Wolseley is a small town in the upper
Breede River Valley region of the
Western Cape
The Western Cape ( ; , ) is a provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the List of South African provinces by area, fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , an ...
province of
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
. In the
2011 Census it had a population of 1,528 people.
It is located northeast of
Cape Town
Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...
, in the
Land van Waveren valley between the Waterval Mountains to the west and the
Witzenberg Mountains to the east.
Geography
Wolseley lies at an altitude of on the
watershed
Watershed may refer to:
Hydrology
* Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins
* Drainage basin, an area of land where surface water converges (North American usage)
Music
* Watershed Music Festival, an annual country ...
between the
drainage basin
A drainage basin is an area of land in which all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...
s of the
Breede River
The Breede River (), also known as Breƫ River, is a river in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Travelling inland north from the city of Cape Town, the river runs in a west to east direction. The surrounding western mountains formed th ...
, which flows south to the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...
, and the
Berg River, which flows north to the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
. It is south of
Tulbagh
Tulbagh (), previously named Roodezand, then Land van Waveren later in 1804 named after Cape of Good Hope Governor Ryk Tulbagh, is a town located in the "Land van Waveren" mountain basin (also known as the Tulbagh basin), in the Cape Winelands ...
, southwest of
Ceres, and northwest of
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engl ...
.
Government
Wolseley is divided between wards 2 and 7 of the
Witzenberg Local Municipality, which has its headquarters at Ceres.
Transport
Wolseley is located just off the
R46 regional route, which runs north to Tulbagh and the
Nuwekloof Pass to the
Swartland
The Swartland is a region of Western Cape Province that begins some north of Cape Town and consists of the area between the towns of Malmesbury, South Africa, Malmesbury in the south, Darling, Western Cape, Darling in the west, Piketberg in the ...
, and east over
Michell's Pass to Ceres. The
R43 regional route begins nearby at a junction with the R46, and runs south to the
N1 national route at Worcester. The R43 also connects to the
R301 over
Bain's Kloof Pass to
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
.
It is also situated on the main railway line from Cape Town to the interior.
Wolseley railway station is served by
Metrorail
METRORail is the light rail system in Houston, Texas (United States). In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of . METRORail ranks as the second most-traveled light rail system in the Southern United States and the List ...
's "Boland Blitz" service, with one train per day in the morning from Worcester to Cape Town, and one in the evening in the other direction. Wolseley is also the junction for the now-closed branch line to Ceres.
In popular culture
In the novel ''Wolseley'' (2014) by South African author John J le Grange, the town is home to the family of three who travel to Cape Town looking for a better fortune, as well as being the title to the book.
Wolseley (novel) listed on www.amazon.com
Retrieved on 2016-07-02.
References
External links
Wolseley Tourism
{{Cape Winelands District Municipality
Populated places in the Witzenberg Local Municipality