The history of Kruger is as rich and varied as its abundant wildlife.  The land, referred to as the Lowveld, has been inhabited by humans for thousands of years, with more than 300 archaeological sites identified across the park. Evidence of pre-European settlement can be seen at several sites, with the Thulamela ruins representing a trading post that dealt with the east Africa coast until the sixteenth century.  

Tsonga people still resided in the area in the late nineteenth century, with kraals present along the Sabie and Letaba Rivers before the establishment of any formal park area.  Workers on the Pretoria-Lorenço Marques railway and other poachers massively over-hunted the wildlife of the area, driving some individuals to promote the idea that a protected area should be instigated by the South African Republic’s / Transvaal Republic’s government.  

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The birth of the reserve
In 1895, representative RK Loveday tabled a motion to the South African Republic government that a game reserve between the Crocodile and Sabie Rivers be created.  The motion was supported and the government of President Paul Kruger declared the new area an officially protected Game Reserve.  It is worth noting that the initial concept was merely to allow the recovery of wildlife numbers before re-opening the area to hunting; suggestions of actually preserving a habitat simply for its beauty and wildlife would have been met with incredulity by the vast majority of European-heritage people at the time.  

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In time, the protected area became known as Sabie Game Reserve and Stevenson-Hamilton was made its first warden in 1902. He went on to be the driving force for the creation of a genuine National Park, providing permanent protection for its wildlife and habitats. 

Singwitsi Reserve, named for the Shingwedzi River in the north of modern Kruger, was proclaimed in 1903.  Over the following decades, local populations were relocated from the two parks and the farmlands in between.  In 1926, these parks and farms were combined to create Kruger National Park, after the former president and in spite of his general disregard for the project in the late 1890s.

Prior to the creation of Kruger National Park, the only access point to the public was at the Sabie Bridge rail station, and the rail bridge over the Sabie River is still very visible from the Skukuza rest camp today.  Bush walks were available to tourists who then continued along the train-line, towards the coast.  

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The first tourists
During 1926, three tourist cars entered the park on newly built roads near Pretoriuskop.  This had become 850 cars by 1929 and the reputation of Kruger, and its incredible wildlife, was forged.

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The 1930s saw a significant increase in the road network constructed within the park, linking the main southern rest camps of Skukuza and Lower Sabie, plus Letaba and Shingwedzi in the north.  The threat of malaria held tourist numbers back during this period, and the outbreak of World War II limited supplies and caused the closure of parts of the park during the winter months.  Following the war, Stevenson-Hamilton retired after 44-years as warden of Kruger and its Sabie Game Reserve predecessor, and visitor numbers scaled new heights, with nearly 59,000 coming to the park in 1946.  

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Projects to fence the entire border of the park commenced in 1959 and ran throughout the 1960s.  This was to prevent animals wandering into neighbouring farmlands, as well as to hinder ivory poachers.  1961 saw the reintroduction of white rhino to the park with the relocation of several animals from Natal.  

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The last of the locals inhabiting land within the park were forcibly removed from the Pafuri region in 1969.  This created a subsequent legal battle that was only concluded in the 1990s when the land north of the Luvuvhu River was returned to the Makuleke people, in return for its continued use as national park lands but with shared economic benefits.  

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In 1971, black rhino were reintroduced to Kruger; they had been locally extinct since 1946.  Wilderness trails were also opened during the 1970s, proving extremely popular and promoting the creation of several more over the coming years.  

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Poaching, particularly of ivory, became a major problem during the early 1980s, driving intensive anti-poaching measures which proved largely successful.  The 1980s and 90s also heralded a modernisation of the park’s facilities, with multiple new camps opened and improvements made at many of the existing camps.  New roads improved the visitor connectivity within the park too.

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Modern changes and challenges
The dropping of fences and agreements with bordering landowners increased the protected Greater Kruger area considerably during the 1990s.  In 2002, Kruger National Park, Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe and Parque National du Limpopo in Mozambique were incorporated into the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Park, with fences removed to aid the migration of animals across greater tracts of protected land.

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More recent years have seen continued development within the park, not always without controversy.  With visitor numbers reaching the millions, conference facilities changing the nature of some of the camps, and the dreadful rhino poaching crisis again devastating the once steady populations of this incredible animal within the park, it is clear to see the impact of humans on this wonderful place. 

Throughout the complex, and sometimes challenging, history of Kruger National Park, one constant has remained: visitors from around the world dream of coming to this incredible wilderness to experience its amazing wildlife.

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Technological developments, even including the KrugerExplorer App, bring the accessibility of the park into the 21st century.  We hope this will continue to raise awareness and knowledge, creating the next generation of stewards for the continuing protection of Kruger National Park, and its wildlife, for many more centuries to come.