Kleinzee ( IPA: klˈe͡ɪnzi) is a small village on the west coast of

Northern Cape The Northern Cape ( ; ; ) is the largest and most sparsely populated Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. It was created in 1994 when the Cape Province was split up. Its capital is Kimberley, South Africa, Kimberley. It includes ...

province,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

, located at the mouth of the Buffels River and just south of Grootmis. It is 72 km southeast of

Port Nolloth Port Nolloth is a town and seaport in the Namaqualand region on the northwestern coast of South Africa, northwest of Springbok. It is the seat of the Richtersveld Local Municipality. The port was previously a transshipment point for copper fro ...

and 105 km west of

Springbok The springbok or springbuck (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is an antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus (biology), genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first Species description, described by the Germa ...

. Previously a closed

company town A company town is a place where all or most of the stores and housing in the town are owned by the same company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schoo ...

, it was known for its diamond-mining operations until the 2000s. The Buffels River "flows" through Kleinzee, but most of the time it is just a dry river bed, and only flows with heavy rainfall, approximately once every several years. Bounded by semidesert on three sides and the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

to the west, Kleinzee has a significant underground

water table The water table is the upper surface of the phreatic zone or zone of saturation. The zone of saturation is where the pores and fractures of the ground are saturated with groundwater, which may be fresh, saline, or brackish, depending on the loc ...

History

It was originally the site of a freehold farm called Kleyne Zee. The name means 'small sea', referring to a lagoon at the mouth of the Buffels River. Jack Carstens was searching the coast (later Diamond Coast) for diamonds when he heard word of their discovery on the grounds of Kleyne Zee by locals de Villiers and Alberts in 1926. A crater was opened within a week. The farm was owned by the Kotze and Goosen families - the Kotzes farmed the land and the Goosens were fishermen on the lagoon (the "Kleyne Zee"). The families agreed to sell the land before being informed of the presence of diamonds. The Cape Coast Exploration Company bought it in 1927, which was then incorporated into

De Beers The De Beers Group is a South African–British corporation that specializes in the diamond industry, including mining, exploitation, retail, inscription, grading, trading and industrial diamond manufacturing. The company is active in open-pi ...

the following year. The Namaqualand Mines Division of De Beers established Kleinzee as a private

alluvial Alluvium (, ) is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluvium is also sometimes called alluvial deposit. Alluvium is ...

diamond mining settlement. At its peak, it reportedly had a population of around 4 thousand. With access from the outside world restricted, Kleinzee was mostly inhabited by middle-class mine workers, managers, and their families. De Beers covered the residents' utility bills and invested in amenities such as pools, a golf course and sports fields, and hobby clubs. The diamonds had begun to run out by the 2000s. The population of Kleinzee generally consisted of around 2 thousand residents, but considerably reduced after the down-scaling of mining activities in 2009.

Economy

With sparse vegetation, Kleinzee relies more so on fishing than farming. One of the few local industries De Beers has continued to invest in is

oyster farming Oyster farming is an aquaculture (or mariculture) practice in which oysters are bred and raised mainly for their pearls, shells and inner organ tissue, which is eaten. Oyster farming was practiced by the ancient Rome, ancient Romans as early as the ...

on the dams left by the mines.

Tourism

Both the nature and man made sites have drawn tourists to the village and its surrounding semidesert coastal area. Despite its reputation as a ghost town, the village, now more accessible to the public, has seen an uptick in tourism since De Beers' departure. Koos van der Merwe opened a resort in 2014, and a number of B&Bs and camping sites have since followed. It is on the Shipwreck Route and the Spektakel Daisies Pass.

Kleinzee Yacht Club

As part of De Beers' recreational investments, one of the cofferdams was converted into a 500 metre-long

artificial lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from t ...

for a yacht club with sailing and other water sports. Due to a lack of maintenance, it has a particularly high salt content, which gives the water a reddish-pink hue and enables people to float in it. kleinzee yacht club 2016 1.png kleinzee yacht club 2016 4.png

Boulder Heritage Route and Kleinzee Museum

Boulder Heritage Route is a historic trail through Kleinzee's old diamond mines. Kleinzee Museum also seeks to preserve the village's history.

Education

Laerskool Kleinzee is a private school with an attendance of 111 students. The Primary School became a Centre for learning and Development.

Transport

The village is serviced by the small Kleinzee Airport (KLZ). It is a 105 km drive from

and the N7.

References

{{Authority control Populated places in the Nama Khoi Local Municipality Mining communities in South Africa Namaqualand