Help uncover the tin tags of our ancestors

IN 1860, the first Indian indentured labourers arrived on the shores of Natal, each carrying a little more than hope, and a simple tin tag stamped with a number and an estate name. These small metal discs, worn around their necks, were their only form of official identification in an unknown land.

- JERALD DANASEKERA VEDAN

Today, they are rare relics of a courageous journey that helped shape South African history.

We call on descendants across the country and the diaspora: search your homes, your family trunks and your memories.

A forgotten tin tag may still survive, a silent witness to endurance, sacrifice and pride. Finding one is not merely discovering an old object. It is reclaiming a priceless piece of our collective soul.

The original identity tags

These tin tags, or “tin tickets’, were issued up until 1911. A typical tag from the Calcutta Depot might have been stamped “NATAL No. 360, BELVEDERE 1860, HULLETTS ESTATE”, bearing the number assigned to the labourer and the estate to which they were sent.

Worn like a badge of survival, the tin tag symbolised both bondage and resilience.

Each one tells a silent story, of sweat under the African sun, of ocean-crossed dreams, and of the roots of a community that would one day flourish.

Even a single tag, if recovered, holds enormous historical importance. They may be tucked away in old trunks, jewellery boxes, sewing tins, attics or storerooms, perhaps passed down unknowingly as heirlooms.

If found, preserve it carefully. Consider sharing it with the 1860 Heritage Centre or similar heritage initiatives. Each recovered tag gives voice to our ancestors and helps illuminate a story too long kept in the shadows.

From tin to paper: the long road of identification

The tin tag was just the beginning. After that crude piece of metal came an expanding web of documentation, not for empowerment, but for control. These evolving identity systems were designed to regulate the movement, aspirations, and very existence of Indian South Africans.

Pass laws (from 1888)