Pritchard Street

Some time ago, I was wondering what happened to William Henry Auret Pritchard when he died. You may ask why I should be interested in this man. Well, for historians of Johannesburg, it is a well-known fact that as a Land Surveyor, he was asked to link the two sections of Central Johannesburg which had been laid out on either side of a mining enterprise in the vicinity of the Supreme Court (Pritchard and Bree Streets). De Villiers had surveyed the original stands in early Johannesburg but because of mining activity between President and Bree Streets, he was unable to survey the stands that were laid out after the mining in that section had finished. Because these two sections had been laid out independently of each other, the north/south streets on either side didn’t meet, so there is a kink in the streets where they cross Bree Street. Pritchard did his best and a street was named after him!

The kink in the road (Google Maps)

Pritchard Street (The Heritage Portal)

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Pritchard Street is one of Johannesburg’s iconic streets. For many decades, the most prestigious shops in the city craved a Pritchard Street address and shoppers came from all over South Africa to marvel at the latest goods and fashions from around the world. By the 1970s, the rise of suburban malls saw a major shift in shopping patterns with upmarket customers abandoning the historic retail district. This shift in buying behaviour led to the closure of landmark department stores such as John Orrs and Stuttafords.

Pritchard Street adapted to changing customer needs but few could argue that by the 1980s the era of glitz and glamour was well over. With the general decline of the CBD in the late 1990s and early 2000s many buildings on the street fell into disrepair while others operated well below their potential. In recent years, however, a revival has been underway and if you walk along Pritchard Street today it is hard not to get excited about all the activity!

On the corner of Pritchard and Rissik Streets, Afhco has completed a residential conversion of the Stuttafords Building. Over 100 units have been created many with magnificent views over the city.

Stuttafords - restored in 2015-16 (The Heritage Portal)

Next door to Stuttafords as you move eastwards is the Game Building painted in the colours of the South African flag. While...