Heritage

Long, impressive history of Thika’s Blue Post Hotel

blue post

The Blue Post Hotel in Thika. The hotel was built by Captain Ward who is described by Huxley as “a military-looking, sprucely-dressed man with a bald head and a long moustache, who had the misfortune to be very deaf. PHOTO | DOUGLAS KIEREINI

Long before white settlers broke ground in Kenya, the area today known as Thika Town was a stage for many internicine battles between the Maasai on the one hand, and the Kikuyu and Kambas on the other.

The Thika and Chania rivers formed a natural boundary amongst these three tribes, the Kikuyu to the north, the Kambas to the east and the Maasai to the south. The Maasai outnumbered the other two tribes and were ferocious warriors; unbeatable in the plains and lower ground.

However, their war tactics were ineffective in forest and mountainous areas. Each time the Maasai raided their adversaries for livestock and women they would win easily, walking away with their spoils as the Kikuyu and Kamba retreated to the forest and surrounding hills.

The only saviour would be an outbreak of disease or famine which would reduce the Maasai population significantly and consequently their strength, but then as soon as their numbers recovered, they would be back for more of the same.

In any event, it must be remembered that the Maasai were nomadic pastoralists while the Kikuyu and Kamba were crop farmers, hence the different behaviour patterns. Many of the Kikuyu who died during the skirmishes were buried in a mass grave which can be identified by a mound near the confluence of the two rivers.

It is widely thought that this was the origin of the name “Guthika” which means “to bury” and shortened to Thika, giving the town its name.

During the late 1880s, there were serious outbreaks of rinderpest and smallpox which affected cattle and people respectively. The Maasai appear to have come off worse in this episode as their livestock and people were decimated leaving the area south of the Chania free for occupation by the Kikuyu, who themselves were escaping epidemics believing they were the work of evil spirits.

Rustic, outdoor character

Given this scenario, it is no wonder that the white settlers believed that this land was unoccupied when they ventured north of Nairobi in the 1890s.

Blue Post Hotel was built in 1908 and consisted of random undressed stone walls with coarse mortar joints, a makuti thatched roof on timber pole trusses and a rough cement screed floor.

The hotel is immortalised in Elspeth Huxley’s book The Flame Trees of Thika in which she writes: “It consisted of a low-roofed, thatched grass hut whose verandah posts were painted blue and gave the place its name”.

I am also told that the hotel served as a post office for farmers on the surrounding plantations. The hotel was built by Captain Ward who is described by Huxley as “a military-looking, sprucely-dressed man with a bald head and a long moustache, who had the misfortune to be very deaf”.

Next to the original “hut” is a stone building which provided accommodation of three rooms, with a Cape Dutch gable, bellying the owner’s South African origins. There were also stables for horses.

According to David Kuria, who has been working at the hotel since 1982, the settlers would come in the late afternoon on horses which they would tether on one of the four “blue posts” and proceed to the bar for the day’s tipple.

Once they had quenched their thirst and shared the day’s business, they would mount their trusty steeds and proceed home. Apparently, each horse knew the way to the owner’s home and there were no laws against riding a horse “under the influence”!

Kuria hastens to add that Africans were not allowed to patronise the hotel. He also claims that before the hotel was built, a military camp existed on this site since 1902, to guarantee safe passage for settlers travelling between Nairobi and Nyeri.

Captain Ward sold the hotel to Edward Sergent who relinquished ownership in 1978. Today, the hotel is owned by a prominent Kenyan family.
Over the years many outbuildings have been added but the hotel still retains a rustic, outdoor character. The original “hut” is still the main bar known as “Sergent Bar” and the “blue posts” are covered in hemp and timber as patrons now arrive in more modern, motorised transport.

Today, the hotel boasts 51 rooms, conference facilities, a children’s playground, horse riding, and nature walk. For ornithologists, there is an array of beautiful bird life. The hotel overlooks the breathtaking Chania Falls with its thunderous white spray rushing over black rocks.

While I was waiting to interview Kuria, I visited the coffee shop where I enjoyed a pot of masala tea and a large samosa which I must say was the most delectable I have tasted in a long time. This is a great place to visit and relax with family and friends.