Odendaalsrus is the oldest gold

Gold

Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

 mining town in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality

Lejweleputswa District Municipality

Lejweleputswa is one of the 5 districts of Free State province of South Africa. The seat of Lejweleputswa is Welkom. The majority of its 657 019 people speak Sotho...

 of the Free State

Free State

The Free State is a province of South Africa. Its capital is Bloemfontein, which is also South Africa's judicial capital. Its historical origins lie in the Orange Free State Boer republic and later Orange Free State Province. The current borders of the province date from 1994 when the Bantustans...

 province in South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

.

History

It started out in 1912

1912 in South Africa

-Events:* 4 January - Outbreak of smallpox is reported in the Malay Location, Johannesburg* 8 January - The South African Native National Congress is formed in Bloemfontein and John Langalibalele Dube becomes the first president...

 as a ramshackle collection of farms and a central church that became a town. In April 1946

1946 in South Africa

-March:* 12 March - The South African Indian Congress delegation is received by the Viceroy, Lord Wavell, in Delhi, India, submitting a petition drafted in consultation with Mohandas Gandhi.** The Indian Representative Act is also repealed....

 gold was struck on the farm Geduld near the town. On the 5 December 2000, Odendaalrus was incorporated into the Matjhabeng Local Municipality

Matjhabeng Local Municipality

Matjhabeng Local Municipality is an administrative area in the Lejweleputswa District of the Free State in South Africa, that includes the city of Welkom. The name is a Sesotho word meaning "where nations meet". It is derived from the migrant labour system where people from various countries like...

 along with the city of Welkom

Welkom

Welkom is a city in the Free State province of South Africa, located 160 kilometres northeast of Bloemfontein, the provincial capital. Welkom received municipal status in 1961 and was declared a city in 1968 on the 14th of February...

 and the towns of Allanridge

Allanridge

Allanridge is a gold mining town in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality of the Free State province in South Africa. It is the main centre of the Lorraine Gold Mining Company and is dominated by the tall headgear and complex reduction works that processes thousands of tons of gold-bearing ore...

, Hennenman

Hennenman

Hennenman is a small town in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality of the Free State province of South Africa. The town is unusual in the district as its economy is based mainly on agriculture not gold. The town, which started out as a railway station, was previously called Ventersburg Road. The...

, Ventersburg

Ventersburg

Ventersburg is a small town in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality of the Free State province in South Africa. It was established on the farm Kromfontein which was owned by PA Venter who died in 1857. His son allowed a Reform Church to be established on the farm in 1864 and by 1871, the first...

 and Virginia

Virginia, Free State

Virginia is a gold mining town located in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality of the Free State province in South Africa about 140 km northeast of Bloemfontein the provincial capital...

. The Kutlwanong location was established about 10 km outside Odendaalsrus to house black people during the apartheid era. In 1984 Kathryn Ellen Hawtrey was born in the local hospital.