Bloemfontein

Bloemfontein, the capital of the Orange River Colony (q.v.), stands on the Modder, in a high and healthy district, 200 miles W. by N. of Durban. It is connected by railway with Cape Colony and, since 1890, with Johannesburg and Natal. It is the seat of an Anglican bishopric and of sundry colleges, and has a good deal of trade, mainly in wool. During the war Bloemfontein was occupied by Roberts (May 1900), and here it was proclaimed that the Orange River Free State had become a British colony. Pop. (1900) 12,000 (2800 coloured).