Zeerust, North West

Zeerust is a commercial town situated in Central district North West Province, South Africa. It lies in the Marico valley, approximately 240 kilometres northwest of Johannesburg. It lies on the N4, the main road link between South Africa and Botswana. There are large cattle ranches in the area, as well as wheat,maize, tobacco and citrus fruit farms. There are also fluorite and chromite mines in the vicinity. Tourism is also a developing industry.

In 1864, Casper Coetzee was employed to build a church and fort on the farm belonging to Walter Seymore. Coetzee died before completing his work and it was later completed by his brother Diederik, who named the place Zeerust ("Coetzee's Rest"). By 1867 a town had been established around the church. The settlement became a municipality in 1936.

The above paragraph is incorrect. The correct facts are as below:The original name of the farm on which the town was established was Sefathlani / Sebatlani (dusty place) belonging to Casper Hendrik Coetzee who bought it in 1858. The farm was later renamed Hazenjacht, and after that Hazia / Hazeah. Casper Coetzee contracted Walter Seymore to build a church and a fort on this farm, but he (Casper) died before this was completed. In 1866, the farm then came into the hands of his cousin / Brother-in-law Diederik Jacobus Coetzee, who saw the potential of developing a town on the farm. He measured out some erven with the idea of starting a town, using "Ox riems" to measure out the plots instead of the accepted surveyors chains. On 20 March 1867, the first erven of the newly established Coetzee-Rust were sold per public auction in Potchefstroom, before official recognition of the request to start a town was granted. The name Coetzee-Rust was later abbreviated to Zeerust. Municipal status was obtained on 18 March 1936. [Some of this information was taken fron the book "Die Korannafonteiners" by Pieter de Jager]

The main languages of Zeerust are Setswana and Afrikaans respectively. The Batswana call the town Sefatlhane. After the democratic dispensation in 1994, the name of the municipality- Zeerust was changed to Ramotshere Moiloa, after a mid-20th century chief of the Bahurutshe boo Moiloa who was also a political enemy of the Apartheid state.

The town is a commercial hub for most of the villages situated in the Lehurutshe area, a few of which include; Lekgophung, Supingstad, Moshana, Serake, Rietpan, Motswedi, Dinokana, Lekubu, Mosweu, Ntsweletsoku, Mokgola, Borakalalo and Gopane.

OLIENHOUT PARK

In Zeerust the is also a small suburb named Olienhout Park which is commonly known as sandvlakte with a population of about 250 residents, a shop ,a bar,lutheran church and a school. There is a township nearby named Ikageleng with about 1000 people.