George The Town

George is a town in South Africa's Western Cape Province. It has a population of approximately 104,700 and is the administrative and commercial hub of the Garden Route. George is a popular holiday and conference centre.

Location

The town is very centrally situated: halfway between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth and centre of the Garden Route. It is situated on a 10 kilometre plateau between the majestic Outeniqua Mountains to the north and the Indian Ocean to the south.

History

George is the sixth oldest town in South Africa – and the first founded under British rule – and was named after the reigning monarch in 1811, King George III. The Outeniqua forests were the reason the Dutch East India Company, in 1776, established a woodcutters outpost on the site of what became George in 1811. It was declared a drostdy by the Earl of Caledon on 23 April 1811. George gained municipal status in 1837.

Attractions

George has an extremely sophisticated infrastructure with banks, conference facilities, businesses, major shopping chains, transport and sporting facilities, yet retaining its small town and country atmosphere of peace and tranquility. The town is also a major accommodation centre with a vast array of facilities on offer to suit every taste and pocket.

George has many historical landmarks to be visited. * The Slave Tree, an ancient English Oak planted by Landdrost (magistrate) van Kervel, known as the Slave Tree because of the very large chain and lock embedded in the trunk, has been declared a national monument. * The King Edward VII Library building is said to be the best example of Edwardian architecture in George.

The Garden Route Botanical Garden taking shape at the top of Caledon Street offers year-round opportunities to admire the brilliance of the local flora. The Garden Route boasts the largest continuous natural forest area in South Africa, covering some 650 km˛. Marketable timber is harvested from 20% of the State forest. Stinkwood, named for its unmistakable odour when freshly cut, is highly prized by the furniture industry, as are white pear, hard pear, ironwood and assegaai. The most sought after timber is the Outeniqua Yellowwood (Podocarpus falcatus).