Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal

Pinetown is a town just inland from Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Pinetown is situated at an elevation of 1,000 to 1,300 feet (305 to 395 m) in the hills adjoining Durban on the northwest. It was established in 1850 around the Wayside Hotel, itself built the year before along the main wagon route between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. It was named after the governor of Natal, Sir Benjamin Pine. The British built a concentration camp here during the Second Boer War to house Boer women and children.

Pinetown is now part of the larger eThekwini Municipality. The area from Cowies Hill in the east to Mariannhill in the west is commonly referred to as the Pinetown area, although Pinetown strictly extends from Caversham Glen to Manors.

Pinetown Cricket Club, established in 1873, is believed to be the oldest in KwaZulu-Natal and among the oldest still in existence in South Africa. The club originally located in central Pinetown at the current Civic Centre location was moved to Lahee Park. Under the chairmanship of then Pinetown mayor, Vernon Hall, with facilities at their peak, Lahee Park hosted ten first class games between 1974 and 1979. Former internationals Norman Crookes (twice selected for the Springbok squad) and Tertius Bosch represented the club.

The town has several schools, including the public Pinetown Boys' High School, Pinetown Girls' High School, Benjamin Pine Primary School (R-7), Sarnia Primary School and Ashley Primary School. The only Afrikaans-medium school in the area is Gelofte Skool, meaning 'promise school'.

The shack dwellers' movement Abahlali baseMjondolo is very strong in Pinetown particularly in the Motala Heights, Motala Farm, Mpola and New eMaus settlements.