Leopoldville 1945 - Boucherie De Wever Frères

In 2018 I posted an extended piece showcasing extant, surviving Art Deco buildings in Kinshasa (Jan. 2, 2018). One of those omitted was the De Wever Frères butcher shop at the corner of Blvd du 30 Juin and Ave. Kasavubu.  As I developed the Art Deco post, I didn’t have any photos of the original building to prompt its inclusion, though I remember it well.  At the time, Ecobank, a Nigerian bank with regional coverage, was building its new headquarters on the site. Back in the day, this was the corner of Blvd. Albert and Ave. Prince Baudouin, the main thoroughfare from the European downtown into the Congolese cité. 

On this 100th anniversary of the Art Deco movement, let us examine one modest, though now lost, example of the art form.

The De Wever Frères grocery and butcher shop in 1945 (Ph. liberas.eu) 

André De Wever arrived in Leopoldville in 1929 and opened a butcher shop, later expanding into soft drinks and manufacturing ice (for ice boxes needed to keep meat and beverages cool). Joined by brother Gerard, he established De Wever Frères. In July 1931 the firm sponsored a booth at the Foire Commerciale, which included a dining area featuring a “buffet froid”.

The De Wever "Buffet Froid" at the Leopoldville Fair July 1931 (Ph. author coll.)

In July 1943, De Wever obtained a permit from the Comité Urbain to remodel the building at Blvd Albert and Baudouin. At the time, the Leopoldville municipality was extending Blvd. Albert west from the Gare Central, opening up the old rail line for commercial and residential development (Jan. 23, 2011). The grocery was closed during renovations, though the butcher shop remained open. The store reopened in December, offering such American and British items as Libby’s canned fruits and vegetables, Quaker Oats, Calument baking powder and Jello pudding, as well as Nestle products, including Klim powdered milk and chocolates, Bols liqueurs and Cape wines. The butcher shop advertised charcuterie and “Tete de Veau en Tortue”, a Belgian specialty served with Madeira wine tomato sauce and frites. In July 1945, new management took over the grocery as the Alimentation Générale, while De Wever continued to operate the butcher shop, supplied from their industrial location on Ave Inflammables at Ndolo.

A grocery store in Leopoldville in the 1940s (Ph. author coll.)

Prudent Verstraeten operated the store in February 1951. The image below still shows "De Wever" on the signage, with the new Post Office visible in the background (Mar. 19, 2011). A photo from August 1956 shows the butcher shop with the last two letters “LE” on the marquee tower. In 1957, the Verstraeten family still operated a butcher shop, but not specifically named. As late January 1961, the butcher shop, called "Boucherie Royale", was still also identified as “ex-De Wever Frères”.

Boucherie staff in 1951, new Post Office in background (Ph. author coll.)

The Boucherie in August 1956. Note letters "LE" on marquee tower, possibly "Royale" (Ph. liberas.eu)

I recall seeing signs for Ajit Radio on the building in the 1970s. In the mid-1970s Pharmacie Postaphar used the same post office box as Ajit Radio. In 2012, the premises were occupied by a company called Infotech.

The Boucherie building in 2012 (Ph. author coll.)

When I returned to Kinshasa in June 2016, Ecobank’s glass and steel tower was rising from the corner of Ave Kasavubu. My company chose Ecobank for offering the best banking services for our Congolese employees. There was an ATM convenient to our office at the end of Blvd. du 30 Juin, where staff could withdraw salaries and travel advances.

Ecobank building in 2019 (Ph. author coll.)

Sources: 

• Le Courrier d’Afrique (multiple years) 
• Liberas (formerly Liberaal Archief, Gent. liberas.eu)