Church Square is one of the three early areas of land about which the early town developed and its boundaries probably began to be defined in 1679 when the first public building, a slave lodge, today known as the Old Supreme Court, was built on its southern side. In1701 the Dutch Reformed Church, known as the Groote Kerk, was erected on its southern side and, at a later stage, the eastern boundary was defined by a spinning factory. Originally the square served as the site of the slave market. It was declared a National Monument under old NMC legislation on 17 February 1961.
Place record
Church Square,Spin Street- Cape Town
- Coordinates
- -33.9200, 18.3500
- Updated
- 20 Jul 2026

Location Map
Church Square,Spin Street- Cape Town
South African History Online. (2011, July 14). Church Square,Spin Street- Cape Town. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/P-0065739
South African History Online (2011) 'Church Square,Spin Street- Cape Town', South African History Online, 14 July. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/P-0065739 (Accessed: 22 July 2026).
South African History Online, Church Square,Spin Street- Cape Town [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/P-0065739, (accessed 22 July 2026).
"Church Square,Spin Street- Cape Town." South African History Online, 14 July 2011, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/P-0065739. Accessed 22 July 2026.
South African History Online. "Church Square,Spin Street- Cape Town." South African History Online. July 14, 2011. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/P-0065739.
Further reading
Cape Town the Segregated city
The Freedom struggle in Cape Town
Cape Town Timeline 1300-1997
Slave Resistance
Cape Youth Congress (CAYCO)
United Women’s Organisation (UWO)
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