Mooi River (, ) is a small town situated at 1,389m above sea level and 160km from the coast in

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN) is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the government merged the Zulu people, Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu language, Zulu) and ...

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 ...

. The first European settlement in the area was at Mooi River Drift in 1852. This was formally named Weston in 1866 after the first Governor of

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

, Martin West.

History

In 1879, an Irishman named Alexander Lawrence purchased the Grantleigh farm upstream from Weston, on the banks of the Mooi River. Mooirivier is

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

for "pretty river". In 1884, the railway line from Durban on the coast, to Johannesburg in the interior, reached the area and was built across Alexander Lawrence's land. He subsequently laid out and established the village of Lawrenceville on his farm, Grantleigh, and so is known as "The Father of Mooi River". In 1921, the village was renamed Mooi River when it was declared a town.

Geography

It lies on the N3 national road and rail routes between

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

and

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

. Although the railway station is no longer used for passengers, goods are still being handled there. There is a

toll plaza A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or '' toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and maintenan ...

located on the N3 at Mooi River.

Education

Six schools are serving the Mooi River municipal area with numerous others further from town that serve the traditional farm labourer communities. The six main schools are: *

Treverton Preparatory School and College Treverton Preparatory School and College, situated in Mooi River ( Umgungundlovu District Municipality), South Africa, cater to boys and girls of all faiths from Grades 0 to 12 and Post-Matric. As a member of the Independent Schools Associati ...

, a private school of about 600 students. In the hills of the small game park within Treverton, there lie some trenches used in the Boer wars. From these the Boers observed English movements at Weston, their remount depot. *

Weston Agricultural College Weston may refer to: Places Australia * Weston, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Weston, New South Wales * Weston Creek, a residential district of Canberra * Weston Park, Canberra, a park Canada * Weston, Nova Scoti ...

, a public

agricultural school Agricultural education is the systematic and organized teaching, instruction and training (theoretical as well as hands-on, real-world fieldwork-based) available to students, farmers or individuals interested in the science, business and technol ...

of good repute. There is a great rugby rivalry between them and Treverton. * Mooi River Primary in the centre of town. * Ai Kajee Primary. * Bruntville Primary serving the Bruntville area * Emnyezaneni Secondary school serving the Bruntville area

Economy

The urban economy of the area is currently based primarily on retail entrepreneurship, tourism and supporting the local agricultural community. Previously, the backbone of the urban economy had been Mooi River Textiles which finally closed in 2002 after years of downsizing. The decline of the textile industry is being reversed however with large foreign investment from the Far East. The rural economy is based on agriculture and tourism. The main farming categories are dairy and equine. Local farmers are supported by the Mooi River Farmers' Association.

Tourism

Mooi River forms an important part of the Midlands Meander tourism route.Info at midlandsmeander.co.za
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Notable people

Candice Swanepoel Candice Susan Swanepoel (; ; born 20 October 1988) is a South African model. She is known for her work with Victoria's Secret. She became a Victoria's Secret Angel in 2010. In 2016, she was listed 8th on the ''Forbes'' top-earning models list. ...

– supermodel best known for her work with Victoria's Secret. In 2012, she came in 10th on the Forbes top-earning models list. *

Sun-El Musician Sanele Tresure Sithole (born 28 March 1989), known professionally as Sun-El Musician, is a South African disc jockey, music producer, and songwriter. Born and raised in Mooi River (town), Mooi River, he attended the University of KwaZulu-Natal bu ...

– South African DJ *

Kwazi Mshengu Kwazikwenkosi Innocent Mshengu (born 10 November 1984) is a South African lawyer and African National Congress politician who served as the Member of the Executive Council (MEC) for Education in KwaZulu-Natal until 11 August 2022 when he was repl ...

–

MEC for Education, member of the

KwaZulu-Natal Legislature The KwaZulu-Natal Legislature is the primary legislative body of the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal. It is unicameral in its composition and elects the premier and the provincial cabinet from among the leading party or coalition members ...

: 2019-present * Chris Pappas – member of the

: 2019-present * Lars Georg Svensson – cardiac surgeon, chairman of the heart and vascular institute at

Cleveland Clinic Cleveland Clinic is an American Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Academic health science center, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center based in Cleveland, Ohio. Owned and operated by the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, an O ...

, US. * Vusi Khanyile – businessman, investor and founding Chairman of Thebe Investment Holdings

References

External links

{{Authority control Populated places in the Mpofana Local Municipality