PORT ELIZABETH

The SA Gem & Mineral Club of Port Elizabeth was founded in 1954, and was the first Gem Club in South Africa.  The founder members were Mike Karp, a journalist, Norman Brittle, a school teacher and Mrs Kate MacIntosh, a well-known concert cellist.  Mike Karp had been in touch with enthusiasts in the United States and had been sent copies of the Lapidary Journal.  At first the founder members started off by meeting after work at a tea-room in town to consider the feasibility of establishing such a club.  Some of them had no idea what a semi-precious stone looked like, although they were enthusiastic and actually hoped to find suitable material in die Port Elizabeth locality.  They agreed to persevere and the formation of the club was duly announced.  Mike wrote a note to the editor of the Lapidary Journal and it was advertised that the club has been formed at a meeting held on the 20th November 1954.

The SA Gem and Mineral Club is currently dormant and is awaiting a group of like-minded individuals to stoke the amber of a once great club and bring like light to the world of gem and minerals in Port Elizabeth.