Set off a little way from the centre of Maralal town, surrounded by verdant hills, stands Kenyatta House. The national monument under 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 7 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, e.g. historic photographs, the original telephone and furniture of the Kenyatta family. The visitor’s book bears and entry of the current president, the son of Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta, who is said to have been conceived in Kenyatta House during the detention. Kenyatta House is surrounded by a pleasant garden. On clear days you can catch a glimpse of Mount Kenya to the South, hence the title of Jomo Kenyatta’s book ‘Facing Mount Kenya’, which he wrote during his detention in Maralal.
There is another significant historic building in town though it is not of the same importance. Mzee Jomo Kenyatta was not the only prominent freedom fighter held in custody in Maralal. A small building with two cells is still standing in which Paul Ngei was kept when he was detained in Maralal on his way to imprisonment in northern Kenya. It is said that Kenyatta was granted permission and in fact paid Paul Ngei a visit in his cell in 1960 where the two heroes strengthened their bonds.