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AFRICAN
TRAVEL | AFRICA
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ACTIVITIES | OVERLANDING
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The town came by its unusual name by a convoluted route. Sir Harry Smith (Governor of the Cape) named it Aliwal to commemorate the famous battle in which he defeated the Sikhs of India in 1846. It lies on a strategic ford on the Orange River which was used by the Bushmen and the Voortrekkers. This was upgraded with a pontoon in 1872. The town developed simultaneously as a health resort and transport centre with the railway from East London reaching the town in 1885. This prompted rapid development as a commercial centre for the north-eastern region of the British colony. Later the town suffered a severe setback when the railway extended to the Free State, by-passed Aliwal North. It is still the centre of a prosperous farming community whose main products are wool, maize, wheat, beef and dairy. The town’s principle assets are two popular hot mineral springs, which have extremely high concentrates of minerals and gases. The concentrate of gas is so high that the first restaurant built here was able to maintain its cooking fire from gas funnelled from the springs.
