Smithfield, Free State
Encyclopedia
Smithfield is a small town in the Free State
province of South Africa
. It was founded in 1848 when the then Cape Colony
governor, Sir Harry Smith (1847-1852), required a settlement north of the Orange River
. Smithfield is the third oldest village in the Free State
.
.The famous Second Boer War
General Christiaan de Wet
was born on the nearby farm Leeukop in 1854.
The area was the scene in the 1860s of much fighting between the early Free State settlers and Basotho
, as it is not far from the border with Basutoland (now Lesotho
).
It constituted a village board in 1860 but only became a municipality in 1948. In the 1870s the town was on one of the main routes to the Diamond Fields from the coast via Aliwal North
, and trade was brisk in that period.
In the period 1907 to 1939, the MP for Smithfield was General Hertzog who represented the constituency for the Oranje Unie, the South African Party, the National Party
and the United Party
. He was the leader of the National Party from 1914 to 1939 and Prime Minister of SA from 1924 to 1929. Before entering politics he had been appointed a judge on the Orange Free State Bench in 1895 before the age of 30 and then became a successful Boer General with his own commando in the Anglo-Boer War.
along the national road to Port Elizabeth. The Caledon River
bounds Smithfield on the east and south. The district is drained by various tributaries of this river, the Vinkel and Wilgeboom Spruits being the largest. As the town lies 13 km west of the river, water has to be obtained from boreholes around the town dam.
in the Basuto wars, has been mounted in front of the magistrate's office. It was named after Margaret (Grietjie), wife of the gunner Robert Finlay.
The Caledon River
museum is located in town. The Carmel and Beersheba missionary posts are experiencing some revival, with houses increasingly renovated.
The well-maintained local golf course dates back more than 100 years. Its facilities are open to guests, as are local tennis and bowls clubs. (portions of text adapted from pula house web site at pula-house).
Hills surrounding the town are considered well-suited to hiking, walking, horse-riding and birdwatching in relative isolation. Local secondary roads are suitable for mountain biking.
Blesbok
and some Zebra
are to be found in the open savanna.
culture was named after the town. Renowned scientist George Stow excavated a cave near Smithfield in 1877 and found tools from the Late Stone Age which he described in the book, "Native races of South Africa". Bushman
paintings are present in nearby hills.
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 of 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...
. It was founded in 1848 when the then Cape Colony
Cape Colony
The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
governor, Sir Harry Smith (1847-1852), required a settlement north of the Orange River
Orange River
The Orange River , Gariep River, Groote River or Senqu River is the longest river in South Africa. It rises in the Drakensberg mountains in Lesotho, flowing westwards through South Africa to the Atlantic Ocean...
. Smithfield is the third oldest village in 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...
.
History
Waterval farm was the original site chosen in 1848 for settlement as a Dutch Reformed (NG) church centre. However, when plots were offered for sale, there were no takers. Farmers were dissatisfied with the site (24 km west of present-day Smithfield). They then opted for Rietpoort, where there was abundant water. The new town was named New Smithfield (the "New" soon fell away), named after Sir Harry Smith - the old Smithfield referred to Smithfield in London. In the fifty years after establishment the Dutch Reformed Church was prominent there and one of the dominees who served there was the famous Rev Andrew MurrayAndrew Murray (minister)
Andrew Murray was a South African writer, teacher, and Christian pastor. Murray considered missions to be "the chief end of the church."- Early life and education :...
.The famous Second Boer War
Second Boer War
The Second Boer War was fought from 11 October 1899 until 31 May 1902 between the British Empire and the Afrikaans-speaking Dutch settlers of two independent Boer republics, the South African Republic and the Orange Free State...
General Christiaan de Wet
Christiaan De Wet
Christiaan Rudolf de Wet was a Boer general, rebel leader and politician.He was born on the Leeuwkop farm, in the district of Smithfield in the Boer Republic of the Orange Free State...
was born on the nearby farm Leeukop in 1854.
The area was the scene in the 1860s of much fighting between the early Free State settlers and Basotho
Basotho
The ancestors of the Sotho people have lived in southern Africa since around the fifth century. The Sotho nation emerged from the accomplished diplomacy of Moshoeshoe I who gathered together disparate clans of Sotho–Tswana origin that had dispersed across southern Africa in the early 19th century...
, as it is not far from the border with Basutoland (now Lesotho
Lesotho
Lesotho , officially the Kingdom of Lesotho, is a landlocked country and enclave, surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. It is just over in size with a population of approximately 2,067,000. Its capital and largest city is Maseru. Lesotho is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. The name...
).
It constituted a village board in 1860 but only became a municipality in 1948. In the 1870s the town was on one of the main routes to the Diamond Fields from the coast via Aliwal North
Aliwal North
Aliwal North is a town in central South Africa on the Orange River, Eastern Cape Province. Aliwal North is the seat of the Maletswai Local Municipality which falls within the Ukhahlamba District Municipality....
, and trade was brisk in that period.
In the period 1907 to 1939, the MP for Smithfield was General Hertzog who represented the constituency for the Oranje Unie, the South African Party, the National Party
National Party (South Africa)
The National Party is a former political party in South Africa. Founded in 1914, it was the governing party of the country from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994. Members of the National Party were sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats. Its policies included apartheid, the establishment of a...
and the United Party
United Party (South Africa)
The United Party was South Africa's ruling political party between 1934 and 1948. It was formed by a merger of most of Prime Minister Barry Hertzog's National Party with the rival South African Party of Jan Smuts, plus the remnants of the Unionist Party...
. He was the leader of the National Party from 1914 to 1939 and Prime Minister of SA from 1924 to 1929. Before entering politics he had been appointed a judge on the Orange Free State Bench in 1895 before the age of 30 and then became a successful Boer General with his own commando in the Anglo-Boer War.
Geographic setting
The town is tucked into a horseshoe of hills, some 132 km southeast of BloemfonteinBloemfontein
Bloemfontein is the capital city of the Free State Province of South Africa; and, as the judicial capital of the nation, one of South Africa's three national capitals – the other two being Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Pretoria, the administrative capital.Bloemfontein is popularly and...
along the national road to Port Elizabeth. The Caledon River
Caledon River
The Caledon River is located in south-east Africa, rising in the Drakensberg Mountains in Lesotho. Origin in the former bantustan of QwaQwa, near the border with Lesotho, southwest of Witsieshoek. It then flows south-west, marking the border with South Africa and Lesotho before entering South...
bounds Smithfield on the east and south. The district is drained by various tributaries of this river, the Vinkel and Wilgeboom Spruits being the largest. As the town lies 13 km west of the river, water has to be obtained from boreholes around the town dam.
Demographics and economy
Smithfield has a small population of approximately 4,500. It is a prosperous wool-growing district, in addition to cattle farming. Originally an important wool-growing area, in recent times its position astride major tourist routes, has lent impetus to growing tourism.Places of interest
Ou Grietjie, a cannon used by the Free StateFree 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...
in the Basuto wars, has been mounted in front of the magistrate's office. It was named after Margaret (Grietjie), wife of the gunner Robert Finlay.
The Caledon River
Caledon River
The Caledon River is located in south-east Africa, rising in the Drakensberg Mountains in Lesotho. Origin in the former bantustan of QwaQwa, near the border with Lesotho, southwest of Witsieshoek. It then flows south-west, marking the border with South Africa and Lesotho before entering South...
museum is located in town. The Carmel and Beersheba missionary posts are experiencing some revival, with houses increasingly renovated.
The well-maintained local golf course dates back more than 100 years. Its facilities are open to guests, as are local tennis and bowls clubs. (portions of text adapted from pula house web site at pula-house).
Hills surrounding the town are considered well-suited to hiking, walking, horse-riding and birdwatching in relative isolation. Local secondary roads are suitable for mountain biking.
Blesbok
Blesbok
The Blesbok or Blesbuck is an antelope with a distinctive white face and forehead. Its white face is the origin of its name, because bles is the Afrikaans word for bald...
and some Zebra
Zebra
Zebras are several species of African equids united by their distinctive black and white stripes. Their stripes come in different patterns unique to each individual. They are generally social animals that live in small harems to large herds...
are to be found in the open savanna.
Archaeology
Archaeologically, the name Smithfield is well known as an important Stone AgeStone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
culture was named after the town. Renowned scientist George Stow excavated a cave near Smithfield in 1877 and found tools from the Late Stone Age which he described in the book, "Native races of South Africa". Bushman
Bushmen
The indigenous people of Southern Africa, whose territory spans most areas of South Africa, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Mozambique, Swaziland, Botswana, Namibia, and Angola, are variously referred to as Bushmen, San, Sho, Barwa, Kung, or Khwe...
paintings are present in nearby hills.