In 1676 the outpost of De Kuylen was a well-known resting-place for expeditions into the interior. In January of the year 1680 governor Simon van der Stel decided to build a simple house there which would serve to accommodate travellers during their journey from the Cape to Hottentots-Holland. Pieter van Dam, who recorded the history of the Company around 1701, notes that in the year 1693 De Kuylen was manned by nine Company employees and two slave boys.