Barkly West

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title: "Barkly West" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["populated-places-established-in-1869", "populated-places-in-the-dikgatlong-local-municipality", "1869-establishments-in-the-cape-colony"] topic_path: "general/populated-places-established-in-1869" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barkly_West" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

FieldValue
nameBarkly West
native_name{{Plainlist
image_skyline00000-Canteen Kopjie Monument-Barkly West-s.jpg
pushpin_mapSouth Africa Northern Cape#South Africa
coordinates
subdivision_typeCountry
subdivision_nameSouth Africa
subdivision_type1Province
subdivision_name1Northern Cape
subdivision_type2District
subdivision_name2Frances Baard
subdivision_type3Municipality
subdivision_name3Dikgatlong
subdivision_type4Main Place
established_titleEstablished
leader_titleCouncillor
area_footnotes
area_total_km273.1
population_footnotes
population_total20105
population_as_of2011
population_density_km2auto
demographics_type1
demographics1_footnotes
demographics1_title1Black African
demographics1_info171.7%
demographics1_title2Coloured
demographics1_info222.6%
demographics1_title3Indian/Asian
demographics1_info30.4%
demographics1_title4White
demographics1_info43.7%
demographics1_title5Other
demographics1_info51.6%
demographics_type2
demographics2_footnotes
demographics2_title1Tswana
demographics2_info160.3%
demographics2_title2Afrikaans
demographics2_info231.4%
demographics2_title3English
demographics2_info32.3%
demographics2_title4Sotho
demographics2_info41.8%
demographics2_title5Other
demographics2_info54.1%
timezone1
utc_offset1+2
postal_code_typePostal code (street)
postal_code8375
postal2_code_typePO box
postal2_code8375
area_code_typeArea code
area_code053
::

| name = Barkly West | native_name = {{Plainlist|

  • af
  • kqz | image_skyline = 00000-Canteen Kopjie Monument-Barkly West-s.jpg | pushpin_map = South Africa Northern Cape#South Africa | coordinates = | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = South Africa | subdivision_type1 = Province | subdivision_name1 = Northern Cape | subdivision_type2 = District | subdivision_name2 = Frances Baard | subdivision_type3 = Municipality | subdivision_name3 = Dikgatlong | subdivision_type4 = Main Place | established_title = Established | leader_title = Councillor | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = 73.1 | population_footnotes = | population_total = 20105 | population_as_of = 2011 | population_density_km2 = auto | demographics_type1 = Racial makeup (2011) | demographics1_footnotes = | demographics1_title1 = Black African | demographics1_info1 = 71.7% | demographics1_title2 = Coloured | demographics1_info2 = 22.6% | demographics1_title3 = Indian/Asian | demographics1_info3 = 0.4% | demographics1_title4 = White | demographics1_info4 = 3.7% | demographics1_title5 = Other | demographics1_info5 = 1.6% | demographics_type2 = First languages (2011) | demographics2_footnotes = | demographics2_title1 = Tswana | demographics2_info1 = 60.3% | demographics2_title2 = Afrikaans | demographics2_info2 = 31.4% | demographics2_title3 = English | demographics2_info3 = 2.3% | demographics2_title4 = Sotho | demographics2_info4 = 1.8% | demographics2_title5 = Other | demographics2_info5 = 4.1% | timezone1 = SAST | utc_offset1 = +2 | postal_code_type = Postal code (street) | postal_code = 8375 | postal2_code_type = PO box | postal2_code = 8375 | area_code_type = Area code | area_code = 053 Barkly West is a town in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, situated on the north bank of the Vaal River west of Kimberley.

Establishment and naming

Barkly West was initially known as Klip Drift (sometimes written as Klipdrift). This Dutch name means "stony ford" and is a direct translation from a much older !Kora or Korana name, Ka-aub (or !a |aub) - "stony (place along a) river". In 1870, it became the site of the first major diamond rush on the South African Diamond Fields. The surrounding area was briefly known as "Klipdrift Diggers' Republic" and the town was renamed Parkerton, in honor of Stafford Parker before colonial rule was extended there. It became, with Kimberley, one of the main towns in the Crown Colony of Griqualand West and was renamed Barkly West (see the article on New Rush). Like Barkly East, the town is named after Sir Henry Barkly, Governor of Cape Colony and High Commissioner for Southern Africa from 1870 to 1877. During the Anglo-Boer War the town was occupied by Boer forces and temporarily went by the name Nieuw Boshof.

Barkly West is sometimes erroneously spelled as "Barkley-West" (even in road signage). In Afrikaans the town is known as Barkly-Wes. The local municipality, post-1994, is called Dikgatlong, part of the Frances Baard District Municipality.

Heritage sites

  • The Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin was the first Anglican Church to be built on the Diamond Fields. Sir Henry Barkly laid the foundation stone in February 1871.
  • Canteen Kopje is the site of early diamond diggings which also exposed a major archaeological occurrence of stratified Acheulean facies, subject to a current collaborative research venture by the University of Southampton, the University of the Witwatersrand and the McGregor Museum in Kimberley.
  • Barkly West Museum situated in the Toll House at the Barkly Bridge (see next).
  • The iron Barkly Bridge, the first over the Vaal River, was transported in sections from the United Kingdom (by sea, rail and, over the last more than 100 km by ox wagon) and erected across the Vaal in 1885. A steel plate gives details of its manufacture: "Westwood, Baillie & Co, Engineers and Contractors, London 1884." Shops in Kimberley and Barkly West closed for the occasion when the bridge was opened. A new bridge was built alongside in the 1970s. The toll house erected to recover revenues from those using the old bridge now serves as a museum, opened in 2000.
  • The Nooitgedacht Glacial Pavements, upstream along the Vaal River between Barkly West and Kimberley, with evidence of the Dwyka glaciation some 300 million years ago. Much later - within the last 1500 years or so - the scoured rocks were used by Later Stone Age people as panels for rock engravings.

Notable residents

  • Renowned writer Sarah Gertrude Millin grew up at Longlands outside Barkly West and her father opened the first shop in town.
  • Cecil Rhodes held the seat of Barkly West in the House of Assembly of Cape Colony until his death in 1902.
  • Z.K. Matthews (1901May 1968), prominent black academic who became a president of the African National Congress and assisted in the drafting of the Freedom Charter, was born at Winters Rush outside Barkly West. The new hospital is named after Professor Z.K. Matthews.
  • Mphashane Reginald Leeuw, from Barkly West, was instituted and installed as the Dean of Kimberley, 2015.

References

References

  1. Sum of the Main Places [http://census2011.adrianfrith.com/place/384013 Barkly West] and [http://census2011.adrianfrith.com/place/384014 Mataleng] from Census 2011.
  2. Van Vreeden, B.F. 1961. Die oorsprong en geskiedenis van plekname in Noord-Kaapland en die aangrensende gebiede. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of the Witwatersrand.
  3. Raper, P. E.. (1989). "Dictionary of Southern African Place Names". Jonathan Ball Publishers.
  4. ''Standard Encyclopaedia of South Africa''. 1970. Pretoria: Nasou Ltd. Vol 2, p 177
  5. Pressly, Canon G.N. 1971. St Mary's Centenary booklet.
  6. Morris, D. & Beaumont, P. 2004. ''Archaeology in the Northern Cape: some key sites''. Kimberley: McGregor Museum
  7. [http://www.aatours.co.za/ Ashley's Adventure Tours: Exploring Barkly West and the Diamond Fields] {{webarchive. link. (September 3, 2011)

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