Heidelberg News 1895–1897, compiled, privately printed, and funded by Tony Burisch, is an exceptional piece of local historical recovery and a cornerstone of Heidelberg’s documentary heritage. Burisch—widely regarded as the backbone and driving force of the Heidelberg Heritage Association—has distilled the contents of the Heidelberg S.A.R. Times into a vivid three-year portrait of town life on the eve of war.
Heidelberg predates Johannesburg and appears on early maps before the Witwatersrand mining camp. As an administrative seat where mining claims could be registered, it held regional importance well beyond its size. Named after the German university town on the Neckar River, Heidelberg was founded by the German trader Heinrich Ueckermann and officially proclaimed in 1899.
Burisch opens Heidelberg News 1895–1897 with a succinct introduction to the town’s key late-nineteenth-century figures and families—government officials, landdrosts, clergy, teachers, hotel keepers, farmers, and traders—hardy settlers who built institutions and social life in a frontier setting. The selected news items range from farming reports, auctions, and the coming of the railway to church affairs (and petty quarrels), social and sporting events, and local entertainments. These everyday rhythms unfold against mounting political tension, culminating in the Jameson Raid, which set in motion events leading to the South African War. Period photographs, postcards, and advertisements enrich the text, making the book a close, archival study of a town’s functioning life over a concentrated three-year span.
Central Hotel, Heidleberg
Burisch’s second major contribution is a local history written and completed by Noel Roberts in 1938 but left unpublished until now. Carefully compiled and privately published by Burisch in 2025, the volume benefits from his scholarly footnotes, explanatory commentary, and a thoughtfully chosen selection of images. Roberts’ primary focus is the development of Heidelberg’s churches, schools, and educational life, offering insight into the town’s moral and institutional foundations. Highlights include the tranquil Heidelberg street scene painted by J H Pierneef (original held by the Brenthurst Library) and the Johannesburg Station panel by Pierneef, now on loan to the Rupert Museum.
Heidelberg Street Scene by Pierneef
Together, these two publications materially deepen our understanding of Heidelberg’s civic, social, and spiritual history at a formative moment in South Africa’s past. Burisch’s drive and passion were fittingly recognised when he received the gold medal of the Heritage Association of South Africa at the Middelburg Symposium in October 2025.
Heidelberg would still benefit from a modern, fully inclusive history—one that extends beyond earlier emphases on white Voortrekker and settler narratives to encompass black and Indian communities and the profound changes of the past ninety years. Few are better placed to undertake that task than Tony Burisch.
Both books are privately printed and may be purchased directly from Tony Burisch. tonyburisch5690@gmail.com.
Kathy Munro is an Honorary Associate Professor in the School of Architecture and Planning at the University of the Witwatersrand. She enjoyed a long career as an academic and in management at Wits University. She trained as an economic historian. She is an enthusiastic book person and has built her own somewhat eclectic book collection over 40 years. Her interests cover Africana, Johannesburg history, history, art history, travel, business and banking histories. She researches and writes on historical architecture and heritage matters. She is a member of the Board of the Johannesburg Heritage Foundation and is a docent at the Wits Arts Museum. She is currently working on a couple of projects on Johannesburg architects and is researching South African architects, war cemeteries and memorials. Kathy is a member of the online book community the Library thing and recommends this cataloging website and worldwide network as a book lover's haven. She is also the Chairperson of HASA.