Evander is a town in
Mpumalanga
Mpumalanga () is a province of South Africa. The name means "East", or literally "The Place Where the Sun Rises" in the Swazi, Xhosa, Ndebele and Zulu languages. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Africa, bordering Eswatini and Mozambique. It ...
,
South Africa. It is approximately 8 km north west of
Secunda.
History
The town was founded in 1955 when the
Union Corporation started its mining activities and was originally part of the
Bethal
Bethal () is a farming town in Mpumalanga, South Africa. The farms in the region produce maize, sunflower seeds, sorghum, rye and potatoes. The town lies east of Johannesburg on the N17 National Route.
History
The town originated on an old farm ...
district (named after a town 36 km to the east).
The town is named after Evelyn Anderson, the wife of
Peter Maltitz Anderson
Peter Maltitz Anderson (30 September 1879, Heilbron, Orange Free State – 5 November 1954 ) was a South African mining engineer.
He was president of the South African Chamber of Mines in 1925, 1930, 1933, 1937 and 1940/1.
Union Corporation ...
, one of the directors of the corporation.
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]
Economy
Gold mining
The Union Corporation acquired options in the Kinross area, 64 km east of Springs. Mining started in 1955 though their subsidiary Winkelhaak Mines Ltd.
The Evander mine is currently operating in its 9th shaft and employs around 3,300 people. These operations, now owned by Harmony Gold, mine the Kimberley Reef in the Evander Basin and produced over 16 000 kg of gold from 2008 to 2010. The ore is milled and processed at Kinross, 7 km north.
Education
The town has a 5 primary schools (Emdibini, Hoëveld, Isikhumbuzo, Inqanawe, and T P Stratten), a high school
Evander High School
and hosts one of the four campuses of the Gert Sibande College (originally the Evander Technical Institute
Infrastructure
Airports
The Evander airfield is located just south-west of the town.
References
Populated places in the Govan Mbeki Local Municipality
Mining communities in South Africa
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