Newcastle (South Africa)
| Newcastle | |||
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| Coordinates | 27 ° 45 ′ S , 29 ° 56 ′ E | ||
| Basic data | |||
| Country | South Africa | ||
| KwaZulu-Natal | |||
| District | Amajuba | ||
| ISO 3166-2 | ZA-KZN | ||
| local community | Newcastle | ||
| Residents | 56,144 (2011) | ||
 Entrance to Newcastle
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Newcastle is the largest city in north KwaZulu-Natal , South Africa , and is part of the third largest metropolitan area in this province. Newcastle is in northwest KwaZulu-Natal on the banks of the River Ncandu. In 2011 the city had 56,144 inhabitants. It is the administrative seat of the municipality of Newcastle and the district of Amajuba in which the city is located.
geography
The western part of the city borders on the northern part of the Drakensberg . About twice as many people as live in Newcastle Township Madadeni south-west of Newcastle. The N11 trunk road runs through the city.
history
The place was founded as a stop for the post office on the route between Durban (then still Port Natal) and the former South African Republic . The square was opened in 1854 by the chief customs officer Dr. PC Sutherland strategically selected. The post station was later known as the "Waterfall River Township" because of its proximity to the Ncandu. Newcastle was founded here in 1864, making it the fourth city to be founded in Natal after Durban, Weenen and Pietermaritzburg .
The British Colonial Minister, Duke of Newcastle , was the inspiration for the name Newcastle . Fort Amiel was built in 1870 to protect against the Zulu . To celebrate Queen Victoria's 60th anniversary to the throne, the construction of a sandstone town hall began in 1897 and was completed two years later. During the First and Second Boer Wars , the city was used as a depot by the British. Towards the end of the 19th century, Newcastle played an important role as a hub for goods traffic and a stop for wagons and stagecoaches. In 1890 the railroad reached Newcastle. A year later, Newcastle officially got city status. When coal was discovered shortly afterwards , a new era of prosperity began and several ambitious construction projects began.
economy
Newcastle has had strong economic growth since the 1880s. The city is now the most heavily industrialized region in northwest KwaZulu-Natal. There is also agriculture in the surrounding areas. Maize is grown and cattle are raised for milk and meat production.
Many of the residents work for ArcelorMittal South Africa , in the textile industry or in the service sector. Many Taiwanese have settled in Newcastle due to the textile industry . Coal is also mined.
ArcelorMittal South Africa produces over 1.5 million tons of steel products annually. The company built a new coke oven battery in 2006 for almost 500 million rand . There is also Karbochem , a manufacturer of synthetic rubber (with 500,000 m² of production space). In 2002 the construction of a chrome chemicals plant was completed, which is seen as a sign of future industrial development in the region. The joint venture between Karbochem and the German chemical and pharmaceutical company Bayer has made Newcastle the largest producer of chrome chemicals in Africa.
Although ArcelorMittal and Karbochem dominate the economic picture of Newcastle, other large companies have also settled in the city's catchment area, for example a diamond grinding company, several civil engineering companies and reinforced concrete manufacturers and a cement factory that produces on the basis of slag .
health
There is one public hospital in Newcastle : Newcastle Provincial Hospital. There is also a small private hospital with around 90 beds. In addition, there are numerous free practicing physicians in various fields.
Infrastructure
There is a library in the center of town which has branches in the surrounding towns. As the city has grown significantly over the past decade, all major retail chains, banks and other financial institutions are now represented in Newcastle.
Sports
Newcastle is home to one of the region's most important fishing clubs, the Challengers Angling Club , which is the flagship of the Natal Freshwater Angling Association and offers different areas of the sport. The association has no admission restrictions.
From the original two rugby clubs was Newcastle Rugby Club founded. The 2007 season ended with all four teams in the top three places in their respective leagues.
Attractions
There are a number of attractions in and around Newcastle , including the Carnegie Art Gallery , which exhibits works by both major national and local artists. In the Fort Amiel Museum you can visit a typical fort in Victorian style. In addition, Newcastle has the largest Hindu temple in the southern hemisphere. The Armory arms factory is located in an architecturally unusual building from the 1870s.
The Newcastle High School and St. Dominic's Academy are partially housed in buildings that have been declared national monuments, such as the Pavilion of St. Dominic's Academy , which was designed by Brother Nivard Streicher and built the 1912th In 1977 the building was declared a monument. The Newcastle High School is the oldest school in the region and has existed for over 125 years. The administration is now located in the original school building.
sons and daughters of the town
- Bakkies Botha (* 1979), rugby player
- Siyabonga Nkosi (* 1981), football player
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ 2011 census, accessed October 21, 2014
- ↑ http://www.places.co.za/html/newcastle.html Information about Newcastle
- ↑ Public offers in Newcastle ( Memento of the original from September 27, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b Sights of Newcastle ( Memento of March 22, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) (English)
- ^ History of St. Dominic's Academy ( Memento from October 5, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) (English)
