Odendaalsrus is the oldest

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

mining town in the

Lejweleputswa District Municipality Lejweleputswa ( Sesotho word meaning "Grey rock" in English) is one of the 5 districts of Free State province of South Africa. The seat of Lejweleputswa is Welkom. The majority of its 657 019 people speak Sotho (2001 Census). The district code is ...

in the

goldfields Goldfield or Goldfields may refer to: Places * Goldfield, Arizona, the former name of Youngberg, Arizona, a populated place in the United States * Goldfield, Colorado, a community in the United States * Goldfield, Iowa, a city in the United State ...

of the Free State province in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

History

It started out in

1912 Events January * January 1 – The Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China is established. * January 5 – The Prague Conference (6th All-Russian Conference of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party) opens. * January 6 ...

as a ramshackle collection of farms and a central church that became a town. In April

1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...

gold was struck on the farm ''Geduld'' near the town. This discovery was mentioned in Alan Paton's novel ''

Cry, the Beloved Country ''Cry, the Beloved Country'' is a 1948 novel by South African writer Alan Paton. Set in the prelude to apartheid in South Africa, it follows a black village priest and a white farmer who must deal with news of a murder. American publisher Benne ...

''. On 5 December 2000, Odendaalrus was incorporated into the

Matjhabeng Local Municipality Matjhabeng Local Municipality is a local government serving an administrative area in the Lejweleputswa District of the Free State in South Africa. The municipality services Welkom, Virginia, Odendaalsrus and Allanridge. The name is a Sesotho ...

along with the city of

Welkom Welkom () is the second-largest city in the Free State province of South Africa, located about northeast of Bloemfontein which is the provincial capital. Welkom is also known as Circle City, City Within A Garden, Mvela and Matjhabeng. The cit ...

and the towns of

Allanridge Allanridge is a gold mining town in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality of the Free State province in South Africa. It is the main centre of the Loraine Gold Mining Company and is dominated by the tall headgear and complex reduction works tha ...

Hennenman Hennenman is a town in the Free State goldfields in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality of the Free State province of South Africa. The settlement is unusual for the district as being supported by agriculture rather than the mining industr ...

Ventersburg Ventersburg is a small town in the Lejweleputswa District Municipality of the Free State (province), Free State province in South Africa, 148 km north of Bloemfontein. History It was established on the farm Kromfontein which was owned by PA ...

and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. Odendaalsrus celebrated its 100th anniversary in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, it is a town located on the Goldfields close to a couple of mines, and a large Harcos farm producing chickens and eggs.

Kutlwanong

''Kutloanong Location'' is a township located about 10 km outside Odendaalsrus, between

and

, established to house black people during the

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

era. Kutlwanong is divided into 16 sections, namely: k1, k2, k3, k4, k5, k6, k7, k8, k9, k10 and block 1, block 2, block 4, block 5, block 6, and block 7.First people to live there were group of Black people from Hospital Park; 2 km from Odendaalsrus. Where they were evicted and forced to live in separate sections according to their ethnicity creating conflict between tribes. Reason for eviction is said to be the closeness of the black suburb to the town. It falls under the Municipality of Lejweleputsa. It is well known for political such as Sipho Mutsi the youth activist of all time, and producing soccer stars such as Kamohelo Mokotjo, Khotso Moleko and Abram "Wire" Nteo Vuyisile Wana as well as the musical artist, Neo Matla popularly known as Snaker Da Ray and Kegomoditswe Modimola popular known as Trxppyego, producer Millz Mc Jordan many more upcoming stars.

References

External links

* Populated places in the Matjhabeng Local Municipality Mining communities in South Africa Populated places established in 1912 1912 establishments in South Africa {{FreeState-geo-stub