Colesberg
Colesberg is a town with 17,354 inhabitants in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, located on the main N1 road from Cape Town to Johannesburg.
For the city in the United States, see Colesburg, Iowa.
Colesberg
Koolsberg in Afrikaans orthography
1830[1]
174.84 km2 (67.51 sq mi)
16,869
96/km2 (250/sq mi)
67.4%
25.7%
0.6%
5.3%
1.0%
59.5%
33.1%
2.8%
1.8%
2.9%
051
In a sheep-farming area spread over half-a-million hectares, greater Colesberg breeds many of the country's top merinos. It is also renowned for producing high-quality racehorses and many stud farms, including one owned by renowned golfer, Gary Player, are nearby.
Cityscape[edit]
Architecture[edit]
The town boasts many buildings that were built in a blend of Cape Dutch and Georgian architecture with ceilings of reed, and yellowwood timbers, and others that display a range of designs reflecting the changes of 19th century building. Originally plots were pegged out and sold on the site of the town to fund the building of the Dutch Reformed church.
Economy[edit]
Farming in the area is dedicated almost entirely to horses and merino sheep. While in a sheep-farming area spread over half-a-million hectares, greater Colesberg breeds many of the country's top merinos. Colesberg is renowned for producing high-quality racehorses and many stud farms, including one owned by legendary golfer, Gary Player, are nearby. The ostrich-feather boom of the early 1900s, which left many farmers rich, is long forgotten.
The town has a thriving tourism industry, in part because it represents a rough halfway point between Johannesburg and Cape Town.[6] There is a hotel, a motel, and many guest houses and B&Bs around town, most having restaurants and pubs on-site. Several guest farms operate in the district offering accommodation with 4x4 trails, mountain bike trails, game hunting (mainly springbok, wildebeest and blesbok) and bird watching. Three major service stations with on-site shops, restaurants and toilet facilities are located on the N1 at Colesberg. Small industries are located in town, including a sheep abattoir, a factory which makes a range of furniture to order and a panel beater.
The Doornkloof Nature Reserve is located near Colesberg on the confluence of the Orange and Seekoei Rivers.