Hopetown

Hopetown in the Northern Cape has a very interesting history. It was founded in 1850, as a northern frontier town, by Sir Harry Smith and populated by a few settlers who claimed land at a natural ford over the Orange River. Hopetown was named after William Hope, Auditor-General and Secretary of the Cape Colony Government at the time.

Hopetown remained an isolated farming area until, in 1858, a 15-year old boy, Erasmus Jacobs, was found playing with a stone by neighbour, Schalk van Niekerk, who suspected it may be a diamond.

The stone was sent to John O’Reilly, who in turn, presented it to Lorenzo Boyes, magistrate of Colesberg. Boyes tested it by carving the initials DP into his office window pane, which can still be seen. The stone was then sent to Grahamstown where it was shown to be a 21.25 carat diamond. Sir Philip Woodhouse, Governor of the Cape, bought the stone for 500 British Pounds, quite an amount in those days. This stone is known as Eureka.

The diamond was so amazing it was presented to Queen Victoria and displayed at the 1867 Paris Exhibition. 100 years after its initial discovery, the diamond was purchased and donated back to the South African people and is currently on display at the Kimberley Mine Museum.

No-one knew exactly where it came from. It was thought to be an isolated specimen carried to the area in the crop of a wild ostrich. But, then, in 1868, a Griqua witch doctor, Booi, picked up a similar stone on the farm Zandfontein. When it was tested it was found to be an 83.5-carat diamond. Again Van Niekerk acquired it and sold it to the Lilienfeld Brothers for 11 000 pounds. They in turn sold it to the Earl of Dudley for 30 000 pounds and the Diamond Rush to South Africa started.

Suddenly Hopetown lived up to its name. Fortune hunters poured down the Diamond Way and into the little village. But they did not simply stop there as it seemed almost every day new finds were happening resulting in a tremendous Diamond Fever. The trail led steadily northwards and ended at Colesberg Koppie in Kimberley. Once news of this koppie spread the New Rush started and the Big Hole was created.

Unfortunately, no more diamonds were ever found in Hopetown, but Hopetown boomed. It became a vital stop and supplier to the Diamond Fields and local people were gainfully employed as transport riders. The Cape Government Railways were founded in 1872, and the Cape government decided to run the main western line, between the Kimberley diamond fields and Cape Town on the coast, directly through Hopetown. The ford was upgraded to a railway bridge in 1884.

The Hopetown horsemen could not compete with rail transport and the need for accommodation and fodder dwindled – Hopetown sank into the doldrums. Then, in 1897, a disgruntled local farmer decided “to blow some life back into the town.” He claimed magnificent new finds on his farm and within three weeks 10 000 men “maddened by diamond fever” rushed back to Hopetown. This second boom was a flash in the pan. His sham was soon uncovered, he had salted his lands and all he had managed to do was create “The Great Sucker Rush”.

Today, Hopetown serves the surrounding fruit, stock, wheat and potato farms.

Attractions around Hopetown:

Canoe the white waters for 60km along the mighty Gariep (Orange) River on an exciting trip with the right mix of rapids to get the adrenalin racing and flat stretches with magnificent scenery.

San Rock Art: Some good examples of San rock art can be seen on the farms Houtville and Gelukspoort.

Blockhouse: The blockhouse at Orange River Station dates back to the Anglo-Boer War. The British built these all over the countryside to protect the railway lines against Boer attacks.

Concentration Camp Cemetery: Also at Orange River Station, this is the last resting place of a number of Boer women and children who died under horrible conditions in the Anglo-Boer War concentration camps. The Garden of Remembrance was planted in honour of the casualties of that war.

Convict Stone: The old magistrate’s building in the town did not have a holding cell where they could keep convicts. The next logical choice was a large heavy stone to which the convicts could be chained – hence the Convict Stone.

Mark of “Star of South Africa”: When people would not believe that “The Star of South Africa” was really a diamond, a cut was made on one of the windows of the building at 33 Church Street to prove its authenticity.

Rural Monument: The monument commemorates the Great Trek of 1838, when thousands of Boers left the Cape Colony in protest against British rule and formed independent Boer Republics north of the Orange River.

Wagon Bridge and Toll House: This bridge over the Orange River (now rebuilt) was blown up by British troops when they mistakenly thought that a Boer commando was heading towards them.

For more information on the Northern Cape, see ShowMe Northern Cape.