In 1936, Johannesburg hosted the British Empire Exhibition and for this illustrious major event, the JMT – Johannesburg Municipal Tramways, ordered 50 modern trams from Metropolitan Cammell in Birmingham, England. These streamlined double-deck trams represented the last word in modern tramcar design. Seating was provided for 32 passengers on the lower deck and 44 upstairs – total 76.
BOOK REVIEWS
‘Geomotional’ is a remarkable and beautifully illustrated exploration of – as the sub-title says – ‘Geometric art, past and present’. The book, which has us journey through images, words, poetry and song, and gives account of a ‘performance-installation’, is compiled by Mary Elizabeth Lange, who is prolific in her writings on Indigenous art and story, and various intersections with heritage.
BLUE PLAQUES
In this cemetery lie the remains of residents of Juliwe Location, established in the early 1900s. By 1959, the cemetery contained the graves of some 3000 adults and 2635 infants. African residents of Roodepoort West were removed to Dobsonville, and their Location destroyed from 1956-1967, but they resisted the removal of the cemetery, which they insisted should remain as a sacred memorial.