atlantis
the cape west coast
HOW TO GET THERE
(GPS: 33 34S 18 29E)Clearly signposted, just off the R27, about 40km north of Cape Town.
TOURISM OFFICE
Cape Town Tourism - Blaauberg office· Tel: 021 521 1080
ORIGINS OF THE NAME
Derived from the legendary city which disapeared beneath the waters of the Atlantic Ocean.HISTORY
Atlantis was built between 1976 and 1986 to accommodate part of the anticipated overflow of the "coloured" population of Cape Town, in accordance with the provisions of the Group Areas Act which enforced the residential separations of South Africans according to race, at that time.The township and adjoining industrial area were intended to provide living and employment opportunities for the "coloured" population who moved there from overcrowded areas in the Western Cape in search of employment and housing. In reality the area has remained underdeveloped and unemployment is rife. Atlantis remains as a living example of the apartheid era policies of separate development.
The present-day industrial area of Atlantis was developed on the farm Melkpost and the township on the farms Hartebbest Kraal and Witzand. Both were Gouvernments Plaatsen in 1819. Occupations such as wood gathering and lime-burning were common in that part of Blaauwberg and many families were bywoners on the farms on which they lived.
POPULATION
30,000PLACES OF INTEREST
◊ Witsand Dunes. [Permits available from Atlantis municipal offices]WHAT TO DO AND SEE
• Quad Biking on the Witsand Dunes• Sand boarding on the Witsand Dunes
• Nearby Paintball farm
• Angling at nearby Silverstroomstrand
• Monthly market at Camphill Village, a Community Farm
