Fort Victoria

Fort Victoria was founded in 1890 and was Rhodesia's first town. In the early years it was also the first town reached by the visitor to Rhodesia, but was soon eclipsed by Bulawayo once the railway arrived there in 1897 and henceforth that city became the main point of entry to the country. In practice the town is usually referred to as "Fort Vic" and, as it was not connected to the railway network until 1914 and even then only by a branch line, it became somewhat of a backwater in the development stakes compared with what might have been. It is the centre of a mining and agricultural district with cattle ranching being of some importance.