spread out to repeat the enterprise; Stewart to Salisbury in 1893, Thomas to Bulawayo in 1894 and John to Umtali in 1896,” one account says.

In 1915, they set up Meikles Hotel, opening it to guests on November 15 that year.

Since then, overlooking the Union Jack-shaped park, the hotel has stood for years as a symbol of old white capital, and later as the centre of business and politics.

It is said the hotel hosted the first parliament of the Colony of Southern Rhodesia in 1924. On the eve of Independence, on April 17, 1980, the hotel hosted a banquet attended by Robert Mugabe and Prince Charles.

Having sold off the hotel, Meikles Limited will now turn to the other investments it has made over recent years in agriculture; Tanganga tea, avocado, coffee and macadamia estates. The company plans to spend part of the hotel sale proceeds on a solar farm at Tanganda.

The Meikles stamp on Harare remains; Strathaven and Avondale in Harare are named after the two Scottish towns from where the Meikles family came.

The Meikles Hotel represents the establishment, and, throughout history, its walls have witnessed history, from colonial times, Independence, corporate politics, and endless meetings to do with the political upheavals of the past 40 years.

Now, it takes on a new identity and direction.

So ends a chapter that began with a family of Scottish immigrants full of drive and ambition, and lots of stolen cattle.- NewZwire

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