Editing Wakkerstroom

{{Infobox settlement
| name                    = Wakkerstroom (Mhlongamvula in Zulu/Swati)
| pushpin_map             = South Africa Mpumalanga#South Africa
| coordinates             = {{coord|27|21|35|S|30|08|14|E|region:ZA|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type        = Country
| subdivision_name        = [[South Africa]]
| subdivision_type1       = Province
| subdivision_name1       = [[Mpumalanga]]
| subdivision_type2       = District
| subdivision_name2       = [[Gert Sibande District Municipality|Gert Sibande]]
| subdivision_type3       = Municipality
| subdivision_name3       = [[Pixley ka Seme Local Municipality|Pixley ka Seme]]
| subdivision_type4       = Main Place
| established_title       = Established
| leader_title            = Councillor
| area_footnotes          = <ref name="census2011">{{cite web |url=http://census2011.adrianfrith.com/place/863007 |title = Main Place Wakkerstroom |work=Census 2011}}</ref>
| area_total_km2          = 87.68
| population_footnotes    = <ref name="census2011" />
| population_total        = 6852
| population_as_of        = 2011
| population_density_km2  = auto
<!-- demographics (section 1) -->
| demographics_type1      = Racial makeup (2011)
| demographics1_footnotes = <ref name="census2011" />
| demographics1_title1    = [[Bantu peoples of South Africa|Black African]]
| demographics1_info1     = 87.8%
| demographics1_title2    = [[White South African|White]]
| demographics1_info2     = 10.2%
| demographics1_title3    = [[Indian South African|Indian]]/[[Asian South African|Asian]]
| demographics1_info3     = 1.3%
| demographics1_title4    = [[Coloureds|Coloured]]
| demographics1_info4     = 0.3%
| demographics1_title5    = Other
| demographics1_info5     = 0.4%
<!-- demographics (section 2) -->
| demographics_type2      = [[First language]]s (2011)
| demographics2_footnotes = <ref name="census2011" />
| demographics2_title1    = [[Zulu language|Zulu]]
| demographics2_info1     = 86.2%
| demographics2_title2    = [[South African English|English]]
| demographics2_info2     = 4.2%
| demographics2_title3    = [[Afrikaans]]
| demographics2_info3     = 3.7%
| demographics2_title4    = [[Southern Ndebele language|S. Ndebele]]
| demographics2_info4     = 1.6%
| demographics2_title5    = Other
| demographics2_info5     = 4.2%
<!-- blank fields (section 2) -->
<!-- Other information -->
| timezone1               = [[South African Standard Time|SAST]]
| utc_offset1             = +2
| postal_code_type        = [[List of postal codes in South Africa|Postal code]] (street)
| postal_code             = 2480
| postal2_code_type       = [[Post-office box|PO box]]
| postal2_code            = 2480
| area_code_type          = [[Telephone numbers in South Africa|Area code]]
| area_code               = 017
}}

'''Wakkerstroom''' (''Awake Stream'') is the second oldest town in [[Mpumalanga]] province, [[South Africa]]. The town is on the [[KwaZulu-Natal]] border, 27&nbsp;km east of [[Volksrust]] and 56&nbsp;km south-east of [[Amersfoort, Mpumalanga|Amersfoort]].

==History==
{{Moresources|section|date=August 2023}}
The settlement was laid out on the farm Gryshoek by Dirk Cornelis (Swart Dirk) Uys (1814–1910), proclaimed in 1859 by [[Marthinus Wessel Pretorius|President Pretorius]], and administered by a village council from 1910.<ref name="Dict">{{Cite book|title=Dictionary of Southern African Place Names|last=Raper|first=Peter E|last2=Moller|first2=Lucie A|last3=du Plessis|first3=Theodorus L|publisher=Jonathan Ball Publishers|year=2014|isbn=9781868425501}}</ref> Swart Dirk Uys, who surveyed the property using a 50-yard thong made from an [[Common eland|eland]] he shot on arrival, originally named the town Uysenburg, but the name was changed by the Executive Council of the [[South African Republic]] to Marthinus-Wesselstroom,<ref>{{Cite web|title = South African Military History Society - Journal- A BOER FAMILY|url = http://samilitaryhistory.org/vol036iu.html|website = samilitaryhistory.org|access-date = 2 January 2016}}</ref> after the president's first names,<ref name="EB1911">{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Wakkerstroom|volume=28|page=250|short=y}}</ref> and also known as Wesselstroom. 

In 1904, the name of the town was changed again to Wakkerstroom, meaning "awake stream" or "lively stream", which is an [[Afrikaans]] translation of the [[isiZulu|Zulu]] name for the river {{Proper name|uThaka}} ([[English language|English]]: ''awake)'' that flows near the town.<ref>{{Cite web|title = History|url = http://www.wakkerstroom.co.za/history/|website = www.wakkerstroom.co.za|access-date = 2 January 2016}}</ref>

The courthouse, St. Mark's Church, and the old bridge over the river have been declared national monuments.  [[H. Rider Haggard]]'s novel ''[[She: A History of Adventure]]'' was written while he lived on Hoog Street. The bridge dates to 1893, when it was built under the [[South African Republic]] from [[Germany|German]] steel. South Africa's first black member of the Christ Community Church was baptized by Reverend D. Bryant in 1904.

===First Boer War===
Wakkerstroom was occupied by the [[58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot]], the [[80th Regiment of Foot (Staffordshire Volunteers)]], and [[1st King's Dragoon Guards]] in 1880–1881 during the [[First Boer War]]. Remains of the Staffordshire and Dragoon encampments can be found on the slopes of the Ossewakop and Voortrekkerkop passes south of town.

===Second Boer War===
During the [[Second Boer War]], the British built twenty-one [[blockhouse]]s between [[Volksrust]] and Wakkerstroom and a hundred between Wakkerstroom and [[Piet Retief, Mpumalanga]]. The blockhouses were built to guard the British supply lines from [[Durban]].

==Economy==
[[Sheep]] and [[cattle]] farming are the primary industries. Proposed [[coal mining]] in the area has raised concerns due to the environmental sensitivity of the region.<ref name="yende">{{cite news|last1=Yende|first1=Sizwe Sama|title=Mining in biodiverse sanctuary approved|url=http://www.fin24.com/Companies/Mining/mining-in-biodiverse-sanctuary-approved-20161028|access-date=3 November 2016|agency=News24|date=2016-10-30}}</ref>

==Environment==
With the [[Balele Mountains]] to the south, the area surrounding the town is mountainous with kloofs, mountain springs, vlei areas, dams, conservation and heritage sites. It is internationally renowned as a "birder's paradise". Due to the high occurrence of high priority wetlands and the proximity to the sources of three rivers, the [[Vaal River|Vaal]], [[Tugela River|Tugela]] (via [[Buffalo River (KwaZulu-Natal)|Buffalo]] tributary) and [[Pongola River|Pongola]], it was declared a National Freshwater Ecosystem Priority Area. It is also a protected area under the Protected Areas Act, which means that mining is generally not allowed.<ref name="yende"/>

The Yzermyn project of Uthaka Energy (Pty) Ltd, a coal-mining company, was put on hold in 2021, after a coalition of civil society organisations objected to mining in one of South Africa's critical water source areas.<ref name="yeld1">{{cite news |last1=Yeld |first1=John |title=Court pours cold water on Mpumalanga coal mine operations in critical source area |url= https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-03-25-court-pours-cold-water-on-mpumalanga-coal-mine-operations-in-critical-source-area/ |access-date=26 March 2021 |agency=Daily Maverick |publisher=dailymaverick.co.za |date=25 March 2021}}</ref>

==Sources==
* [[B.P.J. Erasmus|Erasmus, B.P.J.]] (1995). ''Op Pad in Suid-Afrika''. New York: Jonathan Ball. {{ISBN|1-86842-026-4}}
* [[Eric Rosenthal (historian)|Rosenthal, Eric]] (1967). ''Ensiklopedie van Suidelike Afrika''. London: Frederick Warne.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.wakkerstroom.co.za Wakkerstroom Home Page]

{{Gert Sibande District Municipality}}

[[Category:Populated places in the Pixley ka Seme Local Municipality]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1859]]
[[Category:1859 establishments in South Africa]]