Butterworth was first established as a Wesleyan mission station in 1827 north of the Great Kei River in British Kaffraria.

[6] The mission station and white settlement of Butterworth was burnt down 3 times during the Cape Frontier Wars.

When the British seized the Cape of Good Hope, many of the Boers trekked north to establish their own republics.

The discovery of diamonds (1867) and gold (1886) in South Africa spurred wealth and immigration and intensified the subjugation of the native inhabitants.

The Ninth Frontier War spelled the end of the Xhosa, and the Transkei area was incorporated into the Cape Colony.

[7] Butterworth is the birthplace of Marmaduke Pattle, the highest scoring RAF ace of World War 2, and Bill Drummond, a Scottish artist, musician, writer, and record producer.

At the end of the Frontier Wars in 1878, traders began to settle here and the town has grown to become a small industrial centre.

The Church of the Province of Southern Africa has played an important role in the life of the Butterworth community.

Development in Butterworth has followed the line of the N2 and thus resulted in a long, narrow settlement east of town towards Walter Sisulu University (WSU), about 5 km away.

The N2 also runs through the CBD, which results in a clash of uses and congestion, with high speed road transport seeming to use the same space as pedestrians, hawkers and public service functions.

Fingoland Mall extends over 12,700 m2, which is less than half of the total footprint of the shopping centre when complete after the third and last phase is built.

Visitors can go for day walks to the nearby villages such as Tobashana and experience the hospitality of traditional Xhosa living.