Modimolle

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Modimolle (formerly known as Nylstroom) is a town located near the southern edge of the Waterberg Massif in Limpopo province, South Africa. It is a medium sized town that focuses primarily on agriculture and farming (citrus, grapes and cattle) as well as wildlife and tourism. Modimolle is located approximately 135 kilometres north of Pretoria. The Waterberg Biosphere spreading north, a UNESCO designated Biosphere Reserve, contains approximately 15,000 square kilometers. Waterberg is the first region in the northern part of South Africa to be named as a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. The extensive rock formation was shaped by hundreds of millions of years of riverine erosion to yield diverse bluff and butte landform^[1]. The ecosystem can be characterised as a dry deciduous forest or Bushveld.

In the 1860s, a Voortrekker group of Dutch religious zealots known as the Jerusalem Trekkers set off for the Holy Land and after discovering what they thought was the Nyl (Nile) River, they settled here.^[2] A Dutch Reformed Church was built in 1889 and is the oldest church in sub-sahara Africa north of Pretoria. The church was used as a hospital during the Second Boer War. The railway reach Nylstroom in 1898 from Pretoria. The British built a concentration camp here during the Boer War to house Boer women and children of which 544 died. Prime Minister JG Strijdom used to reside in Nylstroom.

[edit] Demography

According to the 2001 census conducted by Statistics South Africa, the population of the greater Modimolle municipality is 46,086, of which 86.4% are African, 13% white, 0.3% Coloured and 0.2% Asian. The white population is likely to have been undercounted, a common problem with the 2001 census.

[edit] References

Coordinates: 24°42′S, 28°24′E