Butterworth, Wild Coast

Coordinates: 28.1630, -32.3150
Updated: 20 Jul 2026

https://www.sa-venues.com/attractionsec/butterworth.php — Waterfall at Butterworth

Butterworth is situated in the Eastern Cape of South Africa and is one of the oldest towns in the Eastern Cape's Wild Coast (the former Transkei - a black homeland during the apartheid years). Butterworth is situated north of the Great Kei River and was established originally as a Wesleyan mission in 1827. These missionaries had great fortitude as during the wars between settlers and tribes, they rebuilt their mission three times after it was repeatedly burnt down. Two sites in Butterworth that are well worth visiting are two nearby waterfalls namely the tumbling cascades of Gcuwa Falls and the impressive 100m drop at Bowa Falls, which is also believed to have been a place of executions.

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Butterworth, Wild Coast

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Last updated · 20 Jul 2026

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2020, January 24). Butterworth, Wild Coast. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/xh/ref/P-0149897

South African History Online (2020) 'Butterworth, Wild Coast', South African History Online, 24 January. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/xh/ref/P-0149897 (Accessed: 22 July 2026).

South African History Online, Butterworth, Wild Coast [website], https://sahistory.org.za/xh/ref/P-0149897, (accessed 22 July 2026).

"Butterworth, Wild Coast." South African History Online, 24 Jan. 2020, https://sahistory.org.za/xh/ref/P-0149897. Accessed 22 July 2026.

South African History Online. "Butterworth, Wild Coast." South African History Online. January 24, 2020. https://sahistory.org.za/xh/ref/P-0149897.