Galeshewe is a township in Kimberley, situated at the intersection of the N8 and R31 roads in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. It is named after Kgosi Galeshewe.
The township falls within the Sol Plaatje Local Municipality under the Frances Baard District Municipality of the Northern Cape Province.
History
The township of Galeshewe was founded in 1878 after diamonds were discovered at kopje (hill) near Colesberg in 1871. The diamond rush which followed the discovery of diamonds saw an influx of people from all over, seeking fortune in the sprawling town of Kimberley.
In 1873, Kimberley’s population had grown to 40,000. The first parts of Galeshewe sprung up in the early 1870s to accommodate the migrant labour population in Kimberley.
In 1886, the first large compounds for workers known as the Greater No 2 were introduced at the De Beers Mine. Galeshewe started to grow west from the Greater No 2 in the 1930s. The central part of the present Galeshewe was built between 1950s and 1970s.
In 1952, the Native Advisory Committee of Kimberley approved a recommendation from residents to name the township Galeshewe after Kgosi (Chief) Galeshewe of the Batlhaping tribe.
On 1 August 1973, the Kimberley Council granted control of Galeshewe township to the Bantu Administration Board of the Diamond Fields.
A May 5, 1976 edition of the Kimberley newspaper “The Diamond Fields Advertiser” reported that “slums” in the township were a problem with at least 9 or 10 people living in a four-roomed house. This was due to a lack of suitable housing and high unemployment. On 2 January 1978, the Community Board took over the control of the township.
Galeshewe Municipality was inaugurated on 30 November 1983 making the township the first Black-controlled municipality in South Africa. According to a report by the Galeshewe town council, the population of the township was 81,202, and made up of 10,110 families. There were 10,327 residential sites, of which 9,525 were still being developed. The township had 10 creche sites, 68 parks, 71 business sites (64 developed), 54 church sites (12 developed) and 30 school sites.
In 1988, there were several new suburbs making up Greater Galeshewe. No 2 was still there, but there was also Ikageng (Redirile, and referred to as Stocks and Stocks), Ikageleng, Retswele, KwaNobantu, Zone Six (Extension Six), Ipeleng, and Vergenoeg. In 1994, after the election of South Africa’s first democratic government, Galeshewe became part of the Sol Plaatje Local Municipality.