Bushman's River Mouth

Bushman's River Mouth (Afrikaans Boesmansriviermond, which is its official name) is a town in Ndlambe Local Municipality in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.

Bushman's River Mouth Boesmansriviermond
Bushman's River Mouth
Bushman's River Mouth Show map of Eastern Cape Bushman's River Mouth Show map of South Africa
Coordinates: 33.7°S 26.666°E / -33.7; 26.666
Country	South Africa
Province	Eastern Cape
District	Sarah Baartman
Municipality	Ndlambe
Area [1]
• Total	15.82 km2 (6.11 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[1]
• Total	6,147
• Density	390/km2 (1,000/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011) [1]
• Black African	77.5%
• Coloured	13.6%
• Indian/Asian	0.2%
• White	8.3%
• Other	0.5%
First languages (2011) [1]
• Xhosa	74.1%
• Afrikaans	16.9%
• English	6.6%
• Other	2.3%
Time zone	UTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)	6190
PO box	6190

The village is 25 km from Port Alfred,^[2] on the west bank of the Bushman's River, just across the river from Kenton-on-Sea.^[3]

Background

A well-known holiday resort, it is the site of many shipwrecks, the best-known of them being the Volo, a Norwegian barque wrecked near the river mouth in 1896.^[4]

The town was established in 1897 by farmers from nearby towns (Paterson, Cookhouse, Somerset East and Cradock) when they were granted permission to camp along the banks of the Bushman's River during the Christmas holiday season. Land leases during the early 1900s led to private land ownership, and modern development, though electricity and running water only became available in the 1980s.^[5]

The Dias Cross Memorial at nearby Kwaaihoek is a provincial heritage site erected to mark the location of the padrão, or stone pillar, planted in 1488 by Portuguese sailors led by Bartolomeu Dias.^[6]

Boesmansriviermond has an active ratepayers association known as BRRAG (Bushman's River Ratepayers' Organisation) with website www.bushmansratepayers.co.za

References

1. "Main Place Bushman's River Mouth". Census 2011.
2. "Boesmansriviermond". Pam Golding Properties. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
3. Ivor Whibley (2003). The South African Fisherman. Struik. p. 149. ISBN 978-1-86872-802-2.^{[permanent dead link]}
4. "Boesmansriviermond". Sunshine Coast Tourism. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
5. "Boesmansriviermond/Bushman's River Mouth & Riversbend". Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
6. "Diaz Cross Memorial". WhereToStay. Retrieved 27 January 2014.