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THE KOOPA KURRAPPANUNDAN CHEMBAYAH AND MOGANAYAGI ARCHARY FAMILY HISTORY

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   (Mr Koopa Chembayah and Moganayagi) THE KURRAPPANUNDAN CHEMBAYAH AND MOGANAYAGI ARCHARY FAMILIES HAD THEIR ROOTS IN TWO DISTRICTS IN TAMIL NADU.   OTTAWA FAMILY WITH A RICH HISTORY                             (Mogannayagi - Mogi - and her husband, Koopa Chembaya, with their three children - Evlena, Edwin and Irene - in their young days in Ottawa.)   Nov 11 2024   One of the young Ottawa couples, who had their roots in the South Indian State of Tamil Nadu, worked at the Flash Clothing Factory in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. The young couple was Kurrappanundan Chembayah and Moganayagi Archary. They were both well-known as Koopa and Mogi respectively. Mr Chembayah, who hailed from Darnall on the North Coast,   was a machinist at the local factory. Mr Chembayah initially lived with his sister, Mrs Michael Souce, at the corner of Kissoon Road and the Main Road. He met Moganayagi from Mt Edgecombe at Flash Clothing Factory.   The information for this historical family of Chemba
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FREDDIE GOVENDER FAMILY – OTTAWA DRIVING SCHOOL PIONEERS OF THE NATAL NORTH COAST

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        (Driving School pioneer, Mr Freddy Govender, and his wife, Athima.)                               THE RICH HISTORY OF A PIONEER FAMILY WHO HAVE THEIR ROOTS TO INDENTURED LABOURERS WHO WORKED AT THE OTTAWA SUGAR ESTATE By Subry Govender   One of the pioneer Ottawa families, who made a significant contribution to the promotion of Indian culture, also became well-known in the village because of their driving school business. The business, known as “Freddie’s Driving School”, was owned and operated by Mr Freddie Govender, who lived with his large family of wife, Athima, and nine children in a house right opposite the old North Coast main road in the Uplands area of the village. Mr Govender ran the driving school in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s at a time when driving school operators were few and far between. Mr Govender and his wife moved to Ottawa in the early 1940s from the Ottawa Sugar Estate. Both of them were born in the Ottawa estate to parents who were indentured
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THE HUMANITARIAN GIANT OF OTTAWA – SEWCHUL STALEJ ( S S ) MAHARAJ

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THE HUMANITARIAN GIANT OF OTTAWA – SEWCHUL STALEJ ( S S ) MAHARAJ  S S MAHARAJ AND HIS BROTHERS – DICKY AND D S – WERE PART OF YET ANOTHER PIONEERING FAMILY OF OTTAWA  (Mr S S Maharaj with his wife, Umee, and other members of the Maharaj family.) By SUBRY GOVENDER  One of the South African Indian-origin sporting giants of the 1940s who won the national tennis championship at the age of 21 rose to become a humanitarian of note and leader of the Ottawa village, north of Durban, from the 1950s to the mid 1980s.  Who was this super humanitarian, who not only owned the Flash Clothing Manufacturers factory at the corner of the Main Road and School Road, but also played a significant role in the school building programme and other community and social projects in Ottawa?  (S S Maharaj with family members and friends.) He was none other than Mr Sewchul Stalej or S S Maharaj, who was well-known for his achievements as a national tennis player and h
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THE MUNISAMI FAMILY HISTORY OF “MEDICINE AYAH” OR “NURSE PARTEE” BETWEEN SCHOOL ROAD AND MUNN ROAD IN OTTAWA

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  ("Medicine Ayah" or "Nurse Partee" - Mrs Ponnamma Muinsami - seen here with her four sons - from L to R -  Ganase -  George, Yagambaram -  Zadick , Govindsamy - Firni, and Thirumudi - Doc) MRS PONNAMMA MUNISAMI DELIVERED BABIES AND PROVIDED TRADITIONAL MEDICAL CARE AT A TIME WHEN THE LOCAL WOMEN OF OTTAWA FOUND IT DIFFICULT TO VISIT HOSPITALS (Mr Munisami Munisami)       (Mrs Ponnamma Munisami)               By Subry Govender   In the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s an adult lady, who lived with her large family in a property near the new Jhugroo Primary School, earned herself the name, “Medicine Ayah” and “Nurse Partee”, for helping pregnant women in the Ottawa village to deliver their babies. At that time not many families could afford to travel to hospitals and it was in this environment that Mrs Ponnamma Munisami came to their rescue. Ponnamma Munisami helped to deliver scores of babies in Tin Town and other parts of Ottawa and in the process became f
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