Barberton

The best of barberton

Barberton is a town in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa, which has its origin in the 1880s gold rush in the region. It is situated in the De Kaap Valley and is fringed by the Makhonjwa Mountains. It is 43 kilometres (27 mi) south of Mbombela and 360 kilometres (220 mi) east of Johannesburg.
In 1881 gold in the Barberton area was discovered by Tom McLachlan who found alluvial gold at Jamestown. However, due to the location (the hot lowveld region was rife with malaria) no one wanted to go there until Auguste Roberts ("French Bob") discovered gold in Concession Creek on 20 June 1883. This discovery resulted in a gold rush to the area.

The town was named after Graham Hoare Barber (1835-1888) who discovered a rich gold-bearing reef there in 1884.
Large amounts of money flowed into Barberton and the first Stock Exchange to operate in the then Transvaal opened its doors.
Gold mining in Barberton flourished for only a brief period and soon the inhabitants began to move away to the newly discovered gold fields on the Reef.
The Heritage Walk features an array of memorial buildings, statues, monuments and museums that date back to as early as 1884

The town was named after Graham Hoare Barber (1835-1888) who discovered a rich gold-bearing reef there in 1884.
Large amounts of money flowed into Barberton and the first Stock Exchange to operate in the then Transvaal opened its doors.
Gold mining in Barberton flourished for only a brief period and soon the inhabitants began to move away to the newly discovered gold fields on the Reef.
The Heritage Walk features an array of memorial buildings, statues, monuments and museums that date back to as early as 1884

The geotrail along the paved R40 road which winds its way across the high mountains to the Swazi border makes it possible to comfortably learn about these rocks and enjoy the scenery responsibly. Numerous colourful and well-designed information tablets at lay-bys along the road inform about landscape, nature, and the stories the rocks have to tell.

The geotrail along the paved R40 road which winds its way across the high mountains to the Swazi border makes it possible to comfortably learn about these rocks and enjoy the scenery responsibly. Numerous colourful and well-designed information tablets at lay-bys along the road inform about landscape, nature, and the stories the rocks have to tell.

Barberton was home to Sir Percy FitzPatrick, author of Jock of the Bushveld.

Barberton (or, at least, a depiction of Barberton) is featured in Bryce Courtenay's novel The Power of One, as the main character's hometown.

A character in the Sherlock Holmes adventure "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax" made his fortune in Barberton.

An area south-west of town was the site of one of the more than forty concentration camps built by the British during the Second Boer War to house Boer women and children.

The Heritage Museum holds many interesting artifacts dating as early as 1884.

Barberton was home to Sir Percy FitzPatrick, author of Jock of the Bushveld.

Barberton (or, at least, a depiction of Barberton) is featured in Bryce Courtenay's novel The Power of One, as the main character's hometown.

A character in the Sherlock Holmes adventure "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax" made his fortune in Barberton.

The Heritage Museum holds many interesting artifacts dating as early as 1884.

The mountains around Barberton are amongst the oldest in the world, dating back 3.5 billion years, and these mountains include some of the oldest exposed rocks on the planet. These volcanic rocks, which scientists call the Barberton Greenstone Belt, have given direct evidence of the conditions of life on the surface of the very early Earth.
Songimvelo Game Reserve: this reserve is situated in the Barberton Mountain lands and is the Mpumalanga Parks Board's largest reserve, extending over 500 square kilometres.
The Barberton Daisy: a popular flowering plant, the Barberton daisy (Gerbera jamesonii) was discovered here in 1889 by Robert Jameson.

The mountains around Barberton are amongst the oldest in the world, dating back 3.5 billion years, and these mountains include some of the oldest exposed rocks on the planet. These volcanic rocks, which scientists call the Barberton Greenstone Belt, have given direct evidence of the conditions of life on the surface of the very early Earth.
Songimvelo Game Reserve: this reserve is situated in the Barberton Mountain lands and is the Mpumalanga Parks Board's largest reserve, extending over 500 square kilometres.
The Barberton Daisy: a popular flowering plant, the Barberton daisy (Gerbera jamesonii) was discovered here in 1889 by Robert Jameson.

Sheba mine is today one of the oldest and richest working gold mines in the world, having been in production for more than a century. It is estimated that production will continue for several decades to come.

Golden Quarry discovered by Edwin Bray in 1885, so named because it looked as if the rock was formed entirely of gold, resulted in the mine becoming well known throughout the world. The Golden Quarry, the Oriental, the Edwin Bray and the Nil Desperandum together composed the Sheba Reef Gold Mining Company and production from these mines astounded the world. Shares of 1 Pound were re-sold for 120 Pounds per share. Arrange a trip to the quarry through any of the accommodation establishments.

Sheba mine is today one of the oldest and richest working gold mines in the world, having been in production for more than a century. It is estimated that production will continue for several decades to come.
Golden Quarry discovered by Edwin Bray in 1885, so named because it looked as if the rock was formed entirely of gold, resulted in the mine becoming well known throughout the world. The Golden Quarry, the Oriental, the Edwin Bray and the Nil Desperandum together composed the Sheba Reef Gold Mining Company and production from these mines astounded the world. Shares of 1 Pound were re-sold for 120 Pounds per share. Arrange a trip to the quarry through any of the accommodation establishments.

Visit the Barberton tourism website to find out more about this interesting and fascinating area https://barberton.co.za/