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26-449: The municipality was placed under administration in 2018 after then-mayor Vusi Tshabalala was removed from office on the basis of corruption allegations. Being situated halfway between Johannesburg and Durban, the town is generally very busy, especially the N3 freeway that runs past the town. The town was founded in 1849 and named after British Governor Sir Harry Smith . who tried to persuade

52-485: A British resident in Bloemfontein . The town is around 90 km east from Bethlehem and 45 km north-east of nearby Phuthaditjhaba . The small nearby hamlet of Swinburne (originally) is named after Sir John Swinburne, a gold prospector . The townships associated with Harrismith are Intabazwe located in the north and Tshiame in the west. Harrismith is well known as an overnight or refreshment stop along

78-478: A cornucopia, including Abundantia , "Abundance" personified, and Annona , goddess of the grain supply to the city of Rome . Hades , the classical ruler of the underworld in the mystery religions , was a giver of agricultural, mineral and spiritual wealth, and in art often holds a cornucopia. In modern depictions, the cornucopia is typically a hollow, horn-shaped wicker basket filled with various kinds of festive fruit and vegetables . In most of North America ,

104-410: A large horn -shaped container overflowing with produce , flowers, or nuts . Baskets or panniers of this form were traditionally used in western Asia and Europe to hold and carry newly harvested food products. The horn-shaped basket would be worn on the back or slung around the torso, leaving the harvester's hands free for picking. Mythology offers multiple explanations of the origin of

130-614: A no-confidence motion from within his own party. He resigned and was replaced the following month by Gilbert Moktso. Tshabalala was elected to the North West Provincial Legislature in the 2019 general election , ranked sixth on the ANC's provincial party list . The ANC named him as Majority Chief Whip in the legislature and additionally as Chairperson of its Committee on Public Accounts and Finance. The opposition Democratic Alliance opposed his appointment to

156-459: The N3 route , and a convenient refuelling stop for trucks and vehicles, but it has much more to offer. Beyond the highway is a previously tidy town with many elegant late 19th century buildings made of hewn sandstone. There are numerous bed & breakfast places catering to visitors. It is the best access point to the northernmost Drakensberg , including Tugela Falls and Mont-Aux-Sources (accessed via

182-643: The R712 . Harrismith is the centre of one of the five wool producing districts in Southern Africa . The town is home to the largest truck stop in the Southern Hemisphere, named Highway Junction. Harrismith is also home to the small Harrismith Airport . Two other places in the world bear the same name: Harrismith Beach and Harrismith House near Bottom Bay in Barbados and Harrismith in

208-653: The Voortrekkers not to abandon the Cape Colony . The town was initially laid out by Robert Moffat about 25 km from the present location, in present-day Aberfeldy on the Elands River . That site however proved to be deficient in water and Harrismith was shifted to its present site in January 1850. Twenty-four years later it became a municipality and during the diamond rush at Kimberley, Northern Cape ,

234-466: The Free State ANC. However, when the provincial party's local branches nominated their preferred candidates, Tshabalala did not perform well: he was nominated by only six branches, compared with the 59 nominations for Mxolisi Dukwana , 37 nominations for Sisi Ntombela , and 15 nominations for Thabo Manyoni . Tshabalala ultimately stood for the position of Provincial Treasurer instead, but when

260-616: The Majority Chief Whip in the legislature until October 2021, when he was replaced after the ANC suspended him while he faced internal disciplinary charges. He is also known for his controversial tenure in the Free State 's Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality , where he was Mayor between 2013 and 2018. Tshabalala became acting Mayor of Maluti-a-Phofung in September 2013 after the incumbent, Sarah Moleleki , resigned; he

286-839: The Sentinel Hiking Trail, in the QwaQwa region of the Free State, 80 km south-west of Harrismith on the R57 ), Sterkfontein Dam Nature Reserve (20 km southeast of town on the R74 ), Royal Natal Park and the uKhahlamba / Drakensberg Park World Heritage Site (66 km southeast via Oliviershoek Pass beyond Sterkfontein Dam ) and the spectacular Golden Gate Highlands National Park 50 km south-west of town on

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312-568: The Wheatbelt region of Western Australia. By 1931, the Harrismith municipal council had assumed a pseudo-heraldic coat of arms. The shield was divided by a horizontal line, the upper half depicting three upright maize cobs and three sheaves of wheat on a silver background, and the lower half a cornucopia . The crest was a plough, and the motto Grandescunt aucta labore (i.e. by hard work, all things increase and grow). A proper coat of arms

338-485: The attribute of several Greek and Roman deities , particularly those associated with the harvest, prosperity, or spiritual abundance, such as personifications of Earth ( Gaia or Terra ); the child Plutus , god of riches and son of the grain goddess Demeter ; the nymph Maia ; and Fortuna , the goddess of luck, who had the power to grant prosperity. In Roman Imperial cult , abstract Roman deities who fostered peace ( pax Romana ) and prosperity were also depicted with

364-444: The conference was held in January 2023 he lost in a vote to Mathabo Leeto , who received 346 votes to Tshabalala's 304. Cornucopia In classical antiquity , the cornucopia ( / ˌ k ɔːr n ( j ) ə ˈ k oʊ p i ə , - n ( j ) uː -/ ; from Latin cornu  'horn' and copia  'abundance'), also called the horn of plenty , was a symbol of abundance and nourishment , commonly

390-482: The cornucopia has come to be associated with Thanksgiving and the harvest. Cornucopia is also the name of the annual November Food and Wine celebration in Whistler , British Columbia, Canada. Two cornucopias are seen in the flag and state seal of Idaho . The Great Seal of North Carolina depicts Liberty standing and Plenty holding a cornucopia. The coats of arms of Colombia , Panama , Peru and Venezuela , and

416-522: The cornucopia. One of the best-known involves the birth and nurturance of the infant Zeus , who had to be hidden from his devouring father Cronus . In a cave on Mount Ida on the island of Crete , baby Zeus was cared for and protected by a number of divine attendants, including the goat Amaltheia ("Nourishing Goddess"), who fed him with her milk. The suckling future king of the gods had unusual abilities and strength, and in playing with his nursemaid accidentally broke off one of her horns , which then had

442-573: The divine power to provide unending nourishment, as the foster mother had to the god. In another myth, the cornucopia was created when Heracles (Roman Hercules ) wrestled with the river god Achelous and ripped off one of his horns; river gods were sometimes depicted as horned. This version is represented in the Achelous and Hercules mural painting by the American Regionalist artist Thomas Hart Benton . The cornucopia became

468-481: The latter position, arguing that he had presided over corruption and financial maladministration in the Maluti-a-Phofung municipality. In October 2021, the ANC suspended Tshabalala from his party and legislative offices, pending internal disciplinary proceedings. He was accused of – but denied – supporting independent candidates during the 2021 local government elections . After his disciplinary hearing

494-465: The municipality and several motions of no confidence tabled against him by opposition councillors. The opposition Democratic Alliance later alleged that he held the council "hostage" during this period; according to opposition councillors, the no-confidence votes were disrupted by Tshabalala's supporters. In early May 2018, the provincial leadership of the ANC – no longer led by Magashule – "recalled" Tshabalala as mayor, asking him to resign or face

520-478: The municipality's financial difficulties to alleged corruption and dubbed Tshabalala the municipality's "gangster mayor". In March of that year, an investigative report by the Mail & Guardian triggered a "jobs for votes" scandal, with the newspaper claiming that municipal funds had been used to buy votes ahead of the ANC's 54th National Conference . Also in 2018, Tshabalala faced service delivery protests in

546-611: The town became a busy staging post on the Natal transport route. As a direct result of this, hotels, stores and public buildings sprang up. By the 1880s the town was seen as the second largest in the Orange Free State . The increased infrastructure and traffic in the region made fording of the Wilge river impractical. After heavy rains the swollen river prevented communication, interrupted transport and claimed lives. The government

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572-572: The upper half of a red cogwheel, and on each side is a curved green segment bearing a golden ear of wheat. Once again, the crest was a plough and the motto was Grandescunt aucta labore . Vusi Tshabalala Vusimusi William Tshabalala is a South African politician who has represented the African National Congress (ANC) in the Free State Provincial Legislature since 2019. He was also

598-463: Was designed (by Schalk Pienaar) in the 1970s, and registered at the Bureau of Heraldry in September 1977. The arms were : Argent, a chevron Azure between in chief an elephant statant proper and in base a demi-cogwheel issuant Gules, two flaunches Vert each charged with an ear of wheat, Or . In layman's terms, the shield is silver and depicts, from top to bottom, an elephant, a blue chevron, and

624-499: Was formally elected and inaugurated in early February 2014. At the time the ANC said that he was the youngest mayor in the Free State. He became known as a staunch political ally of Ace Magashule , then the Provincial Chairperson of the ANC's Free State branch. His tenure as mayor was controversial. In February 2018, the municipality was placed under administration; local opposition parties and press linked

650-449: Was held on 10–11 May 2022, the ANC's provincial disciplinary committee ruled that the charges relied on inadmissible hearsay evidence. He was acquitted and reinstated to his party membership and legislative activity, but he was not reinstated as Chief Whip; Thabo Meeko , who had been appointed after his suspension, remained in that office. Following his reinstatement, Tshabalala launched a campaign to be elected Provincial Chairperson of

676-504: Was petitioned and two bridges were opened in 1884, one six miles towards Bethlehem, and another at the current Swinburne . The use of these were taxed until 1905. Harrismith was a major base during the South African (Anglo-Boer) War and visitors can see the several blockhouses, engineering works and a military cemetery that are evidence of this. The town's main street, Warden Street, is named after Major Henry D. Warden, at that time

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