The town of Despatch is situated on rich clay soil and was the site of a thriving brick industry in the late 1800s. Despatch's name comes from this brick industry, as bricks were dispatched from the original railway siding. Many older buildings in Uitenhage and Port Elizabeth were constructed using these bricks, which can be identified by the word 'Despatch' imprinted on the top and bottom. The town's only remaining reminder of its brick industry past is a chimney built in 1882, which was part of the Brick Works. This chimney, located in a field on the northern outskirts of town next to the railway lines, has recently been restored to its former glory, now featuring supports that give it the appearance of a space rocket.
In 1903 the remains of an Algoasaurus were discovered near Despatch.[2]
The township of Despatch was originally developed in 1942 to offer cheaper homing alternative for its fast growing neighbours of Uitenhage and Port Elizabeth. The town obtained official municipal status in 1945 and in 2001 it jointed with Uitenhage, Port Elizabeth and surrounding areas to form the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality.
Transport
Roads
Despatch lies just off the R75 highway (serves as a southern bypass) heading north–south from Graaff-Reinet to Port Elizabeth. However, the main route through the town is the M19 (Botha Street; Main Street) heading south-east from Despatch to Swartkops. The M6 (serves as a northern bypass) connects the R75 interchange in the east to Uitenhage in the west. The M10 bypasses Despatch to the west, heading north–south from Uitenhage Industries to Bethelsdorp.
^Broom, R. (1915). Catalogue of types and figured specimens of fossil vertebrates in the American Museum of Natural History. II.–Permian, Triassic and Jurassic reptiles of South Africa. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 25(2):105–164.
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