Racheltjie de Beer - Genealogical Perspective

Genealogical Perspective

In the very comprehensive genealogical work “The De Beer Family – Three centuries in South Africa” several pages are devoted to the Rachel de Beer story, looking at all the possibilities from the available genealogical data.

Although record keeping around the supposed time of the incident was certainly not complete, enough inconsistencies and ambiguities are highlighted to put serious doubt as to the existence of Rachel de Beer at the time mentioned.

It turns out that there was a De Beer family that fits the names and ages as mentioned in the original story quite closely. However, they lived 60 years later. If the incident happened in 1903 instead of 1843, this family would fit the facts quite nicely. It would also better explain why there is no mention of this story before the early 1900s.

Unfortunately by the 3rd edition of the work more information has come to light to also eliminate this last possible scenario. The Rachel de Beer in this instance has been confirmed to have lived well into adulthood.

Based on this research it seems unlikely that the story of Rachel de Beer is factual.