Upington

Upington is a city in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. It is on the banks of the Orange River. The town was founded in 1873. It was originally called Olijvenhoutsdrift, olive trees are common in the area. It was later renamed after Sir Thomas Upington, Attorney-General and then Prime Minister of the Cape. At the start it was a mission station established in 1871 and run by Reverend Christiaan Schröder. The mission station now houses the Kalahari Orange Museum. The museum is also the home of a donkey statue, which recognises the enormous contribution that this animal made to the development of the region during the pioneering days of the 19th century.

Upington is at a height of 2,742 feet (835 metres). It is the closest large centre to the Augrabies Falls and the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. The landscape is very arid but the soil is fertile and crops such as fruit are grown in irrigated fields. The area is best known for its export-quality grapes, raisins and wines, which are cultivated on the rich flood plains of the Orange River.