Take a Walk Back in Time in Barberton
Barberton has a rich history in both gold and mining, which visitors can explore.
The Heritage Walk is a self-guided tour of Barberton and you can collect a map of the walk from the Tourist Information Centre or History Museum in Barberton and take to the streets.
It’s best to get started from the History Museum so that one can get a geological perspective of the area and also learn a little of the cultural history and the early inhabitants. The history museum is open from 9h00 to 16h00.
The first stop on the walk is the Lodge of St John in the South. Built as the Union Church in 1884, it was taken over by the Lodge of St John in 1887.
Built in 1901 during the Anglo Boer War, next on the walk is the Blockhouse, which was built to protect the concentration camp and military hospital in Barberton. This was the first British-style Blockhouse in the country.
The next stop is a typical display of the wealthy people of the time. Belhaven House Museum was built in 1904 and is furnished in a style representing that era.
Fernlea House, next on the walk, is a wood and iron house built for Mrs Emily Fernandez in the 1890’s, Fernlea House stands as an exhibition about Rimer’s Creek. Approximately 720 meters from Fernlea House is the Turbine that was built in 1931 to purify Barberton’s water.
A popular hang-out of the miners and barmaids of the gold rush, Rimer’s Creek is filled with stories of a by-gone era. If you love history, you will really delight in the next house along the walk, Stopforth House. Constructed in 1886, Stopforth House was built by James Stopforth, the local general dealer, and today it houses the original furnishings and decorations of the Stopforth Family.
Only the façade of the next building remains, the De Kaap Stock Exchange building had unfortunately deteriorated and had to be demolished. The original building was built in 1887.
Used as a hospital during the Anglo Boer War and an officer’s mess in 1900, the original Barberton Club building burnt down but was rebuilt, right down to the hitching posts that were used to tie horses too.
A popular hotel since 1886, the Phoenix Hotel is said to have housed President Paul Kruger during one of his visits to the area.
The first double storey building in Barberton was built for Sammy Marks and his cousin Isaac Lewis. Known as the Lewis and Marks Building, it housed the Bank of Africa on the ground floor and had other offices on the second floor.
A walk around Barberton is only complete when you have paid a visit to the Jock of the Bushveld memorial statue. This very popular dog was owned by Percy Fitzpatrick and said to have accompanied him on his travels around the Lowveld. His statue can be seen right in front of the Barberton Town Hall.
The Gospel Street Cemetery has graves dating back to Barberton’s early days. There is also a special memorial area in the cemetery for all those who died during the Anglo Boer War in the concentration camp.
North-west of Barberton, during the Second World War, a military camp was established to train troops before sending them to war. Today you can visit the Garden of Remembrance to pay homage to those who lost their lives during that war and also during the Anglo-Boer War.
