Orange (River) Free State is the name assumed by the republic of Dutch Boers, who, after, retiring from Natal when declared a British colony, established themselves in that portion of the country in the interior of South Africa lying between the two great branches of the Orange River, the Ky and the Gariep, known to the colonists as the Vaal and Orange rivers, and situated north of the Cape Colony. It consists of vast undulating plains, sloping gently down from the Maluti Mountains to: the Vaal River, dotted over, however, in many places by rocky hills, although to the northward hundreds of miles are found so entirely level as to present scarcely a break on the horizon. The population consists principally of English and Dutch settlers, besides a considerable number of native Kaffres (q.v.) and Hottentots (q.v.). In common with all new countries, the want of religious ordinances was for some time severely felt in the Orange Free State, but of late, years ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church, Wesleyan missionaries, and Episcopalian clergymen have, been appointed to this field of labor, and the population is gradually being transformed into a Christianized community. See The Missionary World (N.Y. 1875, 12mb), p. 529, No. 1104; Grundemann, Missions- Atlas, No. 1.
The Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature was edited by John McClintock and James Strong. It contains nearly 50,000 articles pertaining to Biblical and other religious literature, people, creeds, etc. It is a fantastic research tool for broad Christian study.
John McClintock was born October 27, 1814 in Philadelphia to Irish immigrants, John and Martha McClintock. He began as a clerk in his father's store, and then became a bookkeeper in the Methodist Book Concern in New York. Here he converted to Methodism and considered joining the ministry. McClintock entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1832 and graduated with high honors three years later. Subsequently, he was awarded a doctorate of divinity degree from the same institution in 1848.WikipediaRead More