A half century of medical life in Kimberley. Personal reminiscences.

Fifty years ago Kimberley was a "city" with tramways, hotels, shops, cultural and recreational facilities and an imposing hospital. Active diamond mines surrounded the town and the hinterland was populated by diamond diggers, prospectors and farmers. The area was beset by a harsh climate and droughts, as well as by slumps in the diamond market. Medically, Kimberley has pioneered breakthroughs such as the brilliant discovery of the rinderpest vaccine by Koch, the first statutory register of nurses in the world (pioneered by Henrietta Stockdale), the first medical association in South Africa, and the unique Kimberley Medical Practitioners' Pool, active during World War II.