Clock tower and post office, Livingstonia, ca.1920

“View of Clock-tower on the avenue, Livingstonia.” Exterior view of some cultivated garden areas between parallel roads. A clock tower and building stand alone on the opposite road. The mission sits on a plateau, behind Mount Waller, that towers above Lake Nyasa. An avenue of Mlanje cedar runs along the summit and a line of buildings sit between it and the cliff edge; the school, hospital and teacher’s houses, on the opposite side are the post office and workshops. ❧ The Livingstonia mission station was established in 1891 by Dr Robert Laws (1851-1934) when he travelled north from Bandawe to set up a Training Institution and Industrial Mission. It was situated four miles from Lake Nyasa at Khondowe. As well as the school, hospital and accommodation, there were workshops for carpentry, printing and engineering, and mills, brickworks and a pottery. The Overtoun Institution was named after John Campbell White, Baron of Overtoun (1843-1908) who was a Convener of the Livingstonia Mission and a major financial contributor. The instruction that went on in Livingstonia was to provide Christian leaders for the expanding mission and to develop commercial activities and encourage trade.