Johannesburg

The news that the Ornico Group has moved its headquarters from a prime Sandton address to the Joburg CBD is making waves in heritage and property circles. Over the past year, the company has been refurbishing the historic Natal Bank Building and in recent weeks over 100 employees have moved in. This is a major psychological boost for the ongoing revival of the historic heart of Johannesburg.

The Natal Bank Building from above (source unknown). The building is located opposite City Hall and across from Beyers Naude Square.

The Natal Bank Building was planned in the late 1890s but was only completed in 1903 due to the destabilisation caused by the South African War. For almost six decades it was used as a bank building before finding a variety of new uses. According to a survey commissioned by the City of Johannesburg, it was used by a theatrical group for a couple of years in the sixties before becoming home to the Intelligence Department and Foreign Branch. One can only imagine the secretive network that was controlled from the building.

The Main...

As many readers may know, Somerset House in downtown Johannesburg is being restored by OPH under the guidance of MayatHart Heritage Consultants. The building was built in 1906 for the United Building Society and included a banking hall and a safe deposit section. In addition to it being one of the oldest surviving bank buildings in the city (the Natal Bank Building is older), Somerset House is one of the few remaining glass roof galleried buildings in South Africa.

Inside Somerset House in 2012 (The Heritage Portal)

In 1972, the arcade which stretched from Fox Street to what is now Gandhi Square was closed and blocked off by a kitchen. It is wonderful to report that 45 years later this hidden arcade and heritage treasure has re-emerged. In the months ahead it should be opened up to be marvelled at by enthusiasts from across the country.

Longitudinal section of Somerset House showing the arcade and gallery (Doug Hindson)

The photographs below reveal how the building looked before restoration and now during restoration...

We South Africans live in a polyglot society, which under our Constitution, has 11 official languages that “must enjoy parity of esteem and must be treated equitably”. Mother tongues range from Afrikaans to IsiZulu, from isiXhosa to Setswana, however to stop us being a modern Tower of Babel we largely use one language to communicate between each other and that is English. In doing so we are reflecting a world wide trend. In today’s world English has become the “Lingua Franca” replacing French as the language of diplomacy and German in the field of science. It has also become one of the essential languages for global trade.

In 21st century South Africa, English is used in many walks of life, in media and advertising, in education, law, commerce and government. English is the language of the big city especially Johannesburg, South Africa’s financial capital. Although should one drive 50 miles (80 km) in any direction out of “Egoli”, you are more likely to hear Afrikaans or an African language being spoken. How is it then that a European colonial language has managed to become so influential?

To answer this question a look at South African history from the beginning of the 19th century is needed.

The English language first came to the southern tip of Africa 1795 when the British occupied the Cape of Good Hope in order to protect their trade with India and the Orient. They left in 1803 as part of the terms of the Treaty of Amiens, but in January 1806 they returned for good, after...

Should one drive out of Johannesburg eastwards along the N12 highway, a famous landmark is passed at the Snake Road exit, known as Benoni’s mountain or more accurately the Kleinfontein Mine Dump. The Dump has been standing tall (92 metres) for over 90 years but will soon only be a memory as it is being reclaimed for the estimated 3 ½ tons of gold that it contains. For many it is an eyesore and good riddance, but others will be sad to see it go.

Benoni's Mountain (Google Maps)

Johannesburg is famous for being the only major city not built on a body of water yet it has a reef – the Main Reef, which stretches from Randfontein in the west, to Springs in the east, a distance of nearly 60 miles (96 km). The Main Reef was the gold bearing ore body that George Harrison stubbed his toe on in 1886 which gave rise to Johannesburg (click here for more details).

Over a period of 90 years (1886 to 1976) gold was being actively mined from underground workings, which left a trail of mine dumps stretching along the length of the Main Reef.

On coming to South Africa in 1975 I would often travel along the Main Reef Road, on a winter Saturday afternoon, to play an “away” game of rugby at ERPM Boksburg, Rand Leases, Roodepoort or West Rand, Krugersdorp and on...

A few years ago, one of the oldest houses in Norwood faced a bleak future. The owners had spent little to nothing on maintenance over the years, rubbish was piling up and services had been disconnected. Developers began circling hoping to acquire the property for a bargain price. Illegal demolition appeared to be the most likely outcome at this stage.

Thankfully, representatives of the Norwood Orchards Residents Association (NORA) heard about the situation and decided to take action. They facilitated the sale of the property to a sensitive buyer who took urgent steps to halt the decline of the property. Layers of rubbish were cleared, electricity and water services were reconnected and waterproofing maintenance was carried out. Miraculously, many of the property's heritage features had survived the years of neglect.

As soon as the condition of the house had been stabilised, it was sold to Brendan Lombard who carried out a spectacular restoration. He was assisted by a sensitive contractor who was able to restore large sections of the original flooring, many of the ceilings and all of the fireplaces (click here for contact details). Below are a few before and after photographs that reveal an inspired vision.  

The front of the house before restoration (Brendan Lombard)

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The Joburg skyline (or at least hints of it) can be viewed from hundreds of places around the city. There are some spots that provide such an exceptional view and experience that they must be shared. City enthusiasts will be aware of these and many more not mentioned. Please add your favourite spots in the comments section below.

The Hill above the Dutch Reformed Church, Cottesloe

The suburb of Cottesloe is located to the west of the City between parts of the UJ and Wits campuses. On a hill above Annet Road (accessed via Hull Street - click here for a google map) lies the landmark Dutch Reformed Church. If you make your way to the top of the hill you will see a magnificent view of the church with the city skyline in the background. The site is a favourite for photographic groups and some epic sunrises have been captured. In addition to the views of the city, photographers can get great aerial shots of the famous Gas Works.
 

The Cottesloe Church with the Joburg skyline behind (The Heritage Portal)

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While browsing through the book Seventy Golden Years (published by the Johannesburg City Council in 1956 to commemorate the city's 70th birthday), I came across a wonderful advert for Stewarts and Lloyds of South Africa. The company proudly announced that the hitching posts it supplied to the fashionable Athenaeum Club in the early 1900s were still in place over fifty years later. This was despite the Athenaeum being demolished and the reality that horses were no longer the major means of transport.

Stewarts and LLoyds Advert (Seventy Golden Years)

The advert piqued my interest and I wondered if the hitching posts were still there 61 years after the advert and 114 years after being erected. Surely six decades was enough time for a car accident to take them out, for a contractor to mistakenly remove them or for a vandal to steal them?

My first thought was to jump in my car and head out to the corner of Wolmarans and Klein Streets to search for evidence but the thought of getting caught in Joburg’s afternoon rush hour traffic during a thunderstorm quickly squashed that idea. While not as satisfying as a real-world hunt, I opened my browser to check if google maps could assist. I zoomed in via the 3D view and then transitioned to street view. A Mega Bus blocked the view but after some manoeuvring the...

Da Gama Park is a little known, underused and under appreciated Johannesburg park. It is a rare beauty spot because it is located on spectacular open high ground bordering Observatory Extension, Cyrildene and De Wetshof (click here to view on google maps). It has the feeling of open, unfettered common land where your dogs can roam freely across tufty African grass. There are no fences and no playground equipment. The air is bracing and clean, there's no pollution or smog. Traffic is remote and though no more than 5 kms from the Jozi CBD you could be in the country. Here you are on one of the classic quartzite ridges of the Witwatersrand and you view the City from a natural peak.

It is a unique Jozi experience. It is my favourite spot for falling in love with the city of Johannesburg again. You have a 180 degree viewing range from west to east across a southern arc. The city skyscraper skyline is etched almost as a silhouette.

Stand firm in the gentle winter breeze, smell the honey golden grass, wild flowers and acacia trees, let the red Gauteng earth run through your fingers. Come with a camera. If you look to the South and West you can pick out the Towers that define the cityscape. Your camera lens takes in Ponte, the Hillbrow Telecommunications Tower, the apartheid era government mini tower installation on the Observatory Ridge and the two Yeoville Water towers. All of this fits in...

Charles Thrupp arrived in South Africa from the United Kingdom in 1882 and made his way to King Williams Town to take up a job with a local wholesaler. As the gold fields of the Rand began to boom, the firm called on Thrupp to open and manage a store in Johannesburg. After a few years of solid trade, the branch hit hard times and had to close its doors in 1892. For most employees this would have meant looking for another job but Thrupp saw Johannesburg's potential and acquired the grocery side of the ailing business. He opened his first store on the corner of President and Eloff Streets later that year.

Thrupps Store on the corner of President and Eloff Streets (Seventy Golden Years)

Thrupp was forced to leave Johannesburg when the Anglo-Boer War (South African War) broke out in 1899. He returned when hostilities ended in 1902 and re-established the business at a prime Pritchard Street address. The site was only one erf down from the prized corner of Eloff and Pritchard Streets which went on to become the peak land value intersection in South Africa for over seventy years.

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Johannesburg’s Roman Catholic Cathedral of Christ the King is an impressive landmark located on the corner of Sarotoga Avenue and End Street in Berea. It was built in the late 1950s when Johannesburg was one of the fastest growing cities in the world and opened in impressive style in 1960. Below are a few edited passages (from an article that appeared in the 1961 edition of South African Panorama) that provide a wonderful description of the architecture and craftsmanship that produced the stirring structure. 

A Great city deserves great cathedrals – this was one of the themes woven into the sixty-five years of planning which culminated in the solemn opening in Johannesburg of the Roman Catholic Cathedral of Christ the King.

Set in the heart of teeming streets and the daily rush of commercial life, this cathedral was built at a cost of £250,000. It was designed by a Northern Ireland architect [Brian Gregory]. He kept the traditional form – the Latin cross – but merged the age-old majesty of cathedrals of Europe with the energetic architecture of the time.

Cathedral of Christ the King (Google Maps)

The building is a mellow rose-brown in colour. It is finished in rough concrete which gives the impression of hewn rock. From the main entrance in Saratoga Avenue the cathedral...