Cathcart is a town in the

Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape ( ; ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also kno ...

province of South Africa, named after Sir

George Cathcart Major-General Sir George Cathcart (12 May 1794 – 5 November 1854) was a Scottish general and diplomat. He was killed in action at the Battle of Inkerman during the Crimean War. Military career Cathcart was born in Renfrewshire, a younger ...

, governor of the

Colony of the Cape of Good Hope The Cape Colony (), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope. It existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when it united with three other colonies ...

1852–1853. The town is situated on the N6, north of

Stutterheim Stutterheim is a town with a population of 46,730 in South Africa, situated in the Border region of the Eastern Cape province. It is named after Richard von Stutterheim. History The area's earliest human population were Bushmen. Khoikhoi groups ...

en route to

Komani Komani may refer to: * Official name of Queenstown, South Africa, Eastern Cape * Komani River, a river in South Africa * Lake Komani, a reservoir in Albania ** Komani Hydro Power Plant * Norman Komani, Zimbabwean football player See also

* Co ...

Establishment

Originally a small military post established during the Eighth Frontier War, Cathcart was established as a village in 1858 when German colonists arrived in the region. The village was formally laid out in 1858 and it only consisted of one inhabited dwelling. It only gained more settlers in the year 1876. It was named after the governor of the Colony of the Good Hope in 1852-1853,

Sir George Cathcart Major-General Sir George Cathcart (12 May 1794 – 5 November 1854) was a Scottish general and diplomat. He was killed in action at the Battle of Inkerman during the Crimean War. Military career Cathcart was born in Renfrewshire, a younger ...

. Work on its railway connection to

East London East London is the part of London, England, east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames as it begins to widen. East London developed as London Docklands, London's docklands and the primary industrial centre. The expansion of ...

on the coast was begun by the

Cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used th ...

government of

John Molteno Sir John Charles Molteno (; 5 June 1814 – 1 September 1886) was a politician and businessman who served as the first Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1872 to 1878. Early life Born in London into a large Anglo-Italian family, Molten ...

in 1876, and the line was officially opened on 3 November 1879. The Cathcart Shrine was the first built shrine in Africa and it was blessed in 1949.

Religion

St. Alban's

Anglican Church Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

, built in 1886 is a well known landmark in Cathcart and has an unusual and distinctive Western façade.

Education

There are a number of

high schools A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

and

primary schools A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

in Cathcart. Cathcart High School is located north of the town near the N6 route to Queenstown. •* Cathcart Primary School •* Cathcart High School •* Fenfield Farm School •* Goshen Public School

Notable people

Allister Sparks Allister Haddon Sparks (10 March 1933 – 19 September 2016) was a South African writer, journalist, and political commentator. He was the editor of '' The Rand Daily Mail'' when it broke Muldergate, the story of how the apartheid government se ...

References

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External links

Populated places in the Amahlathi Local Municipality Populated places established in 1858 {{EasternCape-geo-stub