Senwes Scenario August/September 2018 | Page 35

The Senwes Equipment branch is part of the town since 2004 .
AREA FOCUS
Apart from agriculture Lichtenburg is also known for its cement plants .
LION OF THE WESTERN TRANSVAAL A focus on Lichtenburg would not be complete without “ De La Rey , De La Rey , sal jy die boere kom lei ”. This is what Bok van Blerk , or Louis Pepler , sings about this icon . Jacobus Hercules ( Koos ) de la Rey is one of the biggest export products of the area . A statue of him and his horse can be found in the gardens of the Lichtenburg Museum . Historians also enjoy visiting his grave and the house where he lived . Locals tell us that learners often enjoy fresh bread from the local bakery at the foot of the statue .
Another well-known Lichtenburg inhabitant is the former MP , Dr Ferdie Hartzenberg . Many Springbok rugby players hail from this town . When you visit the schools and clubs , you will see numerous names , such as Apie van der Hoff , Paul Visser , Daan Retief , Basie Viviers , Dick Putter , Paul du Rand , Wynand Claassen , Geo Cronje , Jacques Cronje and Richard Bands on the rolls of honour , who have played for the Green and Gold team . The names of former discus athlete , Fanie du Plessis , who was a double Commonwealth champion and Hestrie Storbeck Cloete , who won two world titles and two Olympic silver medals , can also be found on the rolls of honour .
A FEW LANDMARKS Rev . Johan van Zyl from the NG Church tells us that the church was built in 1889 . A few other interesting facts are that the rugby club was established in 1902 and the golf club in 1904 . The first car arrived in town in 1907 and the first train four years later , in 1911 . The area is also wellknown for its cyclists and bowls club .
DIAMONDS AND CEMENT The area is famous for its diamonds and the first diamond of three carats was found on the farm Elandsputte in 1926 . Did you know , the biggest diamond rush took place in Lichtenburg in 1927 , when 25 000 diggers wanted to peg their claims . It is interesting that the first newspapers were called Lichtenburg News and Digger ’ s Voice . Cement makes up a large part of the area ' s economy with Afri-Sam , Lafarge , PPC and Sephaku doing business here .
NATURAL WONDERS The spotlight was on divers once again during the recent cave rescue attempts in Thailand . Lichtenburg also has a popular diving area of approximately 25 metres deep , called Wondergat , which has been here for centuries . It is one of the deepest inland diving areas .
Molopo ' s Eye , which can be found approximately 32 km out on the Zeerust road , is another well-known landmark in the area , as well as the game and breeding reserve of the National Zoo of South Africa , where various types of native and foreign game can be found .
Lichtenburg also has the only burning marsh of its kind in South Africa . The marsh contains three types of peat and the burning marsh orginated due to burning subterraneous gas . The marsh was filled in and is now known as the Eeufees Dam and the Dauth-Roode Dam . Now we know a lot more about this agricultural giant in the Northwest . Long live Lichtenburg !
A big thank you goes out to all who contributed with information , especially Della Retief .
The resting place of General De La Rey .
The NG Church .
SENWES SCENARIO | SPRING 2018 33