| Douglas | |
| Pushpin Map: | South Africa Northern Cape#South Africa |
| Coordinates: | -29.05°N 69°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | South Africa |
| Subdivision Type1: | Province |
| Subdivision Name1: | Northern Cape |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Pixley ka Seme |
| Subdivision Type3: | Municipality |
| Subdivision Name3: | Siyancuma |
| Subdivision Type4: | Main Place |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Leader Title: | Councillor |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 86.42 |
| Elevation M: | 990 |
| Population Total: | 20083 |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics Type1: | Racial makeup (2011) |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Black African |
| Demographics1 Info1: | 32.1% |
| Demographics1 Title2: | Coloured |
| Demographics1 Info2: | 58.3% |
| Demographics1 Title3: | Indian/Asian |
| Demographics1 Info3: | 0.8% |
| Demographics1 Title4: | White |
| Demographics1 Info4: | 8.0% |
| Demographics1 Title5: | Other |
| Demographics1 Info5: | 0.9% |
| Demographics Type2: | First languages (2011) |
| Demographics2 Title1: | Afrikaans |
| Demographics2 Info1: | 93.1% |
| Demographics2 Title2: | Tswana |
| Demographics2 Info2: | 2.3% |
| Demographics2 Title3: | English |
| Demographics2 Info3: | 1.5% |
| Demographics2 Title5: | Other |
| Demographics2 Info5: | 3.1% |
| Timezone1: | SAST |
| Utc Offset1: | +2 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code (street) |
| Postal Code: | 8730 |
| Postal2 Code Type: | PO box |
| Postal2 Code: | 8730 |
| Area Code Type: | Area code |
| Area Code: | 053 |
Douglas is an agricultural and stock farming town situated near the confluence of the Orange and Vaal Rivers in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. Notably the rural town has a diverse population, with mostly state institutions and the anchor private employer, GWK, an agricultural company.
The town was founded in 1848 as a mission station on the farm Backhouse by the Reverend Isaac Hughes,[2] who had been working along the Vaal River since 1845. In 1867, a group of Europeans from Griquatown signed an agreement giving them the right to establish a town. The town was named after General Sir Percy Douglas, Lieutenant Governor of the Cape Colony.
Douglas lies about 100 km southwest of Kimberley the capital of the Northern Cape. These two are connected by the R357 road.
Douglas has a record of its elevation above sea level of 1030.22 meters (3379.99 feet). Comparing Douglas district’s yearly temperature to South Africa’s averages, the records show that it is 4.01% higher with a temperature 25.23ºC (77.41ºF). Douglas is known for its Subtropical desert climate with 38.78 rainy days (10.62% of the time) and precipitation of about 19.31 millimeters (0.76 inches) annually.[3]