Francistown

Francistown grew around gold. Ancient workings in the area were reopened by prospectors in the 1860s and 1870s, and the town that formed took its name from Daniel Francis, one of the concession holders. It became the country's commercial centre for the north and remains its second city, a working place on the road and rail line to Zimbabwe. The Supa Ngwao Museum, in old colonial buildings, covers the region's history and the peoples of the northeast.

Background

The city stands where the Tati and Ntshe rivers meet, near the Shashe River, a tributary of the Limpopo, about 400 kilometres north-northeast of Gaborone. People have lived in the area for around 10,000 years. In 1867 the prospector Karl Mauch found Bakalanga miners working gold along the Tati River, and his reports of the Tati Goldfields set off the first gold rush in Southern Africa. The present town was founded in 1897 near the Monarch mine, when 300 lots were sold in August, and it was named after Daniel Francis, a prospector from Liverpool. It became a city in 1997, and the 2022 census counted 103,417 people. Kalanga is the main language spoken here.

Source: Wikipedia, "Francistown"

What you'll find

• The Supa Ngwao Museum - regional history and culture in restored colonial buildings.
• The gold-rush history - old workings and the story of the 1860s rush around the town.
• The railway - the line north to Zimbabwe running through the centre.
• The commercial centre - the working heart of northern Botswana.

When to go

April to September is the dry season and most comfortable. Summer from November to March is hot with afternoon storms. The museum keeps limited hours and closes on some days.

Things to know

There is little sightseeing and the city is a stopover rather than a destination. The museum is small and its hours are unreliable. Most old mining sites are on private ground and not accessible.

Nearby

Domboshaba is northeast, and the Tuli block is south.

Key facts