Very few people know much about the house where President Uhuru Kenyatta was conceived if existing evidence is anything to go by.
In this story, I will give you a history of the home and put into perspective its significance to the country.
Set off a little way from the centre of Maralal town, surrounded by verdant hills, stands Kenyatta House.
The national monument under the management of the National Museums of Kenya played its fair bit during Kenya’s independence struggle.
It was here that Kenya’s first President, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, was detained as negotiations of the terms of independence were ongoing.
After he had been held for seven years at Lokitaung in northern Turkana, the pleasant setting of Maralal with a view of Mount Kenya to the south must have been meant as a first concession by the British colonial administration.
Kenyatta House displays interesting exhibits, like historic photographs and the original telephone & furniture of the Kenyatta family.
The visitor’s book bears an entry of President Kenyatta and it is reported that he was conceived in this home during his father's detention.
"Conceived in this house in the year of our Lord 1961. A pleasure to be back using my own two feet," Uhuru wrote on the visitors' book when he toured in 2007.
Kenyatta House is surrounded by a pleasant garden and on clear days, you can catch a glimpse of Mount Kenya to the South.
The splendid view formed the title of Mzee Kenyatta’s book ‘Facing Mount Kenya’, which he wrote during his detention in Maralal.
