Potchefstroom

Potchefstroom (locally /ˈpɒtʃɛfstrʊərm/ POTCH-ef-stroorm; Afrikaans pronunciation: [ˌpɔtʃɛfˈstruəm]), colloquially known as Potch, is an academic city in the North West Province of South Africa. It hosts the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University. Potchefstroom is on the Mooirivier (Afrikaans for "pretty river"), roughly 120 km (75 mi) west-southwest of Johannesburg and 45 km (28 mi) east-northeast of Klerksdorp.
Several theories exist about the origin of the city's name. According to one theory, it originates from Potgieter + Chef + stroom (referring to Voortrekker leader and town founder Andries Potgieter; "chef" indicates the leader of the Voortrekkers, and "stroom" refers to the Mooi River).
Geoffrey Jenkins writes, "Others however, attribute the name as having come from the word 'Potscherf', meaning a shard of a broken pot, due to the cracks that appear in the soil of the Mooi River Valley during drought resembling a broken pot". M. L. Fick suggests that Potchefstroom developed from the abbreviation of "Potgieterstroom" to "Potgerstroom", which became "Potchefstroom". However, this does not account for the appearance of "Potjestroom" on many documents and photographs.
The African National Congress decided to change the name of the municipality and some street names in 2006, favouring "Tlokwe" as the new name. In 2007, its name was changed from Potchefstroom Municipality to Tlokwe Municipality. However, the city continued to use the name Potchefstroom. The Tlokwe Municipality merged with the Ventersdorp Municipality in 2016, forming the larger JB Marks Local Municipality.
Potchefstroom, founded in 1838 by the Voortrekkers, is the second-oldest European settlement in the Transvaal. The oldest European settlement is Klerksdorp, about 40 km (25 mi) west. Some historians challenge this, because the first settlement was in the "upper regions of the Schoon Spruit" (believed to have been between Klerksdorp and Potchefstroom). However, Potchefstroom was the first to develop into a town.
Until 1840, the towns of Potchefstroom and Winburg and their surrounding territories were a Boer Republic known as the Republic of Winburg-Potchefstroom. Voortrekker leader Andries Hendrik Potgieter was elected as chief commandant. In October 1840, after a meeting between Potgieter, Andries Pretorius and G. R. van Rooyen, it was decided that Potchefstroom would unite with "Pieter Mouriets Burg" (Pietermaritzburg).
On 16–17 January 1852, the Sand River Convention was signed between Andries Pretorius (representing the Boers) and Major W. S. Hogge and C. M. Owen (representing Britain). According to the convention, the British government would allow the immigrant farmers north of the Vaal River to govern themselves with no interference from either side. This signalled the establishment of the South African Republic. In Article 17 of the Constitution of the South African Republic dated 18 February 1858 (which was accepted in Rustenburg), it was stated that "Potchefstroom, located on the Mooi River, would be the capital of the Republic and that Pretoria would be the seat of government". In May 1860, Potchefstroom became the "chief city" of the republic and the capital moved to Pretoria.
On 16 December 1880, the First Boer War began when the Boers laid siege to the old fort, then occupied by British forces. The siege ended amicably on 23 March 1881. During the Second Boer War, the British established a concentration camp in Potchefstroom for Afrikaner civilians, primarily women and children, who were captured in the Boer republics by British forces as part of a scorched earth campaign.
At the opening of the city hall in 1909, colonial secretary Jan Smuts was asked about the possibility of Potchefstroom becoming capital of the Union. He replied that the city stood no chance, but should aim to be South Africa's largest educational centre. This has led to Potchefstroom's being the "city of expertise", with numerous tertiary educational institutions. It has hosted the annual late-September Aardklop Arts Festival, a predominantly-Afrikaans arts festival, since 1997.
The Potchefstroom Municipality, which encompasses several neighbouring settlements, had a population of 128,357 in the 2007 community survey. Of these, 69.6 percent were White, 27.0 percent were Black, three percent were Coloureds and 0.4 percent were Asian. However, the city itself and surrounding suburbs have a population of 43,448, of which 69.9 percent are White, 25.4 percent are Black, 2.8 percent were Coloured and 1.3 percent were Asian.
Ken McArthur of Potchefstroom won a gold medal at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics in the marathon. McArthur was known in his home village of North Antrim for his training routine, which consisted of racing a narrow-gauge train.
Potchefstroom is home to five tertiary institutions, 30 other schools and a number of research bureaus and training centres, including:
Public primary and high schools in Potchefstroom's townships include Boitirelo Primary School, Lesego Primary School, Boitshoko High School, Tlokwe High School and Hoerskool Ferdinand Postma
Potchefstroom, known as the North West Province's "Home of Sport", is the provincial headquarters of 17 major sports. The city council emphasises the establishment, maintenance and upgrading of its sports facilities, particularly to meet the sporting and recreational needs of its youth. The Mooi River and other trails add colour and variety to facilities available to residents and tourists.
Potchefstroom has hosted two World Cup-winning teams (in cricket and football), and is a home away from home for international athletes and teams. At 1,400 metres (4,600 ft) altitude, it provides a good balance between altitude and quality training. The city has no large factories, and good air quality. Athletes and professional teams train at the North-West University's High Performance Institute of Sport.
Cricket is popular, with Senwes Park the home ground of the North-West Dragons. During the 2003 Cricket World Cup, Potchefstroom hosted matches between Australia and the Netherlands, Australia and Namibia, and South Africa and Kenya. Potchefstroom co-hosted the 2009 Cricket World Cup Qualifier. The South Africa national cricket team has regularly chosen Potchefstroom for off-season training and has hosted the Australian team's off-season cricket camps. During the 2003 Cricket World Cup, Australia's cricket team chose Potchefstroom as their home base and won the tournament.
Rugby is arguably Potchefstroom's most popular sport. Olën Park, the main rugby stadium, is primarily used for rugby union matches by the Leopards in the Vodacom Cup and the first division of the Currie Cup. The stadium is also used for football matches, and has hosted the South Africa under-23 team. Jomo Cosmos also uses the stadium for some matches. Profert Olën Park was named after Carl Ludwig Theodor Olën, president of the Western Transvaal Rugby Union between 1922 and 1934. Profert, a local fertiliser company, maintains the playing field.
The Absa Puk Oval is on the North-West University campus. The university sport grounds is known as the Fanie du Toit Sports Complex. The main rugby field has hosted several Leopards games and the Potchefstroom Campus' Varsity Cup matches.
PUC McArthur Stadium, the athletics stadium, was renovated for the fourth time in 2014. Built in 1892, it was named in honour of 1912 Olympic marathon gold medalist Ken McArthur. Noted local athletes include Godfrey Khotso Mokoena, the silver medalist in the long jump at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games, Hezekiél Sepeng, Jorrie Muller, Justine Robbeson and Ryan Diedericks.
The visit of the Spain national football team during the 2010 FIFA World Cup brought a new level of sport to Potchefstroom and the NWU. Spain, who won their inaugural FIFA World Cup title, chose Potchefstroom as their base camp. A new sports complex was built at the North-West University for the team.
Mayor Maphetle Maphetle of the African National Congress was dismissed in late 2012 after a motion of no confidence passed, and Annette Combrink of the opposition Democratic Alliance was elected mayor. Three months later a motion of no confidence removed Combrink, and Maphetle was reinstated. Since then, municipal-council and mayoral elections have been keenly contested.
Since the Heritage Resources Act of 1999, monuments are classified as grade I (national), II (provincial) and III (local). Many national monuments were downgraded to grade II.
Although Potchefstroom has no local heritage sites, the following sites have been placed on the municipality's provisional list:
Potchefstroom is an industrial, service and agricultural growth point of North West province. Industries include steel, food, and chemical processing. The chicken industry is important, and companies around the city include Chubby Chick, Serfontein Poultry, Haagner's Poultry, Crown Chicken and Highveld Egg Cooperative.
The city plays an important role with the South African National Defence Force, hosting the provincial command headquarters. Potchefstroom regularly holds military displays and parades. The city had an airfield used by the South African Air Force which was closed in budget cuts after the end of apartheid.