Victoria West is a town in the central Karoo region of South Africa's Northern Cape province.

[3] The town was laid out on the bank of the Brakrivier watercourse in 1843,[4] when the Dutch Reformed Church bought the farm Zeekoegat from the estate of J.H.

The Victoria West Wool Auctions began in 1884 and were well enough supported to justify their being held twice a month.

[6] In April 1921, the Municipal Dam, which was approved at a public meeting in 1913 but delayed through cement shortages, was at last completed.

Boats were introduced for the convenience of the public, and a great debate arose as to the bathing facilities.

Bathers must be dressed in a costume sufficient to cover the body decently from shoulder to halfway between the hip and knee”.

[6] A severe flood struck the town during the night of 27 February 1871 after a cloudburst in the mountains 15 km to the south-west.

A wave of four meters high swept down the dry bed of the Zeekoegat River that runs through the village, overflowed its banks and flooded the houses, causing many to collapse.

Many people were swept down the river in total darkness, others saving themselves by climbing into trees and on other stationary objects.

[6] Another storm occurred at the beginning of December 1897, with the Cape Argus reporting that the downpour had been so heavy that "no rain equal to it had been witnessed since the great flood of 1871.

As a result, the line reached the newly built station at Victoria West Road in 1883.

[6] In the early twentieth century the increased use of motor cars meant that the Karoo was no longer as isolated as it used to be.

In February 1985, the agreement of 66 years between the municipality and the Shell Oil Company to supply avgas came to an end.

In 1874 a catalogue of books contained in the library was printed by the well-known firm of Saul Solomon & Co of Cape Town.

[6] The Standard Bank of British South Africa opened one of its first branches in Victoria West, after its foundation in 1862.

The Victoria West Messenger, still one of the oldest weekly newspapers in the country, celebrated its centenary in 1975.