AY Honors/Gold Prospecting/Answer Key

The Witwatersrand Gold Rush and the establishment of Johannesburg, South Africa are closely connected.

There had always been rumours of a modern-day "El Dorado" in the folklore of the native tribes that roamed the plains of the South African highveld, and the gold miners that had come from all over the world to seek out their fortunes on the alluvial mines of Barberton and Pilgrim's Rest, in what is now known as the province of Mpumalanga.

But it was not until 1886 that the massive wealth of the Witwatersrand would be uncovered. Scientific studies have pointed to the fact that the "Golden Arc" which stretches from Johannesburg to Welkom was once a massive inland lake, and that silt and gold deposits from alluvial gold settled in the area to form the gold-rich deposits that South Africa is famous for.

It is believed that it was a Sunday in March 1886 that an Australian gold miner, George Harrison, stumbled across a rocky outcrop of the main gold-bearing reef. He declared his claim with the then-government of the Zuid Afrikaanse Republiek (ZAR), and the area was pronounced open diggings. His discovery is recorded in history with a monument where the original gold outcrop is believed to be located, and a park named in his honour. Ironically, Harrison is believed to have sold his claim for less than 10 Pounds before leaving the area, and he was never heard from again.

It did not take long for fortune-seekers from all over the world to flock to the area, and soon what was a dusty mining village known as Ferreira's Camp was formalised into a settlement. Initially, the ZAR did not believe that the gold would last for long, and mapped out a small triangular piece of land to cram as many plots onto as possible. This is the reason why Johannesburg's central business district streets are so narrow.

The unenviable task of naming the new settlement fell into the hands of two men: Johannes Meyer and Johannes Rissik, both men of the ZAR government involved in land surveying and mapping. It is widely held that the two, sharing a common first name, decided to name the settlement Johannesburg, in honour of themselves. Little did anyone know that the city would become one of the largest in the world barely 100 years later.

The name "Johannesburg" is derived from two Afrikaans words: "Johannes," a first name in Afrikaans meaning "John;" and "burg," an Afrikaans word derived from the Dutch and German for "village" or "hamlet," similar to the English word "burgh" as in Edinburgh, also meaning "town." Thus, Johannesburg's name actually means "John's Town."

Within 10 years, the town was already the largest in South Africa, outstripping the growth of Cape Town, which was more than 200 years older.

The gold rush saw massive development of Johannesburg and the Witwatersrand, and the area remains the primate metropolitan area of South Africa. Thomas Brinkhoff (www.citypopulation.de) lists the area as having a 2004 population of 7.85 million--about one third the size of New York, and one of the 35 largest urbans area in the world. The metro area, if located in the United States, would be the fourth-largest there, after New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago.

The gold rush has long since ended, and the city is now more focused on the financial and service sectors, followed by manufacturing. Development of the metro area continues at a frenetic pace. The city is the most wired in Africa.