The Slave Lodge was built in 1679 as the slave lodge of the Dutch East India Company. It is believed that up to 9000 slaves, convicts and the mentally ill lived in the building between 1679 and 1811. In 1811 the building was modified to serve as government offices. Various governmental offices were housed in the building during the 19th and early 20th centuries (the Governor’s Advisory Council, the upper house of the first parliament, The Cape Supreme Court, the first library, the first post office, Deeds Office). The building was restored in 1960 for use as a cultural history museum.