The
village was founded in 1845 by Voortrekker leader
Andries Hendrik Potgieter and his followers. The
site was selected for both geographical and
political reasons but proved a disastrous choice.
Two years earlier Potgieter had traveled from
Potchefstroom, first Voortrekker settlement north of
the Vaal River, to Lourenco Marques to meet the
Portuguese freighter Brasilia which had brought
gifts for the Voortrekkers from the Dutch merchant
Gregorius Ohrig. It was on this ship that Potgieter
reputedly learnt of a new law that extended British
authority in South Africa to latitude 25° south.
That would include Potchefstroom, so Potgieter
decided to trek further north and found a new
settlement nearer Lourenco Marques. The choice was
the well watered valley of the present-day Ohrigstad
River, tributary of the Oliphant's.
In June 1845 a town
was laid out with broad streets and a fort for
protection. The name decided upon was
Andries-Ohrigstad in honour of Potgieter and the
Dutch benefactor Ohrig.
All
went well until swarms of malaria mosquitoes struck
in summer. For three years the Voortrekkers
stoically suffered this visitation as they have
endured so many others before.
However, in the summer of 1848-49 the number of
deaths due to malaria reach such proportions that
many settlers decided that enough was enough.
Andries Potgieter and some of his followers moved to
the Soutpansberg in the far northern Transvaal and
later settled at Potgietersrust, while the others
moved south to found Lydenburg, also known as the
town of suffering due to their experience at
Ohrigstad. Ohrigstad, which had meanwhile dropped
Andries from its name, was abandoned that year.
The
present-day village was established in 1923
south-west of the old site. The main crops of the
district were tobacco, yellow clingstone peaches,
sunflower seed and maize, grown mostly under
irrigation from the Ohrigstad Dam about 25km south
of the village.
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Ruins of the original fort and village can still
be seen along the R36 north.
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A
memorial commemorates those who died of malaria
and other causes from 1845 to 1850. Their
remains were re-buried here in 1942. This
memorial can be seen on the R555 known as the
Voortrekker graves.
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The
Andries Hendrik Potgieter Memorial Hall was
inaugurated in 1950 in honour of Potgieter and
the other founders of Ohrigstad.
The
location of Ohrigstad: longitude; 24°32’ & 24°55’ &
latitude; 28°32’ & 28°42’ & altitude; 1,166
