Klerksdorp

The modern, bustling town of Klerksdorp originally started as a farm, settled by one of the first voortrekkers on the banks of the Schoonspruit ('clear stream'). It continued as a small rural village until the discovery of gold in August 1886. Then the boom began.

By 1889 Klerksdorp had over 200 commercial buildings, including 69 taverns and a stock exchange. But the rush did not last long; the gold was too low-grade for most over-capitalised companies to make a profit.

Places of interest in the Klerksdorp area include the rock engravings at nearby Bosworth Farm, the railway station, Klerksdorp Museum (which is housed in the old prison), the original Stock Exchange building and an old cemetery dating back to the Anglo-Boer War.

The region's prosperity today comes from the mining of gold and uranium. It is also a large agricultural area with the largest grain co-operative in the southern hemisphere.

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