About the town » Moorreesburg, West Coast District Municipality, Western Cape, South Africa

Moorreesburg is a rural town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Town 105 km north-east of Cape Town and 30 km north of Malmesbury. It was laid out in 1879 on the farm Hooikraal, was administered by a village management board from 1882 and attained municipal status in 1909. Named after J C le Febre Moorrees (1807-1885), minister of the Swartland congregation from 1833 to 1881. It falls within the Swartland Local Municipality, which is part of the West Coast District Municipality. It lies just off the N7 national road, about 90 kilometres north of Cape Town. Moorreesburg is a tranquil and friendly little town, about 100 kilometres from Cape Town, and, if you believe the property agents, fast on its way to becoming a commuter town, although you would have to love peace and quiet for it to be an option. The impression of a ‘one-horse town’ at first glance is largely deceptive, and those driving through without stopping are missing out on a number of goings-on. Not only is Morreesburg the heart of a strong farming community but it also has one of only three wheat museum’s in the world. This one in particular attracts tourists and it’s a bonus that the local high school has now opened an art gallery, displaying over seventy local and recognised artists who form part of the local art route - fast becoming popular. Neulfonteinkop and Misverstand Dam aren’t destinations in a local novel, although the charm of their names does lend a certain nostalgia and inclination to visit these local attractions. Neulfonteinkop is in fact a hill just outside town upon which sits an old ship’s cannon - used in days gone by to alert farmers to newly docked ships in Cape Town’s harbour so that they could rush off with their produce. There is a welcome hike on the hill and the Misverstand Dam is very popular for water sports with locals and visitors alike. The original road from Morreesburg, en route to Piketberg, crosses the Berg River with the aid of a steel girder bridge - originally destined for Australia. A vessel carrying the bridge stopped in Table Bay in 1850 for repairs that entailed removing the bridge from its deck. The bridge was forever abandoned as the result of a battle to get her back on board, and today it rests on the only river wide enough for it to span.