This module is designed to give you an understanding of the evolution of mining on the African continent.
Mining in Africa
African mines provided Europeans with a strong impetus to become even more involved in the scramble for Africa in the 1880s. A large amount of capital flow from Europe to Africa from the 1880s onwards was used toward establishing mining enterprises and railways. Railways were specifically designed to move supplies to the mines and minerals to ports for export.
Mining is South Africa was under European control before other parts of the continent; however, develops in South Africa were to be followed by other parts of Africa. European mining of copper in Namaqualand began in the 1850s. Small mining towns contained houses, churches, shops, and huts constructed on a grid pattern. The towns followed the basic layout of other colonial towns. The only main difference was the presence of the mine itself.
The discovery of diamonds in the Cape Colony in 1867 dramatically transformed mining in South Africa. The diamond rush that ensued made it clear that greater organization and control over the diamond digging process was required. Companies joined together in agglomerations in an attempt to reduce costs. Cecil Rhodes was able to gain control over the De Beers mine and later the other mines.
The Emergence of the Mining Compound System
The diamond sorting process allowed workers to steal the valuable gems. In the 1880s the illicit diamond trade made up 25-40 percent of all diamond discoveries. If workers were forcibly searched it led to strikes and conflict; therefore, a new solution was needed. The answer came in the form of the mining compound system. The mining companies built housing for Black workers in a in a number of segregated buildings. The workers were not allowed to leave the mining compound for the duration of their contract period. The worker was cut-off from the outside world; therefore, they could not steal the gems. This restrictive arrangement became prominent in 1855. Attempts to place European workers under the same conditions failed.
The Town of Kimberley
The town of Kimberley was established in close proximity to the main diamond mines and was Africa's first European-style industrial town. The town was laid out with little attention towards later growth. It had a highly irregular street plan. By 1891 the town had a population of 39,000 people; however, the town's population in 1936 remained at the 1891 level. This stagnant population growth demonstrates how mining towns experienced periods of growth and decline as mines became depleted or as greater bounties of minerals were found elsewhere.
The discovery of Gold
Gold mining proved to take on much larger scope than diamond mining had. The series of gold mines led to the establishment of towns in order to service the great surge in population associated with mining. The most vital of these mining towns was Johannesburg. Plots in Johannesburg and other mining towns were much smaller than in other towns because agriculture was not to be the source of subsidence for their residents. Johannesburg’s growth and development was closely regulated by the government, in stark contrast to the uncontrolled growth of Kimberly.
The mines were under European control; however, the vast majority of unskilled laborers were African males. The European owners never attempted to recruit permanent workers because they did not want to house their families. Labor increasingly came from the impoverished Africans living in Native Reserves (see the module on Native Reserves).
One Towns: Two different Worlds
Founded in 1947, the town of Welkon demonstrates the advantages of being white in a mining town. White residential areas were divided into separate neighborhood units positioned around a civic centre. Road patterns were geometrically arranged in order to reduce traffic jams and to prevent the dangerous intersections created by a grid plan city. The town was clearly designed with the automobile in mind. Major advances in town planning included large areas devoted to playing fields and paths.
The adjacent African township of Thabong was built on a grid pattern with no space for the generous buildings found in the white portion of the town. The barracks established for the African mine laborers were also a prevalent feature of the African portion of the town.
Gold Mining Bolsters the African Economy
Gold mining and its demand for supplies, men, and capitals was a major reason why the South African economy grew so rapidly compared to the rest of the continent. Gold mining reversed the trend of economic concentration on the African coast. Coastal cities lost their dominance as Johannesburg became the center of the South African economy. The gold mining industry was an impetus for the development of a heavy industrial base.
The cost of importing machinery and fuel led to an attempt at import substitution (Policies designed to foster domestic industries). An example was the discovery and utilization of coal as a power source. Another was the large scale mining of iron ore began after World War 1. The economy of South Africa remains the strongest on the continent. For more information on Africa's economic powerhouse visit: http://www.southafrica.info/business/economy/
