One
of the principal towns of the Southern Lowveld , Barberton is often called the
jewel of Lowveld. This town is older than the city of Johannesburg and was
founded in 1884 by Graham Barber, from Natal, who found what they called
Barber's Reef - a reef so rich that it glittered with gold.
This
discovery led to the founding of Barberton. A flood of diggers
arrived on the scene and a hotch-potch of shacks, stores and
canteens sprang up. On June 1884 David Wilson, mining commissioner
of the De Kaap Valley, broke a bottle of gin over a lump of rock to
christen the town, thus launching it on a lively career.
During
1886 Barberton was at the height of its boom. Two stock exchanges
traded night and day. Dozens of canteens, liquor shops and music
halls competed with the mines to make the greatest profits in town.
Flashy beauties such as Florrie the Golden Dane and Cockney Liz
reigned over a frenetic night life. Cockney Liz was a particular
favourite and would parade on a billiard table before her clientele
and impishly snap her garters.
Other
mushroomed -towns sprang up such as one Eureka City. At it's peak, Eureka City
had a population of 650 men and a handful of women. It had three hotels , about
a dozen canteens, a race track, music hall and, reputedly, some of the flashiest
barmaids in the De Kaap Valley. It soon acquired the reputation of being even
wilder and more lawless than Barberton!
The
very richness of the limited reefs and the presence of two stock markets bore
within them the germ of destruction. Soon too much money was chasing too little
profit. Shares by the thousands were sold in bogus companies and within a matter
of months the mining operations were hopelessly over capitalised. Meanwhile the
gold rush in the Witwatersrand started and disillusioned prospectors started
drifting away from Barberton and Eureka City. One by one the bars, gambling dens,
music halls, and the two stock exchanges closed down. Eureka City was abandoned
and Barberton became virtually a ghost town. However, a few companies like Sheba
persevered and carried Barberton through this difficult period. Eureka City went
into decline and it's ruins lie high in the hills on the north eastern side of
the De Kaap Valley. A track from Barberton takes visitors to the site, but there
is not a single inhabitant.
Barberton
offers numerous places of historical interest including the Lewis and Marks
Building, the first double storey structure in Transvaal. The Gold
Stock exchange ( 1887 ), Fernlea House ( 1893), Belhaven and Stopworth House (
1886). The Barberton Museum on Pilgrim’s Street houses some excellent exhibits
on aspects of early life in Barberton. The Bulembu Pass, a short distance south
of town is one of the most outstanding scenic routes in Mpumalanga.
Though
surrounded by the Mkonjwa Mountains, the town itself is just 877m above sea
level and offers a very beautiful scenic view to all tourists.
For
more informatiion see http://www.barberton.co.za.
Search
Lowveldinfo.com for more information relating to Barberton.
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