Gold -> Rush
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The first gold rush occurred in the Pilgrim's Rest and Baberton area in Mpumalanga and saw gold miners travelling from all over the world in the hope of claiming their piece of land and ultimately their fortunes.
A Golden Arc
The incredible amount of gold found in the Witwatersrand area was all part of a "Golden Arc" that stretches from Johannesburg all the way to Welkom. The "Golden Arc" is found where a massive inland lake was once positioned. Silt and gold deposits settled along the shore of the lake to form the gold-rich areas that South Africa is now famous for.
Lucky George
Gold was first discovered in the Witwatersrand area on a lazy Sunday in March 1886 when an Australian gold miner, George Harrison stumbled across a rocky outcrop which was part of the main gold-bearing reef. He declared his claim to the government of the time and the area was declared open for mining. Today one can find a gold monument where the original outcrop was and the area where the discovery was made is known as George Harrison Park and has been declared a national monument.
Fortune-seekers descend
Word spread quickly about George Harrison's discovery and soon the small mining village that had cropped up where the gold was found, known as Ferreira's Camp, began to expand into a formalised settlement. Fortune-seekers flocked from all over the world to claim their piece of land in the hope of striking it lucky and the population grew and grew and within 10 years the small village had turned into the largest town in the country, outgrowing the already 200 year old Cape Town in a few short years.
How the town got its name
It is said that the new, rapidly growing settlement; Johannesburg, was named after two land surveyors and officials of the Zuid-AfrikaanscheRepublijk (ZAR) named Johannes Meyer and Johannes Rissik. It is thought that the two men combined their names and added the word 'burg' to the end, an Afrikaans word which means 'fortified city'.
Historical legacy
The South African government of the time did not believe that the gold would last of a particularly long time and therefore they only mapped out small triangular pieces of land as plots, cramming as many into a small space as possible. It is said that these small plots are the reason why Johannesburg's CBD streets are now so narrow.