The earliest activity on what today is known as Brackenfell was when the “de Clapmuts” was a refreshment post. Brackenfell specifically form part of Klapmutsberg, better known as de Bottelarij. In 1712 the area known as “Kruispad” was transferred to Selie, J. Kruispad was owned by Brink, A. and in 1901 he sold it to a Scottish Immigrant Walton, G.H. The flora on this farm reminded him of the same in Scotland. He call it Brackenfell. The richness of granite in the area let to the farm being sold to a Brick company in 1903 and a granite quarry was established. Activity here stopped in 1948. In 1904 a railway station was established. Brackenfell used to be a major road crossing during the earlier days of Cape Town, but today it is a well-known suburb located behind the 'boerewors gordyn’ which translates to sausage curtain, meaning; people living in this area, braai boerewors very often. “Gordyn” curtain is just by figure of speech. It's all said tongue-in-the-cheek.
Geography
Brackenfell is located on the outskirts of the Cape Metropole. It is located on the north-eastern rural-urban fringe of the metropolitan area. Being on the outskirts of the city and at the gateway of the Cape Winelands means that Stellenbosch, Paarl and Durbanville's wine farms are in easy access. Located more or less halfway between the Cape Town city centre and Paarl, Brackenfell is approximately 30 km north-east of the Cape Town CBD and 35 km south-west of Paarl. The suburb is bordered by Kraaifontein in the east, Kuilsrivier in the south, Durbanville in the north and Bellville in the west.
Brackenfell is home to many retail companies' head offices such as Shoprite, Checkers as well as Food Lover's Market. Shoprite-Checkers have a new distribution centre which was completed in 2019 in the Brackengate 2 Business Park named the Cilmore Distribution Centre.
Industrialisation
The industrialisation in Brackenfell is rapidly increasing with the current second phase of the Brackengate Business Park known as Brackengate 2. The Brackengate area is located is along the R300 highway. The initial Brackengate known as Brackengate Business Park includes Food Lover's Market's head office and have light industrial businesses. The second section or phase of the Brackengate area is known as Brackengate 2 which includes Shoprite and Checkers' distribution centre and other industrial companies and stores. Other industrial areas in Brackenfell include Okavango Park and Brackenfell Industria.
Agriculture & other farms
The Hazendal and Groenland wine estates are located on the outskirts of Brackenfell and the beginning of the Cape Winelands and the Stellenbosch Wine Route. Other farms surrounding Brackenfell include Groenvlei Guest Farm and the Equanimity Equestrian Centre. All these farms are located on the Bottelary Road which is the road which connects to Stellenbosch through the Bottelary Hills.
Brackengate Field Hospital
Due to the rising numbers of Covid-19 cases in the Western Cape, the Western Cape Health Department constructed a field hospital in the Brackengate 2 industrial area. It opened on 20 July 2020 with 10 patients. The field hospital has capacity 300 beds for Covid-19 patients from hospitals struggling with capacity. It is one of three hospitals built ahead of the Western Cape's projected peak.
Shopping
Brackenfell is also home to one of the largest shopping centres in the Western Cape province, Cape Gate Shopping Centre. Cape Gate Shopping Centre is located in the shopping district of Cape Gate which is along the N1 with over 160 stores. Other shopping centres in Brackenfell include the Brackenfell Shopping Centre, Fairbridge Mall and Brackenfell Centre which are on Old Paarl Road, the Glengarry Shopping Centre located in the northern suburb of Vredekloof and Boulevard Square located in the southern suburb of Protea Heights.
Brackenfell is considered one of the Cape Town's most strategically located suburbs, located between two major highways, the N1 and R300. Another important route is the R101 which is the town's main road. The Old Paarl Road, as the name suggests links to Paarl as well as Bellville, Kraaifontein and Worcester. Many metropolitan routes also run through the town such as the M23, M25, M73, M100 and M137. These routes connect to surrounding suburbs such as Durbanville, Bellville and Kraaifontein. The M23 also connects to Stellenbosch, a town near the Cape Metropole.
Coat of arms
Brackenfell was a municipality from 1970 to 1996. In November 1971, the council registered a coat of arms at the Bureau of Heraldry. The arms, designed by Cornelis Pama, were Per chevron embowed Or and Vert, three shot balls counterchanged, i.e. a shield divided by a curved chevron-shaped line into gold and green, with two green balls at the top and a golden ball at the bottom. The crest was three ferns with the motto Tenax in fide.
Kanonkop Brackenfell's highest point in Ruwari, was used as a signal point with its signal cannons in the 1700s. Cannons can be seen at Brackenfell High School and Bastion Primary School.
In Vredekloof Street in Vredekloof the bird, the Cape Robin nest and is commonly known as Jan Frederik.
The popular cooking and grill sauce Jimmy's Sauces CC is produced in Brackenfell and is sold not only in South Africa but also all over the world.
