Did You Know?
Putsonderwater is a small settlement in the Northern Cape, located on the route of the former railway line between De Aar and Upington. The name, Afrikaans for 'well without water', reflects the arid conditions of the region, where water was scarce and often brackish. The settlement grew around the railway station, which was a key stop for steam locomotives that needed water, despite the irony of the name. The hotel, built in 1917, would have served as accommodation and refreshment for travellers, railway workers, and traders passing through this remote area. The building is a rare surviving example of early 20th-century railway-era hospitality infrastructure in the Karoo, though the settlement itself declined after the railway line was rerouted or closed in later decades. Today, Putsonderwater is largely a ghost settlement, and the hotel building stands as a historical marker of the region's transport and social history. The site is not a formally proclaimed national heritage site, but it is locally recognised for its historical value.
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