Kisumu City Guide - Kisumu National Museum | Kisumu Accommodation | Kisumu Tourist Attractions

Kisumu translates to a place of barter trade. The town has “Companionship” status with Cheltenham, UK, and “Sister Town” status with Colorado, Boulder, USA, and Roanoke, Virginia. 

When the British first settled in the area in the 19th century, Kisumu became one of the most significant trading posts in this region – attracting the Luo community from as far as Siaya and Mogori County. The Luo people later inhabited the Kisumu area.

At that time, an individual going to the Kisumu trading post used to say, “Adhi Kisuma” meaning “I am going to trade.” The present-day Kisumu is an English corruption of the word Kesumett or Kisumo. Derived from the term Kisuma, Kisumo is Luo’s name for a trading post. In Nandi, it is “Kesumett”. 

Another theory argues Kisumu Town derived its name from “Kusuma.” Kusuma is the Maragoli term for trading. This is because the Maragoli were already trading with Maasai and Nandi before Luo arrived. Luo’s words originated from the Maragoli.

Kisumu’s history shows that it was among the earliest settlements in Kenya. Historical records show that different communities dominated it at other times before the British arrived. The people from the Abagusii, Nandi, Abaluhya, Kalenjin, Maasai, and Luo tribes converged at the shore of Lake Victoria and named it “Sumo,” meaning “a place of barter trade.”

C.W. Hobley, a pioneer colonial administrator in 1900, wrote that Kisumu City was situated on a rocky Schwarz full of thorn bushes before it was cleared and paths created. The British explorers marked Kisumu in 1898 as a probable railway terminus and a port for the Uganda railway, which was under construction. 

It was intended to replace Port Victoria – a major caravan trade center near the delta of the Nzoia River. Kisumu was strategically situated on the shores of the lake at the Winam Gulf, the end of the caravan trail from Malindi, Mombasa, and Pemba, and could potentially link the entire lake region.

The first blueprint for Kisumu was drawn in 1899. This included piers along the northern lake beach and landing places near the present-time Airport Road. Demarcations for retail shops and government buildings were also included in this plan.

Another blueprint was prepared in 1900 when the land was allocated to European settlers and Indian traders who had come to construct the Ugandan Railway. The blueprint included a flying boat jetty – today used by Fisheries Department. 

In 1900, a 62-ton ship, SS William Mackinnon, was assembled and registered in Kisumu and sailed to Entebbe, marking the starting of Lake Marine Services. Later, the SS Winifred (1901) and the SS Sybil (1901) were added to the fleet in 1902/04, respectively. 

The railway reached the Kisumu pier in 1901, with the center changing its name to Port Florence. During this time, Florence Preston, Hobley’s wife, drove to the shores of Lake Victoria, and hence, Port Florence came into existence. 

However, it didn’t last long as the name was changed to Kisumu. Winston Churchill came to Kisumu Town in 1907. 

Until 1977, Kisumu was among the busiest towns in Kenya, but due to the collapse of the East African Community due to political reasons, its port had remained idle for 20 years. 

Increased cooperation and the revival of the East African Community in 2000 have helped transform Kisumu into a major center for petroleum products.