Knysna is a town with 51,078 inhabitants in the Western Cape Province of South Africa and is part of the Garden Route. It lies 34 degrees south of the equator, and is 72 kilometres east from the town of George on the N2 highway, and 25 kilometres west of Plettenberg Bay on the same road.Little is known about the indigenous inhabitants of Knysna, the Khoikhoi. The area east of present-day George was separated by high mountains and deep gorges, making it virtually inaccessible to European travelersNevertheless, the first Europeans arrived in the area in 1760, and the farm Melkhoutkraal was established on the eastern shore of the Knysna Lagoon. Stephanus Terblans, the first European farmer to settle in the area, was given a loan permit to farm here.Upon moving to Knysna George Rex, a British-born entrepreneur credited as being the founder of Knysna, bought Melkhoutkraal and the farm of Eastford in 1804. He gave 80 acres of Eastford was given to the Colonial Government, on which the Royal Navy established the township of Melville. Rex’s properties were sold when he passed away in 1839.In April 1817, the transport brig Emu, belonging to the Cape Town Dockyard, was the first European vessel to enter the Knysna. She struck a rock, now known as Emu Rock, and was holed.Her crew ran Emu ashore to prevent her sinking. In late April HMS Podargus arrived to render assistance.After surveying the area, Podargus sailed safely into the Knysna and retrieved Emu's cargo.
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