jetwing st. andrew’s history

History and photos from De Zilwa archives

The Spirit of St Andrews Hotel Compiled by David De Zilwa and Percy De Zilwa – revised 2006

1875 – 1918 From house to Scots Club (family recollections) Documents regarding the property go back to 1875. It was said to be part of land gifted to a faithful servant of the crown. A house was built on this land which later became the Scots Club. This Scottish connection and its proximity to the golf course could account for the title St Andrews - a nostalgic reference to St Andrews in Scotland, the home of golf where the game evolved and where the spirit and traditions of golf have been safeguarded for over six centuries. The golf course 10th driving tee was part of the property and was exchanged for the strip of land bordering the stream at the corner of Waterfield and St Andrews Drives extending to the bridge across the stream. Later on, garages for the cars of guests and accommodation for the drivers were built on this land. These are no longer part of the hotel. During the early 1900s the club became a hotel which was run by a German manager by the name of Mr Humbert. Sadly for him, he was interned by the British government during 1914-1918 (World War 1). In 1918 the hotel was bought by a syndicate headed by Arthur Ephraums. During this period the hotel was expanded to include a two storey wing to the west, and behind the main block, a large dining room and pantry, large kitchen, storeroom, and servants quarters. Also added were bathrooms, a bar and billiard room on the east side.

1919 – 1924 Expanded St Andrews Hotel open for business The newly refurbished and expanded hotel was open for business in 1919. In November 1919, Mr JH De Zilwa, a young cousin of Mr Ephraums, was appointed manager. He arrived with his wife and two children – son Percy nearly 3, and daughter Sylvia aged 9 months. Business was improving in Nuwara Eliya, however a disagreement occurred between the owner and the De Zilwas and in 1924, Mr and Mrs De Zilwa left St Andrews to begin their own hotel business.

Mr and Mrs JH De Zilwa senior, parents of Mr JH De Zilwa.

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1925 – 1932 Great Depression years In the late 1920s and early 1930s, the Great Depression had a major impact on all hotels including St Andrews and by 1930 St Andrews was closed. Nobody was prepared to take over the building and caretaker was appointed.

1933 – De Zilwa family return as owners In 1933 the legal firm, Julius & Creasy in Colombo held the mortgage and offered the hotel to Mr and Mrs De Zilwa. Again, the family moved back to St Andrews with newborn son James Henry junior (known as Jim).

Guest postcard from 1930s with Mr De Zilwa seated (left) on the bench

Once Mr and Mrs De Zilwa reopened the hotel as proprietors, many investors who previously shunned St Andrews as a viable business suddenly became interested and made higher offers for the hotel. There were also suggestions for amalgamation with other hotels, subdivisions of the property, and a serious proposal from the Catholic Church to have St Andrews to become a monastery attached to the catholic church closeby. Despite these offers, Mr and Mrs De Zilwa were determined to secure their ownership of the hotel and continue to run it independently.



1930s/1940s menu card During this period through to the late 1940s, all guests were on an inclusive rate which provided them with meals such as the menu card illustrates. From 1950, in addition to the all inclusive rate, St Andrews introduced a bed and breakfast tariff and this attracted more clientele to the hotel.

Business was very slow at first during the 1930s as the depression took its toll, but gradually improved. More improvements were carried out, for example new bathroom blocks, gardens developed with a view to becoming self sufficient in vegetable and flowers, and excess produce was sold to the markets in Nuwara Eliya and Colombo. An interesting environmental fact is that firewood was harvested from the grounds for in-room fireplaces and cooking in the kitchen. Mr and Mrs De Zilwa made a habit of replacing each felled tree with two young trees grown from seed by Mr De Zilwa himself. Water from the spring east of the hotel was channeled down to the front garden for watering. Later in the 1950s the spring also supplied water for newly dug fish ponds – photograph of fish ponds is included later in this publication. St Andrews provided many facilities for its residents and guests. Hotel guest book records from the 1930s onwards show that many celebrities stayed at the hotel. These included racehorse owners, trainers, heads of government departments, doctors, lawyers, tennis champions (including Hilden Sansoni), and Mr SWRD Bandaranaike (prior to his becoming Prime Minister). The present car park was formerly a tennis court where many champions practiced in preparation for the tournament. The present conference room was originally a billiard room with two full size billiard tables. Later this room became a dance hall. The current billiard room with its 100-year-old full size table was formerly a music room. Mrs De Zilwa was an accomplished pianist while Mr De Zilwa played the violin, stroh violin (invented in 1890s, widely used in 1920s/1930s by dance bands for greater volume than a regular violin), guitar and saxophone. The “Zilwan Jazz Band” formed in the 1920s was in great demand in Nuwara Eliya and surrounding towns. Impromptu concerts were often held before and after dinner – especially when musicians and vocalists were resident at the hotel. There were monthly dances at St Andrews which were very popular and contributed to increased bar sales. During the “season” February to May, there was dancing every night free of charge for residents and young people from the town also attended these dances. The music was Victor Sylvester’s dance band on 78rpm records and these records were played on an electric radiogram with attached loudspeaker.



1930s approx: Zilwan Jazz Band Mrs De Zilwa at the piano, Mr De Zilwa holding the sax and with other instruments he was playing on the day – stroh violin, guitar and banjo

Every year a Christmas tree was decorated and loaded with presents for the children in town. Parents paid for the toys, which were purchased at discount rates in Colombo. Many children commented on how Mr De Zilwa would have made a good Father Christmas but he was too busy so the Postmaster – a fatherly figure took over the role. He demanded and received a kiss from each child before presenting a gift from the tree. On one occasion, a young boy said that Father Christmas “smelled like arrack” (the local liquor). The venue for these Christmas activities was the present dining room. Wedding parties were common – the most memorable being the celebration of daughter Sylvia’s wedding in 1943, also the celebrations for the 25th and 50th anniversaries of Mr and Mrs De Zilwa. An anniversary cake was made as a model of the hotel for their 50th features prominently in a photograph of Mr and Mrs De Zilwa, currently hanging at St Andrews. Flowers and vegetables for the hotel came from the garden. Several pear and citrus trees also provided fresh fruit for guests and ingredients for marmalade. Mr and Mrs De Zilwa planted additional fruit (pear and orange) trees to supplement the orchard that was already there. Interesting point to note is that the pear trees which were already in the garden were added to the assets of the hotel and taxes had to be paid on them. Poultry and cows provided eggs and milk. Farm workers were given free accommodation in quarters adjacent to a row of garages at the intersection of St Andrews and Waterfield Drives.



1941 approx family photo on the front steps. Left to right, Mr De Zilwa, daughter Sylvia, Mrs De Zilwa, JH (junior), known as Jim, elder son Percy.

1942 – 1948 – Busy years at St Andrews During World War 2, the British Government used the hotel as a rest and recreation center for servicemen. The first arrivals were survivors from HMS Hermes in 1942 – bombed by the Japanese off the east coast of Ceylon. Many from this first batch of sailors arrived in their oil-soaked clothes.

Servicemen from the Hermes after recuperation at St Andrews awaiting departure with their bus piled high with their kits etc. Included in the photo are 2-3 local townsfolk. Seated centre and on the right are Mr and Mrs De Zilwa, with their daughter Sylvia standing behind Mrs De Zilwa.

For these and later servicemen, a ladies committee was set up to provide clothing and other necessities. Provisions for the kitchen and pantry, liquor, and cigarettes were supplied from the Navy Army and Air Force Institute



(NAAFI) set up in Nuwara Eliya. It was often felt that the hotel was in its former heyday during these years as it had a major part to play in the lives of so many local and foreign servicemen, visitors and permanent guests. During these years and beyond into the 1940s, Nuwara Eliya enhanced its reputation as a health and holiday resort. High season extended from December through May. Early childhood memories are of the All Ceylon Tennis and Golf tournaments (the 9th hole is named St Andrews), a flower & vegetable show with prizes for the winners, a circus, and a horse gymkhana. In later post war years there was also a hill climb for motorcycles and cars at Mahagastota Estate – a few km from the town. However the main attraction was the races from February to April. Many jockeys and their families and trainers stayed at the St Andrews during the season. The horses were stabled throughout the year at the racecourse in Nuwara Eliya and taken to Colombo for races there. St Andrews also had stables and living quarters for families who looked after the animals. Mr Ephraums built these stables for his string of horses including “Orange William” – a champion at that time.

1949 – 1960s Political changes etc After independence from Great Britain in 1948, Tamil laborers originally recruited by the British from India to work on tea plantations were declared stateless. Their applications for citizenship were too numerous to be processed at the local government office (or Kachcheri as it was called), so the Government took over 16 rooms in the bedroom wing as a second Kachcheri. During last six months of this 18 – 24 month period, additional space was allocated including the dining room and one sitting room. It was said that the upcountry estate families became Ceylon citizens at St Andrews. When racing was abolished by the then Government of Ceylon, and the stables were idle, Mr De Zilwa converted them into twin cottages known as the “Crib” and “Cot”. These are situated on the northwestern hill beside the hotel. These were leased to tenants who were still in occupation when the hotel was sold in 1976. The houses were excluded from the 1976 contract of sale. Previously mentioned in this history was the tennis court which in the 1980s became a rose garden and now a car park. There was a gazebo and casual seating surrounding these tennis court facilities as shown in the photograph below.

1950s Mrs and Mrs De Zilwa at the gazebo beside the tennis court – these facilities were cleared during reconstruction in the late 1970s/early 1980s. The gazebo was commonly referred to as the “summer house”. This area in front of the hotel on the western side is now devoted to tour bus and car parking.

During the 1950s, water from the spring east of the hotel supplied three fish ponds which were dug by staff of St Andrews under the supervision of Mr and Mrs De Zilwa’s son Percy. The ponds were stocked with tilapia fish, and children often fished here but returned the fish to the ponds. These ponds were later filled during redevelopment of the hotel in the 1980s.



1958 Pictured is Dr and Mrs Percy De Zilwa with their son David. Percy is the son of Mr and Mrs De Zilwa, and David is their grandson.

AMany visitors arrived in Nuwara Eliya from Nanu Oya station on a narrow gauge railway. When buses took over the transport, the line from Nanu Oya was closed. One of the engines was sold to a film company for the film “Bridge on the River Kwai”. This engine was destroyed when the bridge was blown up during production of the movie in the late 1950s. Another engine is currently exhibited in the Puffing Billy Steam museum in Menzies Creek near Melbourne, Australia. The museum houses Australian and overseas locomotives representing some of the world's most famous builders. In the late 1950s and 1960s the government policies changed and many thousands of people emigrated from Ceylon, Sinhala replaced English as the national language. Also departing Ceylon in the early 1960s were the De Zilwa children, now as adults with their own families who left for Australia (Percy & family, Jim & family), while daughter Sylvia & family left for Singapore where her husband found employment before finally settling in Australia.

1963 Jim De Zilwa, younger son of Mr and family prior to emigrating to Australia, departing 12 months after brother Percy De Zilwa and his family. Pictured is wife Denise, daughters Cheryl and Jeanne, and Jim.

In April 1966, Mrs and Mrs De Zilwa celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a cake replica of St Andrews Hotel. There is a photo currently hanging at the hotel of them in front of this structure.



April 1966, 50 years married Celebrated at St Andrews Hotel with a some family members visiting from Left to right:

• Chris Marschner (grandson) • Dr Percy De Zilwa (son) • JH De Zilwa (proprietor) • Tony Marschner (grandson) • Mrs JH De Zilwa (proprietor) • Jeffrey Marschner (grandson) • Frank Marschner (grandson,

front) • Sylvia Marschner (daughter) • JH (Jim) De Zilwa (son)

1970s A new period of change The elderly couple by the mid 1970s decided to follow their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren to Australia as soon as they could sell the hotel. In 1976, a buyer was found – Mr GEB Milhuisen, a hotel owner and agent for Vingressor Tours, a Swedish company. He needed a hotel in Nuwara Eliya to cater for the tourists. He wanted to maintain the spirit of St Andrews and the De Zilwa tradition – to keep the building as it was (with refurbishment) rather than demolish and rebuild. From March to July 1976, Mr and Mrs De Zilwa traveled to Australia to celebrate their golden wedding anniversary (60 years) with family and several close friends who had also moved to Melbourne, Australia.

1976 60 years married Celebrated in Australia with family in April 1976

Upon their return to Sri Lanka to finalize the sale of the hotel, they were devastated to witness the wreckage of the interior for there had been a gang robbery the night before their arrival. Linen, crockery, silverware, and several September 2006 page 8 of 15


treasures were stolen. Sadly within a week, Mrs De Zilwa died and it was said that she “died of a broken heart”. Some family members arrived for her funeral and which was held at Holy Trinity Church, Nuwara Eliya. The hotel sale was finalized to Mr Milhuisen and Mr De Zilwa left Nuwara Eliya with his son Percy, granddaughter Jennifer and grandson David for the last time to Melbourne, Australia.

Photograph of St Andrews taken in 1976 at time of sale from the De Zilwas to Mr Milhuisen.

1976 sale negotiations Dr Percy De Zilwa (right) arrived from Australia and resumed sale discussions with Mr Milhuisen. This led to a contract of sale for St Andrews Hotel.

1976 handover to Mr Milhuisen Pictured here is the departure of the De Zilwas. Left to right: • Mr G Milhuisen (new proprietor) • David De Zilwa (grandson) of Mr & Mrs De Zilwa • Dr and Mrs Percy De Zilwa

During 1977-1978, St Andrews was substantially upgraded into the form you still see today.



1976-1977 demolition and rebuilding commences The following two photos were provided by Mr G Milhuisen to illustrate to Mr De Zilwa how the original structure was maintained and their shared vision for a rebuilt and thriving St Andrew Hotel is in progress.



1977 rebuild View of the garden terrace and original guest wing being prepared for construction of ensuite bathrooms

1977 rebuild Another view of the original guest wing after ‘lean to’ structures are removed, and the wing is readied for renovation. Note the furniture on the upper level corridor. Most of the furniture used today in this wing dates from early in the 1920s. Surveying the rebuilding progress is Mrs Percy De Zilwa (left) and Mr Milhuisen (right).

Mr De Zilwa lived another three years until he was 91 years and passed away after an emergency operation in 1979. The cremation was held in Melbourne, Australia, and his son Percy brought his ashes to be interred in Mrs De Zilwa’s grave in the Holy Trinity churchyard. Closely to their grave is also the grave of Clarence Herbert (known as Clair), the older brother of Mr De Zilwa who lived his final few years at St Andrews before passing away in 1971.



1979 headstone at Holy Trinity, Nuwara Eliya Interment of ashes on 20 August.

1979 August, Holy Trinity Church Parish Paper Tribute to Mr De Zilwa.



1978-1979 taking its current shape, the photo below is a montage taken by Dr Percy De Zilwa in 1979.

A new porch was added several meters below the original porch and a series of steps now lead to the original entrance. One of the main reasons for relocating the porch was to accommodate tourist coaches that were previously unable to climb the gradient.

1979 a postcard of St Andrews Hotel mailed to the De Zilwa family in Australia by UK relatives who stayed at St Andrews

1986 to present day – St Andrews becomes part of Jetwing Hotel group Mr Milhuisen went into partnership with Mr Herbert Cooray, also a hotel owner and Director of the Jetwing group of hotels. St Andrews was then added to the Jetwing group. Several additions including a new kitchen, accommodation wing, executive and staff wings, and upgrades to facilities and so on in late 1980s to the present day have elevated St Andrews to its current level. The De Zilwa family maintains a close association with Jetwing and St Andrews and occasionally one or more family members visits Nuwara Eliya and stays at the hotel.



1999 in the dining room Dr Percy De Zilwa visiting from Australia has a meal. At age 82 he enjoyed his stay and was accompanied by daughter Jennifer and her husband John Goodley.

August 2002 Mr David De Zilwa, grandson of Mr De Zilwa and son of Dr Percy De Zilwa meets with Jetwing proprietors Herbert Cooray (center) and Hiran Cooray (right) in Colombo.



David De Zilwa, Jan 2006, meets with Wester Felthman (GM) and Ziyard Zain (executive manager).

Dr Percy De Zilwa, 4 Feb 2006, birthday 89 years in Melbourne Australia. Next to Percy are daughters Carole, Jennifer and Wendy, with son David at rear.


jetwing st. andrew’s history

Documents

expanded st andrews

shunned st andrews

title st andrews

st andrews drives

zilwa archives

zilwa senior

hotel business

expanded hotel