Nakuru City is a cosmopolitan urban center lying about 160 kilometers west of Kenya's capital Nairobi City.

It is the fourth largest city in Kenya after Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu and the only city on the floor of the Rift Valley

Nakuru derives its name from a local Maasai word Naguuro which means “dust or dusty place.” The Maasai community were the initial inhabitants of the area before they were displaced by the British settlers.

The name was in reference to the frequent whirlwinds that engulfed the area with clouds and dust.

Nakuru district was established by the British colonial government as part of the white highlands and was famously known as the informal capital of the British settlement.

The history of its growth and development can be traced back to the early 20th century during the construction of the Uganda Railway in the period between 1895 and 1901.

When the railway line construction reached Nakuru District in 1900, the Europeans constructed the Nakuru railway station with an aim of opening up access to the surrounding lavish countryside of Subukia, Rongai and Njoro.

The railway station also served as a service center for the fertile agro-cultural hinterland occupied by white settlers.

Nakuru was awarded township status in 1904 after which more development was witnessed.

Following the increased activities around the railway station, the new establishments began cropping up around the area.

Among the first establishments is the Nakuru hotel (currently the midlands hotel) which was built in 1906 by Col J S Sadler the first governor of British East Africa just opposite the old railway station.

Nakuru was awarded township status in 1904 after which more development was witnessed.

The hotel served as a convergence point where potential passengers enjoyed their meals as they waited for their next train.

It had a hall where important meetings were held as well as guests visiting the town were accommodated.

The War Memorial hospital was also constructed next to the railway station as a health care facility for the British soldiers and settler’s population from Subukia, Gigil, Njoro and Naivasha

These include Lake Nakuru, one of the saline lakes on the floor of Rift valley which is the home to hundreds of species of birds including the flamingos that provides a beautiful scenery of the lake.

jopenda@ke.nationmedia.com

How Nakuru was Born

Author Spotlight

Joseph Openda