In February 1850, the Kharoan clan of the Nama people settled here permanently. Before the colonial era, this settlement was known as "Nugoaes" or "Swartmodder", meaning "Black Marsh" and indicated the presence of a freshwater spring in the area.
In 1860 the Rhenish Missionary Society founded a mission here to Christianise the local Nama. The first missionary, Johann Georg Schröder, arrived in Keetmanshoop on April 14, 1866, which is now marked as the founding date of Keetmanshoop. The mission station and trading post were named after the German trader and director of the Rhenish Missionary Society, Johann Keetman, who supported the mission financially (he never actually visited the place himself).
A fort was established in town in 1894 following the arrival of German settlers. Many soldiers settled in the area buying farms which lead to Keetmanshoop being a center supporting the local farming community. The railway line to Keetmanshoop and further to Luderitz was completed in 1908.
The town is one of the oldest in Namibia and effectively known as the capital of the south. Population of Keetmanshoop (2019): 15,608
~ Information taken from: wikipedia.com; namibweb.com; worldpopulationreview.com 2019
This cache was placed in January 2018 upon visiting my brother-in-law who lives in Keetmanshoop. On route home back to South Africa, we managed to wipe the coordinates that were taken with the GPS and we could therefore not complete the listing at that time.
Upon revisiting GZ, the cache was found still in its hiding place, new coordinates were taken and now, finally, Keetmanshoop can have its first geocache!
From GZ you will have a lovely view of Keetmanshoop. Enjoy the walk up!