Burgersdorp

For the town in Limpopo, see Burgersdorp, Limpopo.

Burgersdorp Burghersdorp
Burgersdorp viewed from The Sentinel blockhouse Burgersdorp viewed from The Sentinel blockhouse
Burgersdorp  Burgersdorp shown within Eastern Cape
Coordinates:
Country	South Africa
Province	Eastern Cape
District	Joe Gqabi
Municipality	Gariep
Established	1846
Government
• Type	Local Municipality
• Mayor	Ncedo Ngoqo (ANC)
Area
• Total	30.9 km2 (11.9 sq mi)
Population (2011)
• Total	15,991
• Density	520/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
• Black African	78.1%
• Coloured	12.0%
• Indian/Asian	0.3%
• White	9.4%
• Other	0.2%
First languages (2011)
• Xhosa	71.6%
• Afrikaans	20.8%
• Sotho	3.4%
• English	1.4%
• Other	2.8%
Postal code (street)	9744
PO box	9744
Area code	051

Burgersdorp is a medium-sized town in Gariep in the Joe Gqabi District Municipality of the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.

In 1869 a Theological Seminary was established here by the Gereformeerde Kerk, but in 1905 it was moved to Potchefstroom, acting as an instrument in the formation of the PUK in 1919, becoming the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education in 1951.

The Afrikaner Bond political party was founded in Burgersdorp in 1881.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census, the town of Burgersdorp proper has a population of 5,240, while the adjacent townships of Mzamomhle and Tembisa have populations of 4,656 and 6,094 respectively, giving the urban area a population of 15,990. Of this population 78.1% described themselves as Black African, 11.98% as Coloured and 9.4% as White. 69.2% spoke Xhosa as their home language, 20.1% spoke Afrikaans, 3.3% spoke Sotho, 1.4% spoke English as their home language and 6.0% spoke some other language.

Transport

Rail

The first rail connection to Burgersdorp was opened on 19 March 1885. Today Shosholoza Meyl provides passenger rail service to Burgersdorp on its Johannesburg-Bloemfontein-East London route.

Road

Burgersdorp is located on the junction of the R58 between Aliwal North and Venterstad; and the R391 leading to Hofmeyr, Molteno and Steynsburg.

Society and culture

Sport

Match 18 of the 1910 British Lions tour to South Africa was played in Burgersdorp.

Museums, monuments and memorials

Ten of the Eastern Cape's provincial heritage sites can be found in Burgersdorp. They include the Christ Church, the Coetzee House, the De Bruin House, the Jubilee Fountain, the Old Goal, the Old Reformed Church Parsonage, the Old Reformed Church Theological Seminary as well as the three listed below in more detail.

Dutch Reformed Church

This church was declared a provincial heritage site in 1996.

Blockhouse

A Second Boer War blockhouse overlooking the town, commonly known as the Sentinel was declared a provincial heritage site in 1939.

Dutch Language Monument

See also: Afrikaans Language Monument

A monument to Dutch, build in 1893 is located in the town. The monument depicts a woman pointing her finger at a book in her hands. This monument was declared a provincial heritage site in 1937.

Although the main inscription on that monument refers to the Hollandse taal (Dutch language), it can be understood to mean Afrikaans, because the Hollandse taal in South Africa was only split since 1925. But the monument is officially recognised as a monument to Dutch.

The monument was damaged during the Anglo-Boer War, and Lord Milner had it removed. It was replaced with a replica in 1907. The original was later discovered in King William's Town in 1939, and moved back to stand next to the replica in Burgersdorp.

Some sources claim that Lord Milner had removed the original monument not because it was damaged, but because he was opposed to Dutch (and Afrikaans), and that the replica was built not by government but by a group of Afrikaners.

• Burgersdorp-Language Monument-002.JPG

  The replica (left) and original (right) Dutch Language Monuments

• 

  The Sentinel Blockhouse

• Burgersdorp-NGKerk-001.JPG

  The Dutch Reformed Church

External links

• Hoërskool Burgersdorp
• Laerskool Burgersdorp
• Burgersdorp.za.net
• Name of Burgersdorp, Dictionary of Southern African Place Names, Raper P.E., 1987