Douglas, South Africa

Douglas is an agricultural and stock farming town situated near the confluence of the Orange and Vaal rivers in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. Notably the rural town has a diverse population, with mostly state institutions and the anchor private employer, GWK, an agricultural company.

Douglas
Douglas suburbia
Douglas Show map of Northern Cape Douglas Show map of South Africa
Coordinates: 29°03′S 23°46′E
Country	South Africa
Province	Northern Cape
District	Pixley ka Seme
Municipality	Siyancuma
Area [1]
• Total	86.42 km2 (33.37 sq mi)
Elevation	990 m (3,250 ft)
Population  (2011)[1]
• Total	20,083
• Density	232.4/km2 (601.9/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [1]
• Black African	32.1%
• Coloured	58.3%
• Indian/Asian	0.8%
• White	8.0%
• Other	0.9%
First languages (2011) [1]
• Afrikaans	93.1%
• Tswana	2.3%
• English	1.5%
• Other	3.1%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)	8730
PO box	8730
Area code	053

History

The town was founded in 1848 as a mission station on the farm Backhouse by the Reverend Isaac Hughes,^[2] who had been working along the Vaal River since 1845. In 1867, a group of Europeans from Griquatown signed an agreement giving them the right to establish a town. The town was named after General Sir Percy Douglas, Lieutenant Governor of the Cape Colony.

Geography

Douglas lies about 100 km southwest of Kimberley, the capital of the Northern Cape. These two are connected by the R357 road.^[3]

Climate

Douglas has a record of its elevation above sea level of 1030.22 meters (3379.99 feet). Comparing Douglas district's yearly temperature to South Africa's averages, the records show that it is 4.01% higher with a temperature 25.23 °C (77.41 °F). Douglas is known for its Subtropical desert climate with 38.78 rainy days (10.62% of the time) and precipitation of about 19.31 millimeters (0.76 inches) annually.^[4]

Notable people from Douglas

• Ingrid Jonker, poet
• Dirk de Villiers, filmmaker