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Location |
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Robertson is a town in the Western Cape Province of South Africa situated in the fertile Robertson Valley only 160km from Cape Town on the popular Route 62. |
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History |
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Robertson was founded in 1853 and named after the Scottish Dutch Reformed Church Minister, Dr William Robertson. Farming and wagon building were the town's original industries. However, after the Second Anglo-Boer War of 1899, the wagon building industry collapsed when the railways took over the transport of all goods. Robertson subsequently became famous for its ostrich farming, but this industry collapsed as well shortly after World War I and thus the farmers of the area turned switched to wine and fruit farming. Later, several successful racehorse stud farms were founded. Agriculture remains the mainstay of the town's economy up to the present day. |
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Attractions |
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Tourism has also grown in recent years and the town has several South African National Monuments, such as the Pink Church (1859), the Museum (1860), the Edwardian-style house 12 Piet Retief Street (1904), the Victorian-style house 59 Van Reeneen Street (1914) and the Powder House (which used as a storage for gunpowder). |
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Climate |
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Robertson has a mild Mediterranean climate. The winegrowing areas are situated along the coastal zone and experience beneficial breezes blowing in from the sea. The temperate climate features warm summers and cool winters. Rain falls between May and August. |
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