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Benoni
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Benoni
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SOUTH AFRICA
GUIDES
AFRICA
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 Benoni's dusty, inauspicious beginnings in 1881 were no indication of the fun-filled atmosphere and vibrant outdoor life presently enjoyed. Unfriednly topography made the task of then surveyor-general Johan Rissik in assigning title deeds to all unclaimed State property difficult and he named the area Benoni (son of my sorrows), after that given by Rachel to her son in the book of Genesis. Six years later, gold was discovered and Benoni's destiny was bound to be anything but woeful. Sir George Farrar, chairman of the mining company, undertook the beautification of the rapidly-growing mining town. Minewater was channelled into a band of marshland, and reservoirs stocked with fish were created. Today these reservoirs are the playground of water sports enthusiasts and fisherman. Thousands of trees were planted in the new suburbia and, by the time it achieved municipal status in 1907, Benoni had grown into a nurtured, centre of gold, steel iron and brass mining. A century after its founding, with a population of 500 000, Benoni achieved city status. Benoni has five man-made lakes and more than 30 parks. The last gold mine was closed in 1967.
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