Free State

  Philippolis is the first town build in the Orange Free  and the town is the birthplace and hometown to many South African celebrities including, the writer  Sir Laurens Van Der Post. Today the heritage status of the town attracts visitors and holiday makers and the town has converted many of its heritage buildings into accommodation.

It is named after the Reverend Dr. John Daniel Kestell (1854 - 1941), Anglo-Afrikaner minister of the Dutch Reformed Church from 1894 to 1903, author and cultural leader, who played an important role in the Anglo-Boer War and later helped with the Bible translations into Afrikaans.[2] The Dutch Reformed Church building, designed by famed architect of dozens of churches and the Voortrekker Monument, Gerard Moerdijk, was inaugurated on 31 March 1928.

  Jacobsdal is a small farming town in the Free State province of South Africa. The town was laid out in 1859 by Christoffel Jacobs on his farm Kalkfontein.

[caption id="attachment_16210" align="aligncenter" width="300"] The Vredefort Dome Information Centre.[/caption] A worthy trip is to Vredefort in the Northern Free State, near Parys. Vredefort has a grand NGK Kerk dating to 1883. Driving the area one will discover ruins of old farmhouses, a great photographic opportunity, and then of course a visit to the Vredefort Dome Information Centre.

In order to escape the control of the British, in 1838 many Boers led by leaders like, Potgieter, Uys, Retief and Maritz, left the Eastern Cape and Western cape and headed into the hinterland of what is now the Transvaal, Free State and Natal.

Wynford Farm in the eastern Free State is a delightful place to stay. For those who like the simple good value offerings of yesteryear, this is the place to stay. There is no glamour or glitz, but old fashioned hospitality, well cooked home food, basic...