About Middelburg

Reformed Church

Middelburg is surrounded by mountains in the heart of the Great Karoo.

Currently many Middelburgers are preparing for the “Karoo Skoffel” at the Country Club to end the year off with a bang!

Middelberg is home to the Grootfontein Agricultural Institute. After the Anglo Boer War the farm Grootfontein was bought by the British Department of War in order to establish a peace-keeping force in the area. From 1908 the troops were disbanded. In July 1910 the Union of South Africa took control of the farm after which the Grootfontein School of Agriculture was established in 1911. This is a special place for us. AJ's brother qualified there with special recognition for a couple of things but I recall specifically the award he received from the Drakensberger Breeders Association. Peta and I went to his graduation ball – quite an experience that was.

The distance between Graaff-Reinet & Colesberg was 130 miles (200 km). Therefore it was decided to found a town in-between. A site for Middelburg was chosen, as its name implies, in the very centre of a circle of other platteland towns to provide a hub for the pioneer farming communities. Three farms were selected for the town and the first plots were sold for riksdaalders in 1852.
Merino and Dorper farming is of the order and it seems the area is rich in natural healing herbs growing in abundance.