When the railway from the south reached this area in 1891 Trompsburg was laid out on the farm Middelwater which belonged to Jan and Bastiaan Tromp.
Initially the town was known as Jagersfontein Road, before the branch railway was built from Springfontein to Koffiefontein via Jagersfontein. Later it was named Hamilton after Sir Hamilton J. Goold-Adams, governor of the Orange River Colony from 1902 to 1910.
Still later the name was changed to Trompsburg in honour of the owners of the farm. Municipal status was granted in 1902.
Today, Tromspburg is an ideal stop-over when travelling from Johannesburg to Cape Town or Port Elizabeth.
