Southermost, (and no, it's not a spelling mistake) the first house in the village of L’Agulhas and the southernmost private home on the continent of Africa, was built in 1929 by Michiel van Breda as a family beach home.  The foundations were laid on July 18, 1929.  Since then, only three families have owned and lived in the house:  Van Breda, Albertyn and Cowper.  Originally, all the houses in L’Agulhas, when the village was established, were supposed to have been built according to the Southermost’s architectural style.  

The Van Breda family owned the historic farm Zoetendals Vallei, which is still in the family today.   In 1838, Michiel van Breda, a namesake of the original pioneering farmer, founded the town of Bredasdorp.  In 1848, when the urgent need for a lighthouse at Cape Agulhas arose, Michiel generously made available a portion of the family estate for this purpose.  

In the early 1940s, the then Michiel van Breda sold Southermost to Pietie (P.K.) Albertyn, another well-known farmer in the district. 

In 1959, the house became the property of Freda Cowper.  During the 1960s, Southermost became the popular seaside holiday home of the Cowper family, who moved there permanently after 1969.  Ownership of Southernmost was eventually passed on to the three daughters, Janda Maybank, Gill Fuller, and Meg Cowper-Lewis.  In 1996, Meg took over the rehabilitation of the old house and has managed to retain the old-world charm and unique character of Southermost.  

Note: This is a private home, not open to the public.