Clanwilliam Dam

Clanwilliam

Clanwilliam is a town in the Olifants River valley in the Western Cape, South Africa, about 200 kilometres (120 mi) north of Cape Town. It is located in, and the seat of, the Cederberg Local Municipality. As of 2011 Clanwilliam had a population of 7,674. Clanwilliam is situated at an elevation of 100 metres (330 ft), between the western slopes of the Cederberg mountains and the east bank of the Olifants River, which is impounded there by the Clanwilliam Dam. It is located just off the N7 national road, which runs from Cape Town to the Namibian border, and on the R364 road, which runs from Lamberts Bay to Calvinia. Clanwilliam is 230 kilometres (140 mi) from Cape Town by road.

History

Clanwilliam Dam is a concrete gravity dam. It was established in 1935, and the wall was raised to its current height of 43 metres (141 ft) in 1964. The main purpose of the dam is to provide irrigation water to the agricultural region downstream. The Dutch Reform Church has been a scheduled national monument since 1973. The mission there used to run a school where Harold Cressy once taught whilst studying to become the first coloured man to gain a degree in Cape Town.

Rooibos

In 1930 District Surgeon and botanist Dr Pieter Le Fras Nortier Rhodes scholar began conducting experiments with the cultivation of the rooibos plant. Dr Nortier also saw the vast commercial potential the tea held for the region. Dr Nortier cultivated the first plants at Clanwilliam on his farm Eastside and on the farm Klein Kliphuis.