Kaapmuiden

Kaapmuiden (Cape Mouth) is a small farming town situated at the confluence of the Kaap and Crocodile Rivers in Mpumalanga, South Africa. The town lies just off the N4 national highway and is marked by a large abandoned silo visible from the road. The silo has since been repainted to add to tourism appeal. The farms in the region produce sugarcane, subtropical fruit and vegetables. The town began as a junction on the Netherlands-South African Railway Company (NZASM)'s Pretoria - Delagoa Bay railway line.

Kaapmuiden
Kaapmuiden is located in Mpumalanga
Kaapmuiden
Kaapmuiden
Kaapmuiden is located in South Africa
Kaapmuiden
Kaapmuiden
Coordinates: 25.532°S 31.333°E / -25.532; 31.333
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceMpumalanga
DistrictEhlanzeni
MunicipalityNkomazi
Area
[1]
 • Total0.18 km2 (0.07 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Total270
 • Density1,500/km2 (3,900/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
[1]
 • Black African98.5%
 • Coloured0.7%
 • White0.7%
First languages (2011)
[1]
 • Swazi88.5%
 • Other11.5%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
PO box
1295
Area code013

Recently the town underwent some development due to the Sasol pipeline and construction and upgrading of the national highway. The Nkomazi Tollgate has subsequently been built on the N4 national route (Maputo Corridor) on the eastern outskirts of the town.

Selati Railway

In June 1890, Eugene, the younger of the Barons Oppenheim, sought to obtain a concession from the Government of the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek to construct a railway line to the Murchison Range goldfields along the Ga-Selati River. Work on the construction of the Selati Railway in the Transvaal Lowveld began early in 1893, with the line branching off from the Pretoria-Delagoa Bay mainline at a junction near Komatipoort.[2]

The line was extended via Gravelotte and Tzaneen to a junction at Soekmekaar, where it met the line from Pietersburg to Messina in 1912. In 1963, the part of the line through the southern part of the Kruger National Park, from the junction near Komatipoort, was abandoned and replaced by a new line from the present junction near Kaapmuiden.[2][3]

References
  1. "Main Place Kaapmuiden". Census 2011.
  2. Artefacts - Selati Line, Skukuza District, Mpumalanga (Accessed 25 February 2016)
  3. Reader's Digest Atlas of Southern Africa, The Reader's Digest Association South Africa (Pty.) Limited, 1984, (Editor Christoper Walton), p182, ISBN 0 947 008 020


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