Douglas is an agricultural and stock farming town situated near the confluence of the Orange and Vaal rivers in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa.
Douglas is located at the intersection of the R357, R370, and R385 Regional Routes. The town lies about 100 km south-west of Kimberley, the capital of the Northern Cape. These two are connected by the R357 road.
Douglas falls within Siyancuma Local Municipality and Pixley ka Seme District Municipality. It is the main town and administrative centre/seat of Siyancuma Local Municipality.
Notably, Douglashas a diverse population, with mostly state institutions and the anchor private employer, GWK, an agricultural company.
Douglas is famously known for a geographic feature found in Douglas only – The confluence of The Vaal and The Orange Rivers – the two biggest rivers of South Africa.
Near the confluence of the Orange River and its main tributary, the Vaal River, Douglas is a thriving, fast-growing town surrounded by a wealth of agricultural and stock farming ventures fed by two of South Africa’s greatest rivers.
History
The town of Douglas was founded in 1848 as a mission station on the farm Backhouse by the Reverend Isaac Hughes, who had been working along the Vaal River since 1845.
In 1867, a group of Europeans from Griquatown signed an agreement giving them the right to establish a town. The town was named after General Sir Percy Douglas, Lieutenant Governor of the Cape Colony.
