Bloemhof

Bloemhof is an agricultural town of about 2,000 inhabitants situated on the banks of the Vaal River in North West Province of South Africa.

For neighborhood in Rotterdam, see Bloemhof, Rotterdam.
Bloemhof
Bloemhof railway station
Bloemhof
Bloemhof
Coordinates: 27°39′0″S 25°35′24″E
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceNorth West
DistrictDr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati
MunicipalityLekwa-Teemane
Established1864[1]
Area
 • Total47.33 km2 (18.27 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[2][3]
 • Total2,339
 • Density49/km2 (130/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
 • Black African26.5%
 • Coloured7.0%
 • Indian/Asian4.2%
 • White61.9%
 • Other0.4%
First languages (2011)
 • Afrikaans72.1%
 • Tswana7.4%
 • English7.3%
 • Sotho4.1%
 • Other8.9%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)
2660
PO box
2660
Area code053

History

It was founded in August 1864 when diamonds were discovered in the area.[4] The town was established on the farm owned by John Barclay, who survived the HMS Birkenhead shipwreck in 1852. The place became known as Bloemhof (flower court) because of the lovely gardens that were planted by Barclay's daughter. In June 1869, the South African Republic's Volksraad created a new district called Bloemhof named after the town itself.[4] Currently Bloemhof has a variety of social milieus; it has a township called Boitumelong and former coloured residence called Coverdale. Salamat is also a small residence, formerly an Indian suburb, which is situated in this town.

Education
  • Bloemhof Combined School
  • Bloemhof primary School
  • Boitumelong primary Schoo
  • Gaopalelwe Senior Secondary School
  • Matlhajaneng Public Primary School
  • Thamagane Primary School
  • Thuto-Lore Secondary school
  • Tshenolo Primary School
  • Vaaloewer Combined School.

Tourist attractions

References
  1. "Chronological order of town establishment in South Africa based on Floyd (1960:20-26)" (PDF). pp. xlv–lii.
  2. "Main Place Bloemhof". Census 2011.
  3. Bloemhof SP from Census 2011.
  4. Theal, George McCall (1889). History of South Africa: the republics and native territories from 1854 to 1872. London: S. Sonnenschein & co. p. 230.
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