Bushman’s River Mouth, also known as Boesmansriviermond, is a town in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, situated along the R72 Provincial Route and on the west bank of the Bushman’s River, just across the river from Kenton-on-Sea.
Boesmansriviermond is located approximately 29 km south-west of Port Alfred along the R72 road.
Boesmansriviermond falls within the Ndlambe Local Municipality and the Sarah Baartman District Municipality.
A well-known holiday resort, Boesmansriviermond, is the site of many shipwrecks, the best-known of them being the Volo, a Norwegian barque wrecked near the river mouth in 1896.
Boesmansriviermond has an active ratepayers association known as BRRAG (Bushman’s River Ratepayers’ Organisation).
History
The town was established in 1897 by farmers from nearby towns (Somerset East, Paterson, Cookhouse, 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.
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.
